"Bother the Men! thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

"Bother the Men!

Sheet Music
ca. 19th century (printed and published)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

'Bother The Men' was a topical song sung by Isabelle Hill (Mrs Howard Paul), probably in the early 1870s. The suffrage movement began to cause a stir in London at the turn of the 20th century when women campaigned for the right to vote. However women had been campaigning for rights to land, property, and inheritance long before this. Mary Walker, whose name appears on the spine of one of the books in this illustration, was an American feminist who was the first woman doctor in the American Civil War in the 1860s. She was arrested several times for masquerading as a man and published two books in the early 1870s. In their bid to raise public awareness of their fight suffragettes gained a reputation for being loud, aggressive and unfeminine. 'Bother the Men' seems to satirise such women.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Title"Bother the Men! (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Lithograph
Brief description
Music sheet cover for "Bother the Men!", sung by Mrs Howard Paul, published by Metlzer & Co., ca. 19th century.
Physical description
Cover of the sheet music for "Bother the Men". This illustration shows Mrs. Howard Paul dressed as the fictitious Women's Rights campaigner 'Miss Grym', lecturing on Women's Rights.
Dimensions
  • Height: 36cm (approx)
  • Width: 26cm (approx)
Credit line
Gabrielle Enthoven Collection
Subject depicted
Association
Literary referenceBother the Men
Summary
'Bother The Men' was a topical song sung by Isabelle Hill (Mrs Howard Paul), probably in the early 1870s. The suffrage movement began to cause a stir in London at the turn of the 20th century when women campaigned for the right to vote. However women had been campaigning for rights to land, property, and inheritance long before this. Mary Walker, whose name appears on the spine of one of the books in this illustration, was an American feminist who was the first woman doctor in the American Civil War in the 1860s. She was arrested several times for masquerading as a man and published two books in the early 1870s. In their bid to raise public awareness of their fight suffragettes gained a reputation for being loud, aggressive and unfeminine. 'Bother the Men' seems to satirise such women.
Collection
Accession number
S.750-2012

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Record createdAugust 28, 2012
Record URL
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