Construction of Womanhood, Sexual Politics, Citizenship, and

Female Suffrage

Buenos Aires in Argentina,

1909-1922

Professor: Erick Langer

Student: Agustina González Nuňez

1

Construction of Womanhood, Sexual Politics,

Female Suffrage in Buenos Aires

in Argentina, 1909-1919.

Agustina González Nuňez

“Las razones y los argumentos de los quesostienen la necesidad de la emancipación civil y

política de la mujer, han sido dichas todas yrepetitas infinitas veces. Mas esto no es motivo

para que una vez más no se afirmen, pues lanaturaliza ofrece infinitos ejemplos de fuerzasque vencen por la constancia de su repetición.

Oponerse a esa emancipación, escudándose trasel argumento de la inferioridad de la mujer, es

hoy imposible, cuando se la ve invadiendo lentapero seguramente, todas las esferas de la

actividad humana, cuando se los ha visto en lospaíses en guerra substituir al hombre con

eficacia e incontables oficios y profesiones”

2

Alicia Moreau de Justo 1

Introduction

The women’s movements of Argentina of the 1890s

and 1900s had failed in succeeding the social and

political rights they had been so much fighting for

equality beyond the law. However they achieved

civil rights. During the modernization process in

the turn of the century, Argentina was going on a

in a fast speed transforming from a colonial

society to a modern one. Despite of all the

changes in the economic structures, political

systems, and social class hierarchies; the

1 Font, Miguel J., La Mujer. Encuesta Feminista Argentina. Hacia la formación de una Liga Feminista Sudamericana,(Buenos Aires, Editorial Candiotti, 1921)

3

perceptions and roles of women were almost kept

intact. The aesthetics of women had not changed

that much, women imitated the European fashion of

conservative women in the Old Continent; the social

codes stickly adhered to bourgeois values; the

roles of women and men had complementary

activities, particularly women were not expected to

participating in the political arena. Women

suffrage was not feminine, almost unmoral. However

he idea of women choosing the national and

municipal representative was in the air.

During the modernization process of the end of

the XIXth century faced a variety of difficulties.

In the 1910, the women’s movements grew stronger

and menaced the conservative perceptions and roles

of women. Women urged to women to have civil

rights so as to share the “patria potestad” with

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their husbands and to control their inheritance.

The women’s group also voiced the necessity of

women to participate in politics and to choose the

political representatives at a municipal and

national level. The granting of political rights

for women was the most intense debate; it

challenged the foundation of the family and the

nation. In 1922 in Buenos Aires, Miguel Font

conducted a poll to determine if the Argentine

society was ready for women to vote in the

municipal and national elections of 1922.2 Font

asked politicians, jurists, physicians,

journalists, and female physicians on what grounds

women should be granted the right to vote. Men

asserted that women should not vote. Conversely a

group of female physicians pointed out their 2 The poll regarding about the opinions about female suffrage was a difficult matter that involved most of men elite and most of the membersof the women movement.

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arguments of why they supported the female

suffrage. Font concluded that men disapproved

female suffrage whereas women physicians endorsed

female suffrage as one of the main political rights

for women. Yet Font's conclusions only stood for

the elite and middle-class perceptions of

womanhood. His poll and his questions did not take

into account the perceptions of womanhood of

working-class women. Despite the fact the poll

represented the construction of upper- and middle-

class individuals' perceptions of womanhood, women

were attuned to gender differences, and men were

not. Thereby The female physicians' reply took into

account upper-, middle-, and working-class women,

while men only mirrored upper- and middle-class

women. Font's poll reflected the strength and avant

-guardism of women's movement from 1909 to 1922. A

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group of female physicians led a strong Argentine

feminist movement. The movement was rooted on

liberal thought, had a zealous intellectual

orientation, and developed a strong devotion to

internationalism.  This women’s movement was ahead

of its time, supporting equality between women and

men before the law. In this manner, the traditional

role of women within society posed a threat within

a conservative and male run society.

The goal of this paper is to assess primary

sources and analyze the gender power relationships

in the political, cultural, and societal

environmental of Buenos Aires.  This essay analyzes

how politics constructs gender, and how the

arguments for and against female suffrage reshaped

the variety of social constructions of womanhood in

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the city of Buenos Aires from 1909 to 1922. My aim

is to examine how historical perceptions of

womanhood, suffrage, citizenship, and sexual

politics have changed over time.

Topic

Short contex

Argument

Marianimo

Private and public spheres

Longer context

Goal

Legimatization

Literature and Methodology

Other disciplines

Sources

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At this point, it would be helpful to review

the historiography of Latin American gender

studies. In recent years, Latin American gender

studies have become fashionable, particularly for

Mexican historians. There are few cases for

Argentine. The books of Asunción Lavrín, Carlson

Marifran, Sandra McGee Deutsch, Donna Guy, and

Karen Mead books have paved the way of gender

studies of Argentina. 3 These three authors

analyzed women’s movement in Argentina and included

female suffrage. However, none of these scholars

3 Asunción Lavrín, Women, feminism, and social change in Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay, 1890-1940,(Lincoln, Neb. : University of Nebraska Press, 1995), Sandra McGee Deutsch,“Gender and Sociopolitical Change in Twentieth Century Latin America”, TheHispanic Historical Review, Vol. 71, No. 2 (May, 1991), 259-306, and Marifran,Carlson, Feminism! The Woman’s Movement in Argentina From Its Beginnings to Eva Perón (Chicago:Chicago Academy Publishers, 1988), and Guy, Donna J., Sex and Danger in Buenos Aires:Prostitution, Family, and Nation in Argentina, (Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press,1991), and Karen Mead, “Beneficent Materialism: Argentine Motherhood inComparative Perspective”, Journal of Women ‘s History, Vol. 12, No. 3 (Autumn, 2000),121-145.

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have examined the identity of womanhood. How did

those authors analyze female suffrage in Argentina?

Lavrín explored the Argentine feminist female

suffrage movement and its priorities from 1890 to

1940. She concluded that the female suffrage was a

secondarily goal, their main goals were civil and

social rights, and education were priorities.

However Lavrín underscored the importance of female

suffrage movements. Women journals repetitively

asked for female suffrage, nonetheless they could

not achieve political rights for women in the 1920s

and 1930s. Lavrín did not analyze the identity of

womanhood. Marifran Carlson studied the Argentine

women’s movement from the beginning of the colony

to the charismatic leader Eva Perón in 1945.

Carlson argued that the Peronist Movement co-opted

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the women movements and its claim for female

suffrage of the 1910s. The autonomous feminist

movement of the 1910s lost not only the battle for

female suffrage, but also a top-up opportunity to

achieve the female suffrage. Finally, Eva Peron

enforced top-down female suffrage in 1947. Carlson,

as well as Lavrín, did not analyze the social

construction of the identity of womanhood of

Argentina. In contrast to Lavrín and Carlson, McGee

Deutsch makes the relationship between gender and

politics. She carried out an excellent analysis of

both how “gender constructs politics” and “how

politics constructs gender“ for the case of the

Peronist Movement.4 She analyzes the discourse of

Peronism, its propaganda and particularly the

discourse of the charismatic Eva – Peron’s wife.

4

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McGee explains how politics constructs gender. For

instance, she argued that Peronists text-books

reinforced the traditional roles of women and men.

The books presented activities and images of male

and female images which only enforced the

differences between women and male. Men labored in

the workplace and women stayed at home as mothers

and housewives. On the other side, McGee

demonstrated how gender constructs politics in the

case of Peronism. The perceptions of the discourse

of Peronist and its traditional idea of womanhood

reinforced a conservatory political and social

regime. Therefore the conservative idea of woman

and its characteristics did not change Peronism.

At the very end, all the political, economic, and

social important changes of Peronism and the

perception as a “revolutionary” did not change the

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status of woman in society. From the gender point

of view, Peronism was a conservative regime. The

gender perspective prevailed at the beginnings of

the Peronism. That regime started with the strong

discourse of “changing the status of Argentine

society; however it ended with an authoritarian and

fascism regime. The study of McGee was excellent

but she did not relate gender and citizenship.

Donna Guy and Karen Mead used gender categories

to examine the construction of citizenship, and

shape the notion of nation-state. Thus, which

members the Argentine society was considered

citizens and who participated in the body politics.

Guy argued that women were ousted from political

participation, particularly female suffrage. Guy

examined the social construction of the honest and

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the dishonest women. She analyzed the perceptions

of honest the honest and the dishonest woman. The

honest women stayed in her home and were devoted to

her family and relatives. Honest women had all the

features of the Virgin Mary. She was self-

sacrificing, shy, motherhood, and understanding In

contrast prostitutes were actively in the public

sphere. Prostitutes presented the dishonest women

and at the same way they were members of body

politic. But prostitutes were a threat for society.

