The Political Containment of Women 1918–1939

Abstract

Up to the present day many talented women have found the search for a secure seat in the House of Commons a frustrating experience. One study of parliamentary candidates found that in the 1950s and 1960s it was still common for Conservative selection committees to ask married women why they were prepared to neglect their husbands and children, while also interrogating single women on their marriage plans!¹ Each of the party organisations has invariably excused its discrimination against female aspirants by pointing to the prejudice amongst the electorate. However, there is reason to think that such prejudice has dwindled to negligible proportions, and that the heart of the problem has always been the constituency selection committees.² Consequently one tends to start from the assumption that women’s parliamentary ambitions have always been thwarted by male obstructionism. But how far can we be certain about this? It would be surprising if attitudes among both politicians and voters had not fluctuated since the 1920s when women candidates were obviously a novelty. Nor would it be wise to assume that the aspirations of today’s women are the same as those of the inter-war generation.