Examples of Women Taking Advantage of Gender Stereotypes

The gender roles of wife, mother, and housekeeper imposed by the Nazis acted as a disguise under which women resistors were able to work. Women were able to successfully use their homes for secret meetings, or as hideaways for political fugitives or Allied airmen because of the stereotype of women being nothing more than homemakers.  Lucie Aubrac, a member of the French resistance, and Diet Eman, who worked with the Nazi resistance in Holland, are examples of women who used such tactics. Lucie used her appearance as a mother, emphasizing her duty as a wife and raising her children to cover up for secret meetings between her husband and other resistance members. Meanwhile, Diet hid Jews, downed English pilots, and others considered German enemies (Amber McDonald).

 Nazi men also saw women as weak, simple-minded, and beneficial only as bearers of the next generation. Women played into the stereotype of simplemindedness when caught in order to be found innocent or to have their husbands released from prison. Lucie, for example, pretended to be pregnant and used the social taboo of an unmarried, pregnant woman to claim that hr husband needed to be released so that she could marry him. Because of her gender they did not investigate her interest in the release of her husband. Diet also used this tactic. When caught by the Gestapo with a fake identification she portrayed herself as extremely unintelligent in order to be found innocent. (Amber McDonald) 

The Nazis didn’t believe that women were courageous enough to take on some of the most dangerous jobs as couriers and saboteurs and thus would not stop and search them. Women, like Diet and Lucie, were able to type up and distribute illegal pamphlets and forged identification documents and act as couriers for underground resistance groups because of the Nazi’s dismissal of women’s courage. Women took advantage of gender expectations and stereotypes to actively participate in resistance right under the Nazis’ noses. (Amber McDonald)

For more information on Lucie Aubrac: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucie_Aubrac

For further reading on Diet Eman:

Eman, D., & Schaap, J. C. (1999). Things we couldn’t say. Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans.