After the First World War, there were nearly 2 million more women than men in Britain, and an entire generation of young women lost the usual opportunities for marriage and motherhood. Social historians have mostly dismissed them as pathetic, but Nicholson's new book, "Ending Alone: ??The Survival Story of Two Million Single Women after World War I," finds that they were optimistic. It was a brave new world, and they transformed Victorian spinsters into modern working women.
Before the war ended, their fate was sealed. In 1917, the principal of Bournemouth Girls' School told the sixth grade students: "I want to tell you a terrible fact. Only 1 in 10 of you will have the chance to get married."
Yet how do these women not be overcome by grief and strive in new directions. One of the heroines is the famous archaeologist Gertrude Caton-Thompson. Her lover was a light cavalry officer who was unfortunately killed in the war. At first, she felt that even surviving was a betrayal of him. But after the war, she attended University College London, where she studied Arabic and African prehistory. Later, she conducted archaeological excavations at Neolithic sites in Malta, South Africa, the Arabian Peninsula and Egypt. She encountered a series of difficult challenges such as leopards, crocodiles, cobras, fleas, and swamps, but she overcame them all.
In Nicholson's narration, some "superfluous women" became explorers, entomologists, ship engineers, doctors, mountaineers, clothing models, etc. Others devoted themselves to slum amelioration and famine relief work, or began to engage in previously male professions - like the first female lawyer, the first female privy councilor and cabinet member, the first female Veterinarians, female civil servants and female architects to name a few. Most enterprising single women come from affluent middle-class families. But there are exceptions. Florence White, a textile worker from Bradford, went on to become a well-known political activist and founded the National Textile Workers Pension Guarantee Association. Gladys Aylward, a former maid, used her savings to take a train across Siberia to China, where she preached while taking care of leprosy patients and sick children. She stayed there for 20 years. There are more ordinary women who are willing to live a plain and simple life, and they are equally worthy of respect. By 1921, the number of ordinary female employees had reached 500,000. They lived in small rooms with bedrooms that doubled as living rooms, and worked day after day in menial jobs such as typists or secretarial workers. Their weekly income is only 30 shillings, and their lunch depends on a bun or a sandwich. Social historians mostly think of them as pitiable, but Nicholson interviewed many of these women and found that they were actually very optimistic. They are usually a group of female friends who get together and form lifelong friendships. They like to go dancing together, take a walk in the garden, or occasionally enjoy a fancy afternoon tea. It's a brave new world—much better than waiting for your husband all your life.