There was an antithesis construction of womanhood

from a honest to the dishonest woman. There were

two social construction idea of woman. However none

of both them had the privilege to vote. The study

of Karen Mead showed how the members of the

Beneficent Society - wealth, upper-class, and well

connected politics women - used their identity of

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maternalism as a tool for advancing within

political activities within the nation-state. Guy

and Mead examined two different types of women. Guy

studied common women – prostitutes. In contrast

Mead studied upper-class women. Neither Guy and

Mead do not take into account this third story :

professional women. Professional women were

engaged and initiated the feminist movement in

Argentina. In following McGee Deutsch, this essay

analyzed how politics constructed gender and

analyzed. How female physician’s arguments in favor

of suffrage challenged the construction of a

traditional idea of womanhood. What is more, female

physicians proposed an identity of the “new woman”

within the conservative society of Argentina from

1909 to 1922.5

5 Joan, Scott, “Gender: A Useful Category of Historical Analysis”, American Historical Review, Vol.91, No. 5 (Dec., 1986), 1053-1075.

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In the context of this historiography

tradition, this essay will explore the female

physicians in favor of female suffrage and how they

struggled to transform the identity of womanhood in

the fin-de-Siècle of the Argentine society. At what

extend the discourse of those professional women

attracted their identity of the “new modern” idea

of womanhood? What were the main male arguments

against female suffrage? Furthermore, in what way

did the different arguments for and against female

suffrage reshaped the identity of womanhood in

Buenos Aires from the 1910s to the 1920s? In the

context of this tradition historiography this essay

will analyze the proposed questions taking into

account the following categories:

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1.Two identities of motherhood,

2.Marianismo, new women, and private and public

spheres,

3.Sexual politics and female suffrage,

4.Traditional, modernity, motherhood, and moral

values,

This essay was based on primary sources. My

main sources were the Encuesta de Voto Femenina en la

Ciudad de Buenos Aires, 1922, two female journals Nuestra

Causa from 1919 to 1922, and Unión y Labor from 1909

to 1915, and the newspapers La Nación, and La

Prensa. La Nación still is a prestigious and liberal

journal, and La Prensa is a popular one.

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Society, Politics and Female Suffrage in Argentina

from 1880 to 1930

The Argentine women’s movements and female

suffrage were politized at the beginning of the

twentieth century in a context of economic growth

and fast social changes. It is important to have a

picture of how female suffrage turned into a

political issue and a debate among politicians,

jurists, journalists, physicians, and lawyers.

Argentine women’s movement of the 1910s called for

female suffrage through propaganda and persuasion.

Their goal was to convince that female suffrage was

necessary. Moreover they published their ideas in

women journals. They created women institutions to

lobby the importance of female suffrage. What

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social and economic context led to the creation of

women’s movements from 1911 to 1920s in Argentina?

Nowadays Argentina does not resemble the strong

country of the end of the nineteenth century it

used to be.  During the period of 1860 to 1930,

Argentina was compared to Canada and Australia. 

They were the "economic tigers" of the turn of the

nineteenth century.  Economic growth, immigration

settlement, urbanization expansion, growing

industry, educated middle class, and high literacy

rates were the main features of the Argentine

development.  Argentina was the largest beef

exporter to Europe, particularly to Great Britain.

Great Britain imported 80% of its beef from

Argentina.  Great Britain investment was the most

relevant. Six million of emigrants settled in

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Argentina from 1820 to 1920.  The immigrant groups

included Italians (45%), Spaniards (26%), French,

English, Jews, Germans, Poles, Syrians, Lebanese,

Belgians and Croatians.  Today Argentina is an

underdeveloped melting pot of races, cultures, and

identities. Due to its excellent national

educational system the second generation of

immigrants became professionals.  The government

reinforced a successful literacy program that

lowered the illiteracy rate to 4%.  What was the

status of women within a growing and rich

Argentina?  The majority of women activities took

place within the nuclear family, maintaining the

traditional role of women.  The cultural, economic

and social changes of Argentina challenged those

traditional roles of women. Particularly the first

generation an important group of women graduated

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from the School of Medicine of the University of

Buenos Aires. What was the relationship between the

traditional idea of womanhood and the female

physicians’ idea of woman the fast economic growth

and new science ideas?

The Argentine women’s movement rose in a milieu

of massive European immigration, feminism,

socialism, and anarchist ideas, economic growth,

strongly grow urbanization, and increasing amount

of workers women. The women’s movements asserted

the law was the main way to change the legal status

of women. Only the law would change women status in

society. Accordingly, they fought to introduce

civil and political rights for women. Law would

secure equality between women and men. So they

claimed for both civil and political rights through

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propaganda and persuasion. The achievement of civil

rights was a long and difficult battle. It

concluded in the accomplishment of women civil

rights and in changing the law in 1926. It allowed

women to perform their professions, handle their

properties, inheritances, and money, and share

equal responsibilities with men and women over

their children. Civil rights were in accordance

with the predominant liberal ideas that ran the

country. In contrast, political rights granting

equality between women and men challenged the

traditional identities of womanhood of the middle

and upper classes’ morality and mores.

Consequently, the resistance to female suffrage and

arguments for and against female suffrage shaped a

new construction of womanhood in the 1910s.

22

As a result of this, what were the several

perceptions of womanhood in the city of Buenos

Aires in the 1910s? How can the discourse about the

pro and cons arguments about female suffrage give a

picture of the changing identities of womanhood in

the 1910s? The female suffrage debate was crucial

in order to contrast two different identities of

womanhood. Also, it revealed the shaping of a new

identity of womanhood at the beginning of the

twentieth century in Argentina, particularly in the

crowded of Buenos Aires. Male arguments against

female suffrage hold to a traditional identity of

womanhood, whereas women physicians’ arguments in

favor of female suffrage imparted a new identity of

womanhood. Those two notions of womanhood were not

antagonistic. Despite the differences about the

role of women in the public sphere, both agreed on

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the significance of womanhood as a mother. Julieta

Lanteri Redshaw – the fifth Argentine woman physician

– bolstered female suffrage and at the same time

she asserted, “While a woman is pregnant, nothing

can wander off a woman’s orientations of her life

(motherhood) . Society can not change the set of

issues of feminism that advances and transforms

society fundamentally.”6 Accordingly, Lola S. B de

Bourget argued that: “the suffragist caricature ,

her masculine expressions, rude way of talking, can

not replace the inherent gentleness of her sex

either if she is an honorable figure, state woman,

or businesswoman. Let us consider woman as a

mother, a daughter, or as a wife whose respect

starts and ends in the sacred domestic home.”7

What kind of identity of womanhood emerged and

6 Font, pp 47.7 Font, pp 34.

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challenged the traditional identity of womanhood?

In 1922, the female suffrage debate was public, and

was discussed in political and professional realms.

As a result, this essay analyzed two different

constructions of womanhood in Argentina.

Likewise this essay examined a group of

jurists, lawyers, male physicians, journalists,

politicians, and female physicians and their

positions to the female suffrage. Jurists, lawyers,

male physicians, journalists, and politicians were

against female suffrage and gave detailed arguments

against it. This group of professionals came from

upper and middles class sectors of Argentina. They

were Publio Escobar, Tomás Cullen, Carlos Zeballos,

Ernesto Nelson, Luis Reyna Almandos, Osvaldo Magnasco, Julio

Ignacio Cendoya, Luis María Drago, Ricardo Castellanos, Carlos

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Melo, Eduardo Rivarola, José Otero, and Mariano Mitre y Vedia.

For example Estanislao Zeballos was a politician, Carlos

Melo was a lawyer, Eduardo Rivarola was a physician,

and Mitre y Vedia was a journalist. Mitre y Vedia was

the owner of La Nación , the most prestigious

newspaper in Argentina. All those professionals

gave similar arguments against female suffrage and

illustrated the predominant bourgeois idea of

womanhood.

On the contrary all the female physicians were

in favor of female suffrage and they expressed

their arguments about it. Most of their arguments

for female suffrage were mainly tailored by

feminism. These female physicians were the first to

graduate from the University of Buenos Aires in

Argentina. What is more, they were the first female

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physicians in Latin America. They were the most

active and persuasive members of the Argentine

women’s movements at the beginning of the twentieth

century. These female physicians were

professionals, and came from the upper and middle

classes. Interestingly, most of the female

physicians came from European immigrant families.

What is more, the parents of female physicians had

been involved in the European social movements of

the nineteenth century. Alicia Moreau was English and

their parents were French. They both participated

in the Commune au Paris. The exception was Elvira

Rawson de Dellepiane who descended from a traditional

family of Buenos Aires.8 The most prominent female

physicians were Alicia Moreau, Julieta Lanteri, Paulina Luisi,

Petrona Eyle, Elvira Rawson de Dellepiane, Herminia L. de Rot.

8 Elvira Rawson de Dellepiane descended from Guillermo Rawson who had fought in the civil of independence from the Borbon Empire.

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Julieta Lanteri de Renshaw, and Paulina Luisi were

Italians; and Petrona Eyle was Swiss German. This

essay examined mainly female physicians. In order

to simplify this essay it also included two women

poetess, however. Alfonsina Storni and Lola S. B. de

Bourget were two poetesses and argued tough

arguments for female suffrage. Alfonsina Storni was

Italian and a single women. In those days, a single

woman was a taboo and faced discrimination. Her

child was illegitimate therefore the father had no

economic responsibilities with regard to his

offspring. Lola S. B. de Bourget was a poetess, French

descendant, an articulate supporter of female

suffrage, and interested in the conditions of

working class women. Their arguments for female

suffrage purported a new identity of womanhood

following the pattern of a bourgeois woman.

