The Pros And Cons Of The Suffragettes

Source E

Source E is a secondary written source as it is a transcript of an interview published in the BBC History magazine of February 2015. The interview concerns the Suffragettes helping get women the right to vote. Anita states that the government was not interested in giving women the right to vote. Anita commends the ‘very brave women’ indicating how hard the Suffragettes worked.

Anita Anand has a lot of knowledge of the suffragettes as she has authored a book on the subject. It is an interview in the BBC History magazine so it is a very reliable source. It discusses a real person ‘Sophia’ so is an actual historical account that Anand has researched.

However, the source has several limitations. Mainly it is limited as it is Anand’s

opinion of the Suffragettes and Sophia, who she supports therefore, her opinion is biased towards the Suffragettes and is likely to be positive towards the group and ignore negative aspects.

It is a book written with the intention to inform and make money; this limits the usefulness of the source as historical evidence. She has chosen this subject, as she is interested in women in history and is knowledgeable on the subject. However, the source is from 2015, over 100 years since the war, the author has no first hand experience of the events. Therefore, it is a useful source of information but it is limited.

Source F
Source F is report from a June 1914 edition the ‘Morning Post’ newspaper. It concerns the trial of men accused of attacking Suffragettes in London. From the source we can infer that the judge did not charge the men because they were biased against the women, as shown by “the behaviour of these women had created a strong feeling of resentment and disgust”. We can assume the three men who were arrested did something extra violent to be selected out of the crowd. Police were already on the scene as they expected trouble from the protest.

The source is primary evidence as it as newspaper from 1914. This is useful because it provides information on the resentful attitude of men towards Suffragettes at the time.

However, the source is limited as it there is little detail of the behaviour of the arrested men, it is likely they did more than verbal abuse. Furthermore, only one event is detailed from the view of one judge, offering a limited perspective. Additionally, we do not know the full story as the protestors may have provoked the men, in order to publicise their cause.

The source is a newspaper report on the trial of men accused of attacking Suffragettes on June 1914. Newspapers are useful as they provide an account on a historical event and an indication of cultural attitudes, here they detail the event and indicate a resentfulness towards Suffragettes. However, newspapers are limited as a source as they have commercial and political agendas and are biased. Therefore, this source gives insight into the attitudes towards Suffragettes but is very limited as a piece of historical evidence.

Source G
Source G is a popular Music Hall song composed in 1908; from the song we can infer that the Suffragettes had a frightening reputation and were the subject of ridicule.

This source is useful as it displays a working class perspective about the Suffragettes. It is primary evidence as it provides an account from people who experienced the Suffragette movement first hand. It also shows the rise in notoriety of the Suffragettes, as their movement has become a part of popular culture.

The source is limited as it is short and does not provide the reason the writer dislikes Suffragettes. Furthermore, it is only one person’s opinion, as we do not know how popular the song was.

Although this source provides insight into the attitudes towards Suffragettes, it is only a song intended for entertainment so it is not a useful piece of historical evidence.

Source H
This source is a cartoon in the Daily Mirror newspaper on 2 July 1909. The source is suggesting the Suffragettes are violent and law breaking which will not help their cause.

The source is useful because it is a visual piece of historical evidence that captures the attitude of many people, as many at the time were resentful about the Suffragettes using violence to get their own way. Additionally, although the comic is negative, it is achieving one of the Suffragettes goals by attracting media attention.

However, the content has limitations, particularly because it is one sided and bias against the Suffragettes; it is only portraying the group’s negative aspects and not accurately showing Suffragettes behaviour.

The source is a cartoon in a daily Newspaper, to is also intended to be humorous, not serious historical evidence thus not providing a factual account. This means it is very limited.

Source J

This source is a postcard published by the Artist’s Suffrage League; it displays an educated woman and a man who is a prisoner. The caption is ‘companions in disgrace’, followed by a poem how both women and convicts are not allowed to vote although convicts can vote when they are freed.

This source is useful because it provides a different perspective of the Suffragettes. The analogy makes it clear why women deserve the right to vote. The author of the source is unknown; it was a postcard that was posted to people around 1910-1912 (no specific date given).

The poster is limited, as it does not provide detail on the Suffragettes activities. It also does not inform us what crime the prisoner has committed, so it is unfair to say he does not deserve to

vote.

This source is a postcard that was handed out by Suffragettes with the intention of gaining support for their movement. Therefore, it is likely to be biased in favour of the Suffragettes. In conclusion, the source is a useful piece of first hand historical evidence however it is limited as it only provides one point of view.

Source K
This source is an extract from ‘My Own Story’, the autobiography of Emmeline Pankhurst published in 1914.

It informs us that the Suffragettes wanted a lot of media attention. They believed there is no such thing as bad publicity and look to gain attention by any means necessary.

This is a useful source as it provides details on the Suffragettes from a relevant person, Emmeline Pankhurst, the leader of the Suffragette movement. It also informs us why the Suffragettes were violent and outspoken.

The content is limited as it only a small extract out of a book, so it does not provide the full story. Also, Pankhurst does not address the criticism or the failures of the Suffragettes.

As the source is autobiography of the leader of the Suffragettes it is only going to tell her point of view, so it is heavily biased in favour of the Suffragettes and is unlikely to be accurate. Also, as it is a book intended for entertainment, its use as historical evidence is further limited.

Conclusion
Overall these sources provide great detail on the Suffragettes, both in favour and against the movement. The most informative source is K as it is a first-hand account on the leader of the Suffragettes, despite its bias, it informs us of the motivations of the group. The least informative and most limited source is G, though it provides a working class perspective of the Suffragettes, it is only a Music Hall song written by one person (a single point of view) and is only intended for entertainment, not accuracy.