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1. Do not marry at all

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1. Do not marry at all

Marriage advice from the suffragettes in 1911

Shaun Usher
Oct 16, 2022
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1. Do not marry at all

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Should you one day visit Pontypridd Museum in South Wales and peruse their collections, you may well see the following list of advice. Written and printed in 1911, it is just one of countless pamphlets that circulated as the Suffragettes fought for the right to vote in the UK.


Pamphlet postmarked 12th August 1911, courtesy of Pontypridd Museum

Advice on Marriage.
TO YOUNG LADIES.

1. Do not marry at all.

2. But if you must avoid the Beauty Men, Flirts, and the Bounders, Tailor’s Dummies, and the Football Enthusiasts.

3. Look for a Strong, Tame Man, a Fire-lighter, Coal-getter, Window Cleaner, and Yard Swiller.

4. Don’t except too much, most men are lazy, selfish, thoughtless, lying, drunken, clumsy, heavy-footed, rough, unmanly brutes, and need taming.

5. All Bachelors are, and many are worse still.

6. If you want him to be happy, Feed the Brute.

7. The same remark applies to Dogs.

8. You will be wiser not to chance it, it isn’t worth the risk.

A SUFFRAGETTE WIFE.


This is the 31st issue of the Lists of Note newsletter: a new (old) list each Sunday. You can support this project by becoming a paid subscriber, or by donating, or by purchasing a copy of the Lists of Note book. Thanks.

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1. Do not marry at all

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4 Comments
Tomi Daniel
Writes Proverbs on Blast
Oct 17, 2022

Interesting list. I wonder what the 21st Century version would state about men and tech (e.g. smart phones or not; electric/hybrid vs. gas vehicles; etc). By the way, did men have rules about women?

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Natasha Y
Writes More Hot Sauce
Oct 17, 2022

This was a delight!

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