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The debate about female suffrage divided women

and men. Lawyers, physicians, journalists,

politicians and jurists were against female

suffrage. They argued that women were different to

men, therefore women could not vote. Legal,

economic, educational, intellectual, and political

explanations tailored their arguments against

female suffrage. However, those arguments were

grounded on popular beliefs and asserted the

inferiority of women to men. In contrast, female

physicians were in favor of professional women and

stated equality between women and men. Female

physicians and men draw the same categories, such

as motherhood, moral values, public sphere, private

sphere, nation, and forth. But female physicians’

arguments were informed by feminism and socialism.

29

The Two Identities of Womanhood

Male arguments against female suffrage claimed

that the identity of womanhood was motherhood,

meanwhile female physicians purported the identity

of womanhood was based on working women,

particularly professional women. The latter were in

the process of reshaping a new identity of

womanhood. Furthermore, female physicians’

arguments for female suffrage put in jeopardy the

main duty of women as a mother. Arguments for

female suffrage argued (that) the identity of new

womanhood and working in the public sphere removed

women’s everyday shallowness and would add virtues

such as courage, experience, and practicality to

30

her life. Traditional womanhood identified itself

with the Virgin mother, whereas new identity of

womanhood identified with an active and worldly

woman. Arguments for female suffrage exhibited an

active woman and interested in politics, economics,

and education. Female suffrage proponents

encouraged women to widen her scope of occupations

outside the household. Male arguments were against

female suffrage. And female physicians were in for

female suffrage. The two ideas of woman were

tailored by two different constructions of

womanhood.

In the lines of Evelyn Stevens, I argued that

male arguments against female suffrage are built

upon Marianismo.9 Womanhood tailored by Marianismo 9 Evelyn Stevens, “Marianismo, the Other Face of Machismo in Latin America”, in Male andFemale in Latin America, Ann Pescattello ed. (Pitsburg, 1973), 89-101. Scholars have generallyaccepted the perspective of Marianismo and different aspecst of the gender systemexplained in these works. There are studies of the origins, evolution and working of

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provided the virtues of beauty, purity, maternal

love, humility, charity, and self-sacrifice. What

is more a perfect mother sacrificed herself for the

sake of her children, husband, and the family.

What was the model of womanhood informed by

Maniarismo? Motherhood was the main activity for

the Marianismo construction of womanhood. Women

possessed particular virtues to raise children.

Marianismo’s idea of womanhood resembled to the

Catholic Virgin Mary. Marianismo’s idea of

womanhood was embraced by Publio Escobar who argued

“No mater women’s situation, women belong to their

home. The mother belongs to her home and carries

out the most important responsibilities of her

house. She displays out all her moral and

intellectual skills, and also teaches her

the gender system, a pioneering work includes Silvia Marina Arrom The Women of MéxicoCity, 1790-1857 (Stanford, 1985), Asuncion Lavrin , ed., Sexuality and Marriage in Colonial LatinAmerica, (Lincoln, 1989)

32

gentleness, love, and kindness which are inherent

features to any women. Her physical constitution,

her environment in which she is raised up, etc. ”10

The Marianismo’s construction of womanhood forgave

women’s flaws such as frivolity, fragility, poor

education, superstition, and fanaticism.11 The

trade-off was a housewife and a mother versus an

educated, articulate, and unprofessional woman. But

female physicians endorsing female suffrage

criticized the flaws developed by women at home.

Alicia Moreau asserted that “.. to continue dreaming

with an ignorant, frivolous, and superficial woman

who has all the defects of the submissive persons.

I argue that the social experience of women can

make her admire the beauty of a woman with free

spirit, a strong personality, a woman that has

10 Font, pp 54. 11 Font, pp 123.

33

experience in the workplace, that accepts her

responsibility, and chooses freely her husband who

will make her healthy, fair, and blissful.12

Bourget, as well as Moreau, made emphasis on the

identity of motherhood and freedom and say that “…

a (woman) corresponds to the superior situation

of a mother as if she were a queen of her

kingdom…”13 Furthermore, the mother had the

attributes of the Virgin Mary, so Ernesto Rivarola

argued “My duty is to give self-confidence to

mothers who teach because these mothers are

saints.”14 Traditional identity of womanhood

followed Marianismo, and mainly embraced

motherhood and all its virtues. On the contrary,

female physicians’ arguments in favor of female

suffrage shaped a new identity of womanhood. It did12 Font, pp 24-25 13 Font, pp 37. 14 Font, pp 201.

34

not approve of the traditional women’s flaws -

frivolity, fragility, and superficiality - . They

promoted a new idea of womanhood and encouraged the

generation of women to transform themselves into an

active woman acquainted with political, economics,

educational, social and professional issues.

Figure 1 Traditional identity of

womanhood.” Nuestra Causa, No. 12, 1920, p 280.

35

Male arguments against female suffrage

reinforced the character of a traditional identity

of womanhood at the same time informed by

Marianismo. The traditional identity of womanhood

was motherhood, and along these lines José Otero

asserted “The cornerstone of the housewife is her

home. She can do these things outside the household

if she performs charity livelihoods, does good

actions, and teaches virtues. However if she leaves

the house, her abandoned baby will always cry for

her mother and her baby needs her heart, and her

feminine air. An abandoned baby will die.”15 Otero

adds “If a mother does not fulfill her activities,

who would do it? If women emancipate from her duty,

15 Font, pp 100.

36

selfishness will definitively succeed and the

collectivity, the family, the whole world will end

in a deep crisis.”16 Accordingly, Juan Ignacio Cendoya

described woman’s virtues and explained why the

mother was the saint of the home, and claimed that

“The European grandmother set our Argentine women

an example of why women should be interested in

politics. The Latin women can not vote. A women

first of all is a mother, secondarily she is an

intellectual or a scientist. I do not want women to

lose the holiest virtue that dignifies her: sacred

motherhood.”17 In the Argentine senate Luis María

Drago illustrated the model of the argentine woman

and described the traditional identity of

womanhood. He delivered his speech about the

identity of womanhood and the members of the senate

16 Font, pp 100. 17 Font, pp 177.

37

clapped him. Drago stated “I wish the Argentine

women to be respected for their sweet domesticity

and exceptional virtues. The Argentine women

deserve the status, dignity and rights of the

Roman, old “matrona” and the English lady of

nowadays.18 Almando added that “Democrats want to

build a family grounded on natural bases: a mother

that feeds the soul of her kid, a wife that will

silence the grace of God, because without love and

beauty, el hogar still will be a monastery of

illfortune, ill-fated and bitterness.”19 Ricardo

Castellanos, a staunch Catholic politician, replaced

the liberal idea of feminism with catholic ideas of

womanhood, he argued “This [feminism] is the

synthesis of feminism: I want feminism for our

Argentine women, I want them to have full rights

18 Font, pp 194.19 Font, pp 130.

38

that will lead them to the most noble and

transcendental duties: motherhood. Importantly

women raise and educate men.”20 Male arguments

against female suffrage defended the traditional

identity of womanhood. Womanhood equaled to

motherhood, and had the characteristics of the

Virgin Mary. Motherhood emulated the Virgin Mary.

Accordingly to the traditional identity of

motherhood, women could not vote. If women voted,

they would loose their womanhood features. The main

responsibility of motherhood was to take care of

the household chores, to be confined to the private

sphere, and to be the queen of her hogar.

However, the Beneficent Society provided the

proper activity for a traditional identity of

20 Font, pp 172.

39

womanhood. Karen Mead analyzed the Argentine

Beneficent Society from the 1880s to 1920s. 21 The

Argentine Beneficent Society was run by elite women

and provided schooling and improved the

possibilities of the poor. Mead argued that the

members of the Argentine Beneficent Society used

her maternalistic prerogatives to take advantage of

the structural opportunities of the country and a

few notions of gender to participate in the state-

building of Argentina. Karen Mead’s essay

demonstrated that working as a member of the

Beneficent Society was considered a non contested

traditional occupation. The Beneficent Society

responsibility was not paid, it was a part-time

work, and a patriotic duty. In 1928, Bernardino

Rivadavia founded the Beneficent Society and chose

21 Karen Mead, “Beneficent Materialism: Argentine Motherhood in Comparative Perspective, 1880-1920”in Journal of Women’s History, vol 12, nber 3 (Autumn), 2000,p 120.

40

women to run the state institution. The Beneficent

Society was in charge of schools and managed social

problems. Tomás R. Cullen praised the Beneficent

Society and argued “Rivadavia, a great statesman,

founded the most important social institution, the

Beneficent Society and attained exceptional and

brilliant results. It impressed the attention of

important foreigners that visited Argentina and

argued. They praised the Beneficent Society

organization and its accomplishments. What is more,

foreigners argued that the Argentine woman was a

model of virtue and efficiency within both el hogar

and the collective life.”22 The activities at the

Beneficent Society, as well as teaching, were

respected occupations for a traditional identity of

womanhood.

