A Century of Women

On the basis of diaries, photographs, letters and memoirs of historically important women, A CENTURY OF WOMEN sheds light on the history of American women in the 20th century. Film stars like Meryl Streep, Jodie Foster, Angela Bassett, Sally Field and many others were prepared to give these women a voice. The film consists of three parts. In the section 'work and family' the historical struggle by women for a well-balanced division of their time between family life and paid labour is examined. Eleanor Roosevelt and Betty Friedman are two out of many women who appear in this section. 'Sexuality and social justice' deals with the extent to which women can determine what happens to their body and with the aspiration for social equality. It treats the ideas of Gloria Steinem, Erica Jong and Shere Hite, among others. The third section, 'image and popular culture', shows the changing representation of women in films, on television, in magazines and in art. This section features Bessie Smith, Lucille Ball and Laura Dern, to name a few. The documentary images centre around a fictional story about a family. A CENTURY OF WOMEN contains a wealth of rare archive footage, coming from 'The Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library', which concentrates on the documentation of the history of American women.