ShmoopTube

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[ musical flourish ]

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And here's your Shmoop du jour, brought to you by the Axis powers,

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a calculus teacher's secret weapon.

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All right, based on the image,

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during World War II, women experienced... what?

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And here are your potential answers.

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[ dog barks ]

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[ mumbles ]

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Well, World War II was a big moment for our country.

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For a few years, it seemed like everyone put aside their differences

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and focused on one thing.

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And no, it wasn't the movie Casablanca.

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It was fighting the Axis powers.

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So let's see how this global conflict

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engendered change for the female half of the population.

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Based on the image, did women during World War II experience A -

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resistance from husbands who did not want them

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to work outside the home?

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Well, actually, most husbands were overseas fighting in the war,

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so it was more likely that women encountered resistance from

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kids not wanting to eat their vegetables. So it's not A.

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Did World War II lead to B - increased

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demand for electricity due to the common use of radio?

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Huh. Well, while demand for electricity may have increased

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during this period, the woman in the image is welding,

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not using a radio,

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since women were focused more on the war effort

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than on home appliances.

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So that shorts out B and D.

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Which means that during World War II, women experienced

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C - increased participation

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in the economy as part of the labor force. Duh.

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When all the young men, who until then had served as

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the country's primary labor force,

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were drafted into the military,

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well, female workers were hired to produce everything the soldiers needed.

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So C is the right answer.

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With women assembling machinery and welding planes for battle,

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they suddenly encountered a whole new range of

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female empowerment tools.

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[ man in film ] Women scare me. At least,

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they do in a factory.

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[ clattering ]

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