22 Font, pp 149.

41

Teaching was another recognized women’s

activity. Women could be elementary and high school

teachers. A teacher emulated motherhood. A teacher,

as well as a mother, educated her children, and

raise her students. The teacher had all the

virtues of a Marianismo motherhood. Carlos Melo

asserted that women were perfectly suited for

teaching because they conveyed morality and gave

children the sense of responsibility, discipline,

and admiration. Melo asserted “Several years

teaching at Escuela Normal de La Plata, I have been

paying attention to women’s activities within the

school. Observing women, both students and

teachers, seem to be a bee’s beehive, and I have

been able to discover more than one superior virtue

in women, which men lack. Therefore, I admire and

42

respect them. In all the universities and schools

where I have taught young men, never have my male

students exhibited such clear and precise ideas of

duty, persistence, and determination as their women

have. For women, discipline is a habitus,

perfection is a rule, and work a vocation.”23

Eduardo Rivarola, as well as Carlos Melo, agreed on

that teaching was a feminine job, and said: “Among

all women jobs, the high school teacher is the

highest status for a woman to achieve. Women teach

so as to perfect themselves and their students too.

Teaching is a social good.”24 However, female

physicians criticized the bounded role of teachers.

The magazine Nuestra Causa published a joint article

and argued “How is it possible that teachers,

unable to participate in politics, talk

23 Font, pp 200-201. 24 La Nación, 1921, pp 4 at the Biblioteca Nacional Argentina.

43

enthusiastically to their students? How can a woman

be interested in teaching Instrucción Pública if it is

forbidden to her to participate in politics. ”25A

traditional woman’s work was bounded by a few of

activities. Voting women challenged women’s

household chores, and added masculine liabilities.

Nevertheless, two main activities did not defy

traditional womanhood: teaching and members of the

Beneficent Society.

Female physicians’ arguments in favor of female

suffrage promoted women to be professionals. The

identity of the new womanhood was a working woman

and moved easily from the private sphere into the

public sphere. The professional woman was the

utmost paradigm of the new identity of womanhood

25 Nuestra Causa, No. 19, 1920, p 81 at Biblioteca Juan B. Justo, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

44

promoted by female physicians. Despite the fact

that female physicians included working class women

in their idea of womanhood, they looked up to

professionals rather than to industrial workers.

Female physicians argued the new identity of

womanhood improved her status in the family and

within society. What is more, they would abandon

the traditional women’s flaws, such as

superficiality, importance of beauty, and

frivolity. Paulina Luisi did not like “…men to

consider women as a desire of pleasure or a

decorative object because traditionally men admired

beauty rather than intelligence.” 26 Thus, female

physicians argued that working women would

criticize traditional ideas of family and diminish

the Catholic influence. Furthermore female

26 Font, pp 36.

45

physicians claimed a construction of womanhood

tailored on feminism. Female physicians in favor of

female suffrage reshaped the identity of womanhood

and promoted a professional and highly educated

woman.

Voting women performed activities in the public

sphere and made use of it in a variety of ways.

They shaped womanhood’s identity from the perfect

housewife of the private sphere to the professional

woman of the public sphere. Thus, female physicians

reshaped the traditional idea of womanhood. Female

physicians’ arguments in favor of female suffrage

defended working women, particularly professional

ones. First, women physicians persuaded that

historically women had carried out activities

outside the “home”, and refused the commonly

46

prejudice that women were fragile and pious. Lola S.

de Bourget was against that prejudice and said “…

Elizabet of Castil healed injured soldiers and Joan

d’ Arc used the spear and round shield….”27 Second,

female physicians argued men denied and did not

confront the existence of working women. Despite

the fact women constituted almost fifty percent of

all the industrial workplace. The city of Buenos

Aires had a 30% of working women out of all

workers. Economic growth and increasing

urbanization demanded women working outside the

house. Bourget asserted “We do not have to analyze

what happens on the other side of the ocean to

support the feminist theory: industries, workshops,

offices, and business, give us a clear example of

the importance of women in a variety of jobs:

27 Font, pp 24

47

workforce, academies, high schools, Escuelas Normales

Nacionales, universities, and professional

institutes.”28 Female physicians analyzed mainly

middle class and upper class working women’s

difficulties and boundaries to find a respected and

prestigious work in the public sphere. Working

class women were also an example of women forging

their jobs in the public sphere. Nuestra Causa

showed working class women as a model of the new

identity of womanhood. Eugen Kahn proclaimed “In

today, what represents our symbols are two happy

working class women and a self-confident women

walking toughly to the future”29. From the 1910s to

the 1920s shaped the new identity of womanhood: an

active woman involved in activities of the public

28 Font, pp 31.29 Nuestra Causa, No 21, 1921, pp 193-194 at Biblioteca Juan B Justo, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

48

sphere. This new woman was interested in politics

and university education.

Figure 2 Nuestra Causa, 1921, No 21, 1921, pp

193-194

49

50

Accordingly, the new identity of womanhood was

a professional woman that easily combined

activities within both the private and public

sphere. Beyond their motherhood duties, they

practiced their profession, and intervened in

politics. Their political aim was to change the law

in favor of women’s political and civil rights.

Accordingly, female physicians approving female

suffrage practiced her professions, and worked as

physicians and also as journalists, bureaucrats of

the state, and professors. They put advertisements

in the most important women journals. They marketed

their medical expertise and obtained patients.

Nuestra Causa and Unión y Labor constantly published

advertisements promoting their medical services.

Physicians such as Susana Gaudino and Alicia Moreau

called public attention to their medical services

51

in Nuestra Causa in 1922.30 Gaudino worked at the

Hospital de Clínicas and Moreau had a personal office.

Petrona Eyle was the director of Nuestra Causa and

also advertised her medical services. 31 Female

physicians published adverstiments together with

men physicians. Unión y Labor was more reluctant in

publishing women’s professional expertise however

Sara Justo put an advertisement in that journal.

Nuestra Causa ‘s and Unión y Labor’s advertisements

differed in quantity and format . The former had a

large number of advertisements while the latter had

few of them. The advertisement of Nuestra Causa were

small and short. Unión y Labor’s had long and large

advertisements.

30 Nuestra Causa, No 21, 1921, pp 213, Biblioteca Juan B Justo, Buenos Aires, Argentina.31 Idem, pp 210.

52

Figure 3 Nuestra Causa, No. 21, 1921, p 213. There

were two advertisements. There were Moreau’s and

Gaudino’s advertisements in the many more of them

in that page.

53

Figure 4 Nuestra Causa, No. 19, 1921, p 25.

Female physicians were shaping the traditional

identity of womanhood. They practiced their

professions and were eager to present themselves as

professionals. They promoted an alternative concept

of womanhood.

54

Furthermore, female physicians’ arguments in

favor of female suffrage supported women

intervening in politics. Female physicians demanded

and fought for not only civil right but also

political and social rights. They moved from the

private sphere to one of the utmost public spheres:

politics. Accordingly, female physicians changed

the law. That new law let them practice their

professions. Despite the fact of improving women’s

civil rights, Alicia Moreau criticized women’s legal

statues. They did not have political rights: they

could not vote. The law did not grant them

political rights. So it rejected women’s

possibility to vote. She argued “To oppose to

women’s emancipation due to the negative social

consequences, was to ignore the goal achieved by

other countries that have achieved that level of

55

progress decades ago. It is to ignore that women’s

active and direct intervention had improved social

legislation: better young women’s, and children’s

protection; more human labor legislation; struggle

against alcoholism, gambling men; and neglecting

moral political behaviors and of the political

life in general.”32 What is more, female physicians

argued that women were ousted from women’s legal

decisions. Paulina Luisi purported “… we have

appropriated the right to put in force how to run

Municipalities and the state. To put enforce its

laws and decrees.”33 Furthermore, one of the most

prominent female physicians” goal was to put into

practice and enforce female suffrage in Argentina.

Unión y Labor was updated and was highly interested

in women' movements all over the world,

32 Font, pp 24. 33 Font, pp 38

56

particularly, the United States, Great Britain,

Sweden, French, and South American countries, In

1915, Unión y Labor commented female suffrage

accomplishments in Persia and Portugal.34 Once

female physicians changed the law : they were

allowed to practice their professions. However

achieving political rights was a difficult task.

New womanhood’s identity went into the political

public sphere and intervened to obtain women’s

civil and political rights.

The identity of the traditional idea of

womanhood illustrated an active woman performing

her household chores and charity activities. Those

were their most important responsibilities. The new

identity of womanhood menaced replacing the

34 Unión y Labor, No. 48, 1915, pp 31 at Biblioteca Juan B Justo, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

57

traditional masculine jobs. An active woman was not

a menace to society. However women abandoning the

private sphere and replacing private it with public

activities would lose their identity of motherhood.

Female physicians shaped a new womanhood identity

grounded on responsibilities beyond the household.

They exercised medicine and any kind of duties

within the public sphere. Finally, the traditional

identity of womanhood was tailored by Marianismo.

They mainly took care of their motherhood duties.

However they molded a new identity of womanhood

stressing the importance of professional women and

their active participation in politics.

Marianismo, Working Women and Private and Public

Spheres

58

Female suffrage threatened social order.

Therefore women’s role within society could change.

