How 20th Century South African Women Viewed the Plausibility of Communist Liberation

The masculine-oriented world of trade unions and modern industry often exclude women or limit their roles as fellow workers, let alone as activists. While many are familiar with the communist movement that permeated through the 20th Century, few are aware of the role that women played in this political eruption. The traditional oppression of women ingrained in society presented an interesting issue for the Political Left; the Communist Party's answer to the "Woman Question" was that the liberation of the working class would also liberate women from the oppression of capitalist society. Two South African women who joined the Communist Party allow us to explore both the potential for and limitations of the communist liberation of women. The activist lives of Pauline Podbrey and Doris Lessing, through their entries into and departures from the Cause, broaden our understanding of a topic about which not enough is known.