Alice Madge Dawson (5 March 1908 – 15 June 2003) was an Australian educator, social worker, researcher and pioneering feminist. She created the Women's Studies course in the Department of Adult Education at the University of Sydney.

Biography

Dawson was born Alice Madge Burton, in

Echunga Echunga ( ) is a small town in the Adelaide Hills located south-east of Adelaide in South Australia. The area was settled by Europeans during the period of British colonisation of South Australia in 1839, with the town laid out in 1849. The na ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

in 1908. Although she won a scholarship to study medicine at

Adelaide University The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

the family couldn't afford to pay for the costs of living there and instead Dawson became a teacher, partly funded by the availability of the South Australian Education Department allowance. Teachers in the area experienced similar discrimination to many women around the world, the men earned a higher salary and married women were not allowed to work. When Dawson went to

Sydney University The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's six ...

similar discriminations were still in place, women were not offered the home loan scheme for married staff. Dawson took on this latter position and won the case, getting the loan. In 1934 Dawson married another teacher David Dawson and in 1937 the pair began to travel. They visited Japan, Germany and the USSR as well as China and the UK. The time frame meant they saw events unfolding in Nazi Germany from the ground, including a speech by

Goebbels Paul Joseph Goebbels (; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazi politician who was the ''Gauleiter'' (district leader) of Berlin, chief propagandist for the Nazi Party, and then Reich Minister of Propaganda from 1933 to 19 ...

which Dawson remembered as extremely disturbing. Dawson settled in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

until after the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. She worked in an aircraft factory and they adopted a son Sean in 1940 as well as having another son, Paddy, in 1945. For several years after the war Dawson gained a number of new qualifications before they returned to Australia in 1954. Dawson got involved in several political movements, particularly Aboriginal rights and against the Vietnam war. In 1956 she began working as a lecturer in Sydney University where she began the work that would become

Women's studies Women's studies is an academic field that draws on feminist and interdisciplinary methods to place women's lives and experiences at the center of study, while examining social and cultural constructs of gender; systems of privilege and oppress ...

. Initially her course talked about the socio-economic and political status of women in Europe. Many of her students became leading academics in the new feminist movements and the course led to the publication of her book ''Graduate and Married'' (University of Sydney, 1965). She continued to research the topics and produced two further books with academics from three Sydney universities, retiring in 1973 but continuing to lecture part time. Dawson was awarded an honorary master's from Sydney University as well as an honorary doctorate from

Macquarie University Macquarie University ( ) is a public research university based in Sydney, Australia, in the suburb of Macquarie Park. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the metropolitan area of S ...

in 1989. She died 15 June 2003.

Bibliography

* ''Graduate and Married'', 1965 * ''Why So Few? Women Academics in Australian Universities'', 1983 * ''Against the Odds: Fifteen Professional Women Reflect on their Lives and Careers'', 1984 * ''Families: Australian studies of changing relationships within the family and between the family and society'', 1974

Sources

1908 births 2003 deaths Australian feminists Australian women's rights activists {{Feminist-stub