It jeopardized inequality between woman and men,

and the traditional idea of women as motherhood. It

proposed women working in the public sphere, on the

other hand forsaking the duties of a woman’s

activities in the private sphere. Therefore, male

arguments against female suffrage asserted the

distinction between women and men. There was a

difference between public and private spheres, a

compensatory role between women and men, an unlike

identity of men and women, an dissimilar attitude

toward their children, an opposite way of dressing,

and so forth. The differences reinforced the

inequality between woman and men.

59

For that result the public and private sphere

division of work argued that men and women were

unequal. Body, character, sex, and education

determined that women were suitable to run

household chores, while the temperament of men led

them to carry out public and outside activities.

Men were professionals, made ends meet, and had

authority on all the members of their family, and

even on their house. The opposition between

women’s duties within the private sphere, and men’s

work within the public sphere were reinforced by

the law. Women could not vote, and men could vote.

For that reason the difficulties and rejection for

female suffrage draw differences between women and

men. The private sphere was imaginative,

passionate, passive, and instinctive, meanwhile the

60

public sphere was strong, active, rational, and

creative. Women could not vote because they

belonged to the private sphere and men to the

public one. The private sphere was inferior to the

public sphere. Consequently, women were inferior to

men.

Male arguments against female suffrage argued

that women were only suitable for responsibilities

within the private sphere, particularly household

chores. Women performed housewife duties within the

private sphere, whereas men as professionals worked

in the public sphere. Therefore, women and men had

complementary roles between men and women. Hence

women should not become rivals of men. That case

was a clear case in which men reinforced the

difference to women. Osvaldo Magnasco was a

61

conservative representative of parliament and was

against female women. What is more he was against

women working outside the household. Magnasco

asserted that “men and women are mutually

complementary, wife and husband turn into only one

person, but they are two emancipated bodies; at any

time and without any fixed purpose women are equal

to men, and in consequence, reciprocate factors

that can be substituted, a disturbing doctrine that

turns women a rival to men rather than keeping

together men and women in building the human race,

each one with its own contribution and each so

different from the spiritual point of view.”35 José

Otero, as well as Magnasco, reinforced the

differences between women and men: “All the

importance of feminism is not solving if a wife

35 Font, pp 92-100.

62

will be or not a collaborator to her husband. [The

woman as a collaborator of man] As it is known and

prescribed by absolute imperatives, the way and the

scope of the cooperation between men and women have

not yet been solved.”36 Women voting and working

outside the house threatened women’s activities

inside the household. Furthermore, voting women

lost the special features of their sex,

particularly femininity and dressing. In contrast

traditional identity of womanhood embraced the

perfect housewife who ran her home, look after her

children, and kept the honor and morality of the

family.

Male arguments against female suffrage argued

that women were more suitable for household chores

36 Font, pp 99.

63

rather than for public activities, particularly

professions. José Otero, Osvaldo Magnasco, and Leopoldo

Lugones claimed that the natural women’s sphere was

inside the household, but due to industrialization

women had been compulsory drawn to work in

industries, in houses as nannies, and in

restaurants. Working women set a negative example

for the traditional idea of womanhood. So they took

away what they consider feminine characters. José

Otero said that “Due to a fatal and imperative

tragedy, women did bullets, melted metals, and

baked bread for their children … in a unnecessary

situation she had to leave her house and found

quietness in industry and any other kind of jobs,

while before they found restlessness beside their

baby’s cradle, or in the silence of her private

rooms, in those places she can achieve her path of

64

happiness.”37 Therefore women’s natural sphere was

the hogar (home) but industrialization compelled

women to abandon her natural atmosphere. Magnasco

asserted that “…There is quite a difference between

an innocent patriarchy in comparison to the

nowadays rude industrialism.”38 Consequently,

industrialization endangered traditional identity

of womanhood: the perfect housewife that ran the

house. Unfortunately women had to find a job due to

the process of industrialization and also due new

ideas. Modern ideas, such as feminism, socialism,

and anarchism threatened women’s role in the family

and society. Female suffrage put at risk the

traditional identity of womanhood and its

motherhood responsibilities of women as a housewife

and a mother.

37 Font, pp 100.38 Font, pp 92.

65

Industrialization was an economic factor and

jeopardized the traditional identity of womanhood.

Secondarily feminism – a modern and intellectual

thought - and its spread. Feminism encouraged

women to work outside their house. Luis Reyna

Almandos demonstrated that “…women that want to

share the public sphere, in the same ways as men

do, go against the law of Nature and execute and

perform masculine jobs. This bold, feminist core

idea jeopardizes the law of Nature and introduces

innocent and dangerous arrogance.”39 Reyna also

asserted that “Nowadays the concept of feminism

means that women pursue a set of new conditions. If

these conditions are achieved, the women’s mission

39 Font, pp 128.

66

in their private and social life will change.” 40

Meanwhile arguments for female suffrage supported

feminism and Herminia L. de Roth argued “Feminism is

one of the most difficult topics to analyze because

it scares most of men [ as well as some traditional

women]. It scares husbands, brothers, fathers,

friends, and relatives. Most women and men do not

properly discuss feminism which is thought to lack

passion, generosity, charity, and nobility.”41

Arguments against female suffrage blamed

industrialization and feminism to women seeking for

a job in the workforce and deviate them from their

normal responsibilities within the private sphere.

If women worked outside the house, they lost

their foremost identity of motherhood. Zeballos

40 Font, pp 126. 41 Font, pp 67.

67

asserted “It is a mistake to assert that women have

a secondary role in Argentine legislation. Their

character proves they have not a secondary role.

Their domestic authority has no rivals. They are

the owners of their properties, if women use their

energy to defend their character and status in the

proper situation.”42 Tomás Cullen asserted that “the

Argentine women are an example of domesticity

prototype within the household and at the same time

they represent virtue and efficiency within

society”. 43 Womanhood equaled to motherhood, and

embraced the positive virtues of society.

Womanhood’s virtues were morality, virginity, and

religiousness. Reyna Almandos, as well as Zeballos,

pointed out that “When scientists lose their faith

in God. They turn into believer of scientific

42 Font, pp 120. 43 Font, pp 149.

68

thought and supports secular explanations of

nature. They abandon faith because their fragile

spirit breaks down if they face reason.”44 What is

more, male arguments against female suffrage argued

that motherhood and household chores constituted

the core of women’s happiness and tranquility. On

the contrary, arguments in favor of female suffrage

built a superficial woman. Moreau argued that “if

you are looking for an ignorant, superficial and

frivolous woman… The new identity of womanhood is

grounded on education and practicality.”45 A woman

consecrated to the responsibilities in the private

sphere was shy, beautiful, religious, humble,

chaste, and maternal. Arguments against women

preferred women performing household chores in the

private sphere, and they disapproved of women

44 Font, pp 12845 Font, pp 24.

69

working in the public sphere. Male arguments

against female suffrage gave examples of women who

carried out masculine activities. Those activities

were against women’s nature. Women having masculine

tasks were the exceptions. The “normal” and

“natural” place of women was the private sphere.

Male arguments against female suffrage defended the

traditional identity of womanhood. That identity

should not change, on the contrary it would be

preserved. In contrast female physicians embodied

the modern idea of womanhood. The former stack to

the traditional idea of womanhood: womanhood as

motherhood. The latter were in the process of

constructing a identity of womanhood built upon

professionalism.

70

Female physician’ arguments in favor of female

suffrage proposed women to work outside the home in

the same way men do. They encouraged women to

improve their education and carry on university

studies. They encouraged women to become

professionals rather than to be industrial workers.

The principal feature of new womanhood was the

importance of improving women’s education. Alicia

Moreau asserted “[Feminism] wants to have a

complete woman that can study to demonstrate her

intellectual skills which have been forgotten,

education will give her personality, will teach her

to freedom to confront all her responsibilities,

and become conscious of her social value and the

consequences of exercising freedom in front of the

society she lives in. She must be able to be

economically independent, have the capacity to

71

handle her own economy, to free her from sex

slavery which society has linked to motherhood, and

which has turned her economically dependant…”46.

Feminism was a modern and new trend of thought that

taught and provided an alternative status and role

of women within the family and in society.

Furthermore, feminism aimed women to transform

women’s status within society. Female physicians

embraced feminism because it gave them the

arguments to achieve equality between women and

men. Despite many arguments against feminism,

Julieta Lantieri asserted “Feminism is a great

expression of the evolution of the race. Anything

that encourages feminism is welcomed. No matter

what the arguments are, (feminism) … [Feminism] is

a unavoidable and fatal topic where the superiority

46 Font, pp 37.

72

of men have to learn how to respectfully the idea

of feminism.” 47 Awareness of the promises of

feminism and the possibilities of improvement of

women education, and attentive gender

consciousness, there were more rights to fight for

yet.

Despite the fact that women had become

professionals, they could not practice their

professional expertise. Female physicians’ goal was

to change the law that prevented them from

practicing medicine. Women were considered children

in the Argentine Civil Code, accordingly female

physicians fought for changing law. Elvira Rawson de

Dellepiane described the several women organizations,

and promoted and lobbied for female suffrage. The

47 Font, pp 47.

73

women organizations followed American and English

women organizations patterns.48

Rawson de Dellepiane avowed “We have many times

asked if it is fair that women have not been asked

before passing a law…”49. Furthermore, female

physicians showed how much their women’s role and

rights were. They considered themselves part of the

international cause of feminism. La Causa showed their

interest in professionalism and women in politics

all over the world. They published “In Austria,

women won the female suffrage in 1919, what is more

there are eight members of parliament, and 126

representatives at city halls. Crimea has five

women in its Congress since 1919. Denmark has

female suffrage since 1915. Its Congress has more

48 Font, pp 73.49 Font, pp 76.

74

than 100 women and eight women in Parliament. The

principle: “to equal work, equal income” is a

reality since women vote. In Estonia, women have

equal rights as well as men. There have five

deputes. The 1918 revolution of Germany enforced

female women. Its National Assemble has 39 women.

Ukrania has female suffrage since 1917, and 9 women

have been elected.”50 Education, feminism, and

professionalism shaped the new identity of

womanhood. The new idea of womanhood shaped a woman

based on education, what is more, emulating

professional women. If women received the same

education men had, women would be able to do all

the professions and jobs men carried out. Female

physicians purported a new identity of womanhood

50Nuestra Causa, 1921, No 21, 1921, pp 105.

75

who pursued education and professional

accomplishment.

Male arguments against female suffrage considered

that the responsibilities of women were in the

private sphere. Therefore, the identity of

womanhood was complementary to men, to embrace her

main duties as a housewife, not to lose her

femininity, and to incarnate motherhood. On the

contrary, Female physicians’ arguments for female

suffrage wanted to change the traditional identity

of womanhood whose main realms were the private

sphere. They argued that modern womanhood south for

a job outside the private sphere, improved their

education, and became professionals. Therefore, the

difficulties and rejection for female suffrage draw

differences between women over men. The private

76

sphere was complementary to the public sphere,

feminine, personal, and motherly. The private

sphere had feminine attributes such as imagination,

passion, passiveness, and intuitive. On the

contrary, the public sphere was strong, active,

rational, and creative in the same way as men. For

those who sustained the traditional idea of

womanhood, they also believed that the private

sphere was feminine and the public sphere was

masculine. Hence the private sphere was inferior to

the public sphere. Consequently women were inferior

over men.

Sexual Politics, and Womanhood

This essay examined how gender constructs

politics – particularly arguments for and against

77

female suffrage- how the feminine attributes the

social construction woman of Argentina was found in

the ideas of nation and civilization. Those ideas

emphasized the differences between women and men.

As well as Victorian scientists of the nineteenth

century in Britain, Argentine politicians, lawyers,

and physicians, and journalists did not support the

female suffrage highlighting women’s inferiority in

regards to men at the beginning of the twentieth

century. Women inferiority with regards to men and

informed the prevalent gender social beliefs.

Meanwhile Victorian lawyers supported the British

and American women independence and political

rights. Argentine lawyers did not. Thus, male

arguments against female suffrage envisioned a

sexual body politics and purported the inferiority

of women and men. On the contrary, female

78

physicians’ in favor for female suffrage claimed

legal equality between women and men.

The identity of Argentine womanhood femininized

ideas of the ideas of nation and civilization.

Therefore gender constructed politics: the ideas of

nation and civilization had feminine attributes. In

the Fin-the-Siècle Argentina had two ideas of

womanhood. The predominant idea was a conservative

woman. And an identity of a new woman was evolving

in the Argentine society. Therefore those two

identities idea of women struggled and shaped the

ideas of nation and civilization. The new idea of

womanhood had both masculine and feminine

attributes. This paper examined the feminized and

masculinized of the concepts of nation and

civilization. The goal is to analyze how female

79

to-construct- politics. Male arguments against

female suffrage mainly told how gender constructs

politics. The idea of womanhood laid emphasis on

the differences between women and men, particularly

the inferiority of women in regards to men. Reading

carefully the arguments against female suffrage

demonstrated how the conservative and the modern

idea of womanhood of the 1910s feminized and

masculinized the notions of nation and

civilization. Had the nation, and civilization

sex?

Arguments against female suffrage purported a

feminine nation. The nation embraced the motherhood

and the characteristics of Marianismo. The nation

had beauty, purity, maternal love, humility,

charity, and self-sacrifice. Furthermore, the

80

nation had a romantic connotation towards the

citizens as well as women gave their love and

compassion to their children. The nation

surrendered itself for its citizens and the mother

sacrificed for her children. Vedia y Mitre argued “The

second cause is to be a young and feminine nation

in which progress has no limitations, no need to

destroy prejudices, and uproot bitter prejudices.”51

Men believed in the differences between women and

men. They attached sex identities to ideas and

objects. Their world was divided between male and

female ideas or objects. Thus male arguments

against female suffrage historically perceived the

nation as feminine. The nationhood was alike the

idea of motherhood. The concept of nation conveyed

a romantic, beautiful, maternal loving, self-

51 Font, pp 95.

81

sacrificed, and charitable image. Mothers and as

well as nations were idealized and admired because

of its beauty, and love both to their children and

their citizens. No only shared the nation and the

mother characteristics, but also the two had

similar functions. The nation was an abstract idea

to dream about. At the time the mother was a

romanticized idea of womanhood. The nation and the

mother were put on a pedestal. Therefore, both the

nation and the mother had to be taken care of and

protected from external influences, id. est. women

could not vote and they were the queen of the

household chores. The nation had to be saved from

external harm. It guarded and united the citizens

of the state. The nation was inherent to the

state. The nation was the internal shell of the

state. The mother was inside of its body. The

82

mother was the spirit of the family. Consequently

nationhood and motherhood were respectively the

soul of the state and the family.

Male arguments against female suffrage

considered the nation was feminine. What was the

identity of civilization? A thorough and close

reading of the arguments against women suffrage

inferred that their unconsciousness identity of

civilization was bisexual. Civilization was

masculine and feminine at the same time.

Traditionally, civilization was masculine but men

of the 1910s added feminine features to the idea of

civilization. What is more their antithesis

identities of motherhood and nationhood,

civilization did not follow the opposite

understanding of the differences of men and women.

83

Therefore they faced to the contradictory notion of

civilization. There was a complex situation.

Civilization had both sexes; civilization was

masculine and feminine at the same time.

Nevertheless, the bisexual orientation of

civilization did not bother their neither realized

about the contradictory sexual features. Despite

civilization having both sexes, male arguments

against suffrage argued that civilization was

masculine and its feminine features were added to

its essence, rather than leveling masculinity and

femininity attributes of civilization. In

conclusion, masculine civilization is superior to

its feminine features. On the one side, the

masculine sexual orientation of civilization was

strong and self-confidence in the participation of

its essence. Meanwhile, the feminine aspects of

84

civilization added compassion, morality, and

purity. José Otero equaled civilization to humanity

and argued “…humanity will have better days, and

the citizens of the Argentine people of this

southern continent, will collaborate with humanity,

that will be masculine…”52 The civilization was

masculine, so it had an active, strong, selfish,

authoritarian, and important character. Ernesto

Nelson asserted the inferiority of women regarding

men and said “The feminist vindication represents

the integration and the perfection of the work of

art of civilization. It includes beautiful flavor

in which without it there no progress. A masculine

civilization can not achieve its own ideas by

itself. “53 The masculine sexual orientation of

civilization was inherent to itself. But the

52 Font, pp 102.53 Font, pp 142-143.

85

feminine sexual orientation of civilization

adjusted and depended on its masculine identity.

What is more, the feminine sexual orientation of

civilization had a fragile, compassionate, moral

and pious soul. Furthermore the masculinity

orientation of civilization had stronger features

and the femininity added gentleness and morality.

In the decade of the 1910s, arguments against

female suffrage, civilization had two contradictory

sexual identities.

In conclusion the particular identity of

womanhood gendered ideas of social construction of

nation and civilization. Arguments against female

suffrage purported that the nation was feminine and

was tailored by Marianismo’s notion of womanhood.

Therefore, their idea of womanhood said that women

86

were inferior to men. On the other hand, male

arguments against female suffrage asserted that

civilization had a bisexual orientation. But the

masculine orientation of civilization was superior

to its feminine orientation. The analysis of the

ideas of nation and civilization demonstrated

women’s inferiority in regards to men. What were

the data proving that status and skills of women

were inferior to men? Why arguments for and against

women suffrage had different interpretations of the

status and skills of women? There was no data

demonstrating that women were different to men.

They asserted that men were different to men due to

the social gender popular believes of society. It

was a grounded popular believes among genders,

classes, and races. In opposition women argued that

women were equal to men. Women’s inferiority in

87

regard to men informed the prevalent gender social

beliefs. And women counteracted their rejection to

suffrage women. A new and modern scientific

demonstrated the equality of the sexes.

Tradition, Modernity, Motherhood, and Moral Values

Male and women arguments for and against female

suffrage agreed on two qualities in regards to the

identity of womanhood: the paramount idea of

motherhood, and the highest moral values of a

woman. Men arguments and physicians ‘ for and

against women suffrage concurred that motherhood

was the crucial role of womanhood. Motherhood was

the essential element of womanhood. Mothers healed,

fed, tough, comforted, nurtured their children, the

88

husband, the family, their fellowmen, the nation,

and the state. What is more, womanhood held the

strength of morality. Womanhood guarded virtues and

took away flaws and dangerous behaviors of her

husband, family, and relatives. The two identities

– traditional and modern - of womanhood comprised

two virtues: motherhood and morality. In

conclusion tradition and modernity agreed on two

indispensable attributes of womanhood: motherhood

and morality.

Both arguments for and against female suffrage

asserted that motherhood was the primary

cornerstone of the family, children, and society.

She enjoyed the crucial role of women in the

family, and motherhood informed by Marianismo.

However, men disapproved for women voting. Their

89

traditional notion of womanhood was tailored by the

motherhood pattern of Marianismo. Meanwhile, female

physicians’ arguments in favor for female suffrage

also claimed the uppermost of motherhood was

raising children and organizing the family. Lola S.

B. Bourguet, one of the toughest supporters for

female women, argues “It is the moment in which we

all agree to give an explicit and indispensable

condition: above all women will continue to being a

woman. Women should avoid eccentric garments,

improper thoughts, and awkward feelings. Women ‘s

spirit –discreet, kind, and tactful – should flow

as a perfumed halo upon the book of science, …54

Following the lines of Bourget, Alfonsina Storni was a

well know poetess and was a single-mother. She

argued “If women in this situation (an unwed

54 Font, pp 34.

90

mother), she wishes to educate they offspring his

kid, and keep him by herself, they use subterfuges

and falsehood, and crossed with cobardía”55 Most of

female physicians, as well as Storni, asserted that

the state had to provide opportunities for single

mothers’ children, and that the mother had to share

the patria potestad with the father’s offspring.

Accordingly Elvira Rawson de Dellepiane avowed that had

to have the same civil rights therefore

theArgentine Civil code had to change to change the

status of women. She purported “The mother, as well

as the father, will exercise authority guardianship

their children. (to handle of properties, etc).”56

Despite the fact that female physicians approved

working class mothers, the drawback was the lack of

time working class’ mother could devote to their

55 Font, pp 21.56 Font, pp 75.

91

children. Accordingly cultural values of the

Argentine society informed the importance of

motherhood.

Male arguments against female suffrage idea of

motherhood informed Marianismo. On the one side,

the mother belonged to the private sphere and took

care of her hogar (household) . She carried out all

her motherhood responsibilities spreading

Marianismo virtues. The private sphere was the

normal environment for a mother. José Otero affirmed

“She can not risk adventures as men do. Her sex,

constitution and her character is more suitable to

silence rather than hectic life. She as a daughter,

mother, and wife can not be educated in a club, a

high school, or the political arena.” 57 Motherhood

57 Font, pp 99.

92

had the supreme role of protecting the family, the

hogar; and the nationhood. The mother carries out

her main activities within the hogar. Zeballos

stressed the unique and crucial role of motherhood

adhering to legal arguments and states, “Few laws

admit equal rights between women and men: most of

the legislations allow a capitu deminitio as a

condition to let women achieve the holy and sublime

goal of constituting their “home.” 58 Thus, Tomás

Cullen purported women’s main activity within the

private sphere, and argued “Feminism can not

destroy and become a destructor of our holy

tradition: a cult to feminine soul. In a higher

level of society, there is a holy place for women

where stands for strength and creation: her “hogar”

(home).59 Women did not vote and devoted to their

58 Font, pp 115.59 Font, pp 151.

93

idea of motherhood to their life to their ideal of

motherhood. Secondly, mothers guarded the

household, as well as they took care of their

children. Male arguments against female suffrage

argued that mothers were the progenitors of the

nation consequently their off-springs ran the

nation. Mothers sheltered, tough, and admired her

off-springs and the nation. Zeballos asserted “Is

there anything more than to wish to be the future

generations of the following second century of

Argentine and decide who they will be? Is it an

incomparable adventure for you to perform the

mission of molding the soul of the Argentine

nationhood? Why do not use all her talents and as

an influential factor by our politics, you are the

owners of the intimacy of her children?” 60 Male

60 Font, pp 120.

94

arguments against female suffrage asserted that

motherhood was the essential role of womanhood and

was tailored by Marianismo.

The second virtue of womanhood – shared by

arguments for and against female suffrage– was the

higher morality women have over men. Arguments for

and against female suffrage agreed on what women’s

moral values are. Despite of sharing the

importance of women’s moral values, they had

dissimilar goals. Male arguments against female

suffrage supported that moral values should be

spread and tough moral values inside the house.

Women were the guardians of morality within their

home. On the contrary, female physicians purported

that the goal of moral values was to moralize

politics. Women’s higher morality laid on the

95

contradictory status of women over men. Women

remained in the private sphere and they were

supposed to be pure and wholesome. In contrast men

were professionals in the public sphere and they

were tainted and polluted by society. If women had

higher moral values than men, women’s moral values

kept the inequality between women and men.

Womanhood was the guardian of moral values , it was

either the perfect woman at her home or led her to

move into politics.

Male and female physicians’ arguments for and

against female suffrage shaped women moral values,

attributes and behaviors. Why male and female

physician‘s arguments for and against female

suffrage embraced strong moral values of women?

Women’s attributes were femininity, and non-

96

individualism. Catholicism and patriotism were

supported by conservative politicians. Furthermore,

women’s moral behaviors added moral values into

politics. Conservative male and progressive women

agreed on the motherhood’s role. However the first

wanted to teach moral values into the family. The

latter’s goal was to moralize politics.

Femininity’s moral values were inherent and

unique to her sex. Women’s looks, garments,

attitudes, and personality defined her sex. Male

arguments against female suffrage and female

physicians’ arguments for female suffrage asserted

that femininity was a feature of their moral

values. Male arguments against female suffrage

considered that feminism turned women into

marimachos. Women physicians in favor of female

97

suffrage also strongly stressed the importance of

women’s femininity. Luis Reyna Almandos boasted about

the women‘s positive attribute of femininity. Reyna

Almandos asserted that “…You can not consider that

a woman is only immoral if she is not prudish

because prudishness belongs to feminine morality

and it does not belong to morality (feminine

morality is different from morality), A woman is

Immoral if she replaces men while aiming to

individually and socially improve. If she decides

to look for a job outside her home, she will divert

from her path (motherhood) ”61 Almandos continued

asserting “ The female scientist and the female

philosopher generally loses her decency that is to

say her particular attribute that makes her

lovable, refined, and beautiful.”62 Paulina Luisi

61 Font, pp 103.62 Font, pp 128.

98

replied “Some years ago, we did not dare to mention

the word feminism because it was synonymous to

Machonismo, revolution, lack of family values…”63

Nonetheless, Lola S. B. Bourget, a strongly reinforced

the importance femininity of womanhood and

purported “No eccentric dressings, not out of the

extraordinary thoughts, no bizarre feelings; the

feminine spirit is tactful, discreet, and

reasonable and it had to flow as a perfumed and

gleaming hale upon the book of science, and

scientific thought, art, work instrument.

Suffragist caricatures, their manly manners, rough

way of talking shall not replace the intrinsic and

innate delicateness of her sex. No matter whether

is she a politician, wise person, stateswoman,

business woman, or a bureaucraut. We should see the

63 Font, pp 36.

99

daughter, wife, and mother; whose public dignities

and roles end were the sacred domestic home

begins.”64 Following the lines along Luisi and

Bouguet, Alicia Moreau explained that the differences

between women and men: “I am not a feminist in a

masculine sense that implies that women will

replace men. I do not want to carry on masculine

jobs. However, I am feminist if by feminist is

understood that women have equals obligations as

men.”65

Male arguments against for and female

physicians’ arguments for female suffrage gave

enthusiastic approval for the importance of

femininity as a moral value. Male politicians and

female physicians asserted that non individualistic

64 Font pp 34.65 Font, pp 27.

100

women’s moral values were due to women’s closeness

to their home. If a woman carried out her

activities within the private sphere, she would not

be contaminated with conundrums of society.

Therefore, women had moral values and non-

individualism and they carry out their

responsibilities in their home. Accordingly, José

Otero argued “If a woman leaves the private sphere,

she risks to emancipating from loosing her charm

and her moral values which are not part of the

crowd and belong to a superior level. 66 Otero

continues arguing that “Once a woman emancipates

from her housewife duties, individual selfishness

she will succeed…”67 Women are non individualistic

and fair as Ernesto Nelson asserted “Her notion of

state is to do the highest and humane justice and

66 Font, pp 100.67 Font, pp 100.

101

she lacks both nationalistic sectarism and material

interests. 68 Juan José Cendoya stated why women were

non individualistic and its importance for keeping

order in society. Cendoya claimed “…true education

about the hogar and reformed schools in which

indifference for the others rather than the cult to

selfishness. 69 A non individualistic woman would

give all her compassion, gentleness, and generosity

to her home, husband, children, and the nation. A

non- individualism and altruist womanhood would

raise its children properly, and would protect her

family.

Accordingly, conservative idea of womanhood

embraced Catholicism and patriotism. Some male

arguments against female suffrage, women and the

68 Font, pp 142.69 Font, pp 176.

102

family stood for patriotism. Catholicism was an

important moral value as well as patriotism.

Moreau argued that “…society ignores women’s active

and direct intervention on the improvement of

social legislation, protection of young women and

children, more human work legislation, legislation

against the gambling, prostitution, immoral

electoral behaviors, and general political

proceedings. 70 On the other side, women of a

certain social class represented not only morality

but also the patriotism of the Argentine nation.

Motherhood represented a limited or bounded idea of

motherhood. The mother was the queen of the home,

took care of certain duties inside the household,

and symbolized the morality of the nation thanks to

remaining in the house. Journalists, politicians,

70 Font, pp 24.

103

male physicians, and jurists against female

suffrage and women agreed on the importance of the

identity of motherhood. Nevertheless female

physicians wanted women to go beyond motherhood’s

activities and to perform on activities outside the

household. Voting provided women an excellent

activity to go beyond house activities and made

women to ponder about the status of women and their

gender topics.

Female physicians laid emphasis on the moral

values of womanhood. They argued that the highest

morality of women would purify politics. Therefore

women would add morality to politics. Women’s

superior morality would choose the correct

politicians and make good decisions with regard to

104

social policies. That is to say, the morality that

women enforced within the family would be enforced

in politics. Alicia Moreau affirmed “To oppose women

emancipation by fearing social consequences is to

ignore the outcomes achieved by other countries

that have already accomplished women emancipation.

What is more, it is to ignore that direct and

active women participation have improved social

legislation, have thought more protection with

regards to young woman, women, and children, more

humane labor legislation, battle against alcoholism

and gambling men, prostitution, and the moral

abandonment of political elections and political

activities.71 Female physicians’ argument in favor

female suffrage argued women participation

moralized politics. They proposed to reject

71 Font, pp 24.

105

prostitution, pornography, immoral gambling, and

war. Female physicians’ arguments in favor of

female suffrage believed that women had higher

moral values than men. Consequently women would add

morality to politics.

Figure 5 Nuestra Causa, No.12, 1920, p. 139.

Male arguments against female suffrage and

female physicians’ arguments for female suffrage

agreed on two characteristics of womanhood: the

importance of motherhood, and women moral values.

106

However, male arguments against female suffrage

supported the idea that women moral values should

be performed inside the home. While female

physicians’ arguments for female suffrage claimed

the importance of women moral values. It would

moralize politics within the public sphere. Women

moral values had two directions: inside the private

sphere and outside of it; moving toward the public

sphere.

For men against female suffrage asserted the

significance importance of motherhood. It was

tailored buy Marianismo, while for female

physicians’ arguments in favor of female women,

their importance of motherhood was informed by the

cultural values and feminism of a traditional

society of the beginning of the twentieth century.

107

Womanhood protected society’s moral values. It

embraced femininity, non-individualism, patriotism,

and Catholicism. What is more, female physicians

purported that voting women would encourage women

to moralize political activities. Despite the fact

of arguments for and against female suffrages hared

motherhood and moral values: their goals were

different.

Conclusions

This essay examined how arguments for and against

female suffrage shaped two social constructions of

womanhood. The male arguments against female

suffrage supported a traditional construction of

womanhood. Meanwhile female physicians' arguments

tailored a new social construction of womanhood.

108

The traditional identity of womanhood found women

performing most of their responsibilities, duties,

and social activities within the private sphere.

And teaching and becoming a member of the

Beneficent Society were two respected occupations.

In contrast, the new identity of womanhood built a

professional woman working within the public

sphere. However the two constructions of womanhood

shared the importance of motherhood and women's

moral values as unique for women. The new identity

of womanhood challenged the traditional identity of

womanhood and imposed a new style of life within a

traditionalist society and conservative Catholic

Church.

In a context of a conservative society, the

traditional identity of womanhood was informed

109

Marianismo. Therefore women were pure, beautiful,

chaste, maternal loving, and self-sacrificed.

Women's main activity was running the "hogar",

raising their children, and taking care of their

husbands; women were queen housewifes Traditional

identity of womanhood and the private sphere were

feminine. Meanwhile, the new social construction of

womanhood looked up to professionalism and an

active woman interested in intellectual thoughts

working in the public sphere. Professions and the

public sphere were masculine. The new identity of

womanhood was based on feminist and socialist

ideas.  The new identity of womanhood challenged

the traditional idea of womanhood and encouraged

replacing it. Marianismo was feminine and kept the

inequality between women and men. In opposition,

professionalism was masculine and promoted the

110

equality between women and men. To sum up,

Marianismo was inferior to professionalism.

The identity of traditional womanhood had four

feminine attributes. Those feminine attributes

belong to the private sphere. Complementary to men,

women were pure because a woman was not corrupted

by the public sphere. If a woman was the perfect

housewife, she conveyed maternal love. If a woman

took care of the household chores, she was chaste.

Chastity, as well as purity, remained in the

private sphere.  If a woman worked outside her

home, she lost femininity and beauty. Thus if the

private sphere had feminine characteristics, the

public sphere was feminine. In contrast, the new

identity of womanhood was professionalism and

forged a space and job within the public sphere. If

111

professionalism was masculine, and the public

sphere was masculine. In conclusion, the private

public was inferior to the private sphere. 

The traditional identity of woman was tailored by

Marianism. Marianism stood for inequality between

women to men Jurists, lawyers, physicians,

journalists, and politicians against female

suffrage fashioned the sexes of the nation and

civilization. The nation was feminine. The nation

was pure, beautiful, maternal, and self-sacrificed.

Men idealized women's purity, as well as the people

romanticized the nation. Men admired a beautiful

woman, and the people wanted its nation to be

beautiful. Men expected women to be maternal, the

nation protected its people.  Women were self-

sacrificed in the same way as citizens expected the

nation to self-sacrifice for them. The feminine

112

nation, as well as the social construction of

womanhood, was idealized and romanticized. To

romanticize was to idealize the woman and the

nation as generous and non-individualist for the

sake for their ideals. If the nation was idealized,

as well as the traditional identity of womanhood,

the nation belonged to the social imagination and

did not operate within the public sphere. 

Men against female suffrage concluded that

civilization was bisexual Civilization was bisexual

so  it was both masculine and feminine.

Nonetheless, if the masculine aspects of

civilization prevailed over its feminine aspects,

masculinity was superior to femininity. Men were

obsessed with sex, their social imaginary

sexualized the notions of nation and civilization.

113

Their idea of feminine was tailored by the

traditional identity of womanhood. Therefore their

ideas of civilization and nation reinforced

inequality between women and men.

The traditional and new identities of womanhood

concurred on the importance of motherhood and

women's higher moral values in comparison to men's

ones. However both ideas of motherhood had

different goals. Marianismo transmitted the

traditional identity of motherhood.  Meanwhile the

new identity of motherhood was grounded on the

prevailing cultural values of the Argentine society

at the beginning of the twentieth century. Both

traditional and new social constructions of

womanhood guard the moral values of society.

Furthermore, the new idea of womanhood moralized

114

politics and kept out corruption from the public

sphere. On the other hand, women moral values -

femininity, non-individualism, and patriotism

[REMOVED COMMA HERE] had different directions. The

traditional identity of womanhood taught moral

values within the family, that is to say that she

did everything in the private sphere. Whereas the

new women wanted to moralize politics and working

in the public sphere. In contrast to the latter,

for the former Catholicism, was the most important

moral value. Marianismo's motherhood and the

"inside" direction of moral values maintained the

inequality between the sexes. On the contrary, the

new woman used the cultural values on the "outside"

direction, that is to say the public sphere.

Therefore the new woma purported that women were

equal to men. [

115

This essay analyzed how male arguments against

female women and female physicians' arguments for

female suffrage built two social constructions of

womanhood.  The traditional identity of womanhood

argued that women were not equal to men. In

contrast the new identity of womanhood affirmed

equality between the sexes. The ideas of both

equality and inequality were tailored by the

ordinary and prevalent popular beliefs of an

Argentine traditional society AT the beginning OF

the twentieth society. The popular beliefs asserted

that women were inferior to men. Marianismo, the

feminine private sphere, the masculine notion of

civilization, the "inside" use of motherhood, and

moral values informed the traditional identity of

womanhood. In contrast, professionalism, the

masculine private sphere, the "outside" use of

116

motherhood, and moral values tailored the new

construction of womanhood. The traditional identity

of womanhood gave evidence of the inequality

between women and men. On the contrary, the new

identity of womanhood demonstrated that women were

equal to men.

Male arguments against female suffrage defended a

traditional identity of womanhood. In opposition,

female physician' arguments in favor of female

suffrage forged a new identity of womanhood in the

Argentine society AT the beginning of the twentieth

century. This essay argued that the emerging new

identity of womanhood challenged the traditional

identity of womanhood. The former kept the

inequality between women and men, whereas the

latter claimed equality between women and men. But

117

even nowadays the traditional idea of womanhood

still prevails over the new identity of womanhood. 

What will be the future identities of womanhood,

motherhood, religion, and professionalism in

transforming societies an era of globalization?

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