Bicycling and feminism

Last updated April 25, 2024

The bicycle had a significant impact on the lives of women in a variety of areas.^[1]^[2]^[3] The greatest impact the bicycle had on the societal role of women occurred in the 1890s during the bicycle craze that swept American and European society.^[4] During this time, the primary achievement the bicycle gained for the women's movement was that it gave women a greater amount of social mobility.^[3]^[5] The feminist Annie Londonderry accomplished her around-the-globe bicycle trip as the first woman in this time.^[6]^[7]^[8] Due to the price and the various payment plans offered by American bicycle companies, the bicycle was affordable to the majority of people.^[3] However, the bicycle impacted upper and middle class white women the most.^[3] This transformed their role in society from remaining in the private or domestic sphere as caregivers, wives, and mothers to one of greater public appearance and involvement in the community.^[3]^[9] In the 21st century bicycling remains a contentious issue addressed by feminists in countries such as Saudi Arabia and Iran.

History

Dandyhorses: pre-1860s

Dandyhorses were invented in 1817 and were very fashionable for a couple of years. They could move at about twice walking speed. They had no pedals or cranks, but were propelled with the feet like a modern balance bicycle. Denis Johnson sold a ladies' version with a step-through frame.

Johnson’s Ladies’ Walking Machine, sold in London 1818-1819, had a step-through frame to accommodate skirts
A tricycle draisine with a front-facing seat for a female passenger.

Velocipedes: 1860s to mid-1880s

Between the 1860s and the mid-1880s, the standard bicycle was the ordinary or high wheeler, which was both hard to master and dangerous to use. While the ordinary was exclusively used by men, women were allowed to use bicycles such as the two-seater sociable, the tandem bicycle, and the tricycle. Beginning in the late 1860s companionate riding became a popular social activity for men and women. These vehicles allowed men and women to develop new methods of coed socialization. However, up until the mid 1880s, women were primarily dependent upon men in order to participate in cycling. The presence of a man in control of the sociable assumed that the man could keep the woman safe from the dangers of riding a bike alone, thereby assuming the authority of man. So while companionate riding was revolutionary in the development in sociability between men and women, it kept women in an inferior position to men by assuming that the man had the power over the bicycle in that situation.^[3]^[10]

Bicycle craze

In the mid-1880s to mid-1890s, the modern safety bicycle was developed. Bicyling became widely popular.

"Bicycling", a ca. 1887 color print showing one of the few ways in which it was socially acceptable for women to ride cycles, in the years before the invention of "safety bicycles" and the woman's "bicycle suit". Bicycling-ca1887-bigwheelers.jpg — "Bicycling", a ca. 1887 color print showing one of the few ways in which it was socially acceptable for women to ride cycles, in the years before the invention of "safety bicycles" and the woman's "bicycle suit".

Ottoman Empire

According to Alon Raab, a professor of Religious Studies at UC Davis, opposition to cycling in the Ottoman Empire was quick from conservatives and religious fundamentalists, who frequently criticized bicycles as the Devil's Chariot.^[11] Orthodox scholars claimed that cycling would harm reproductive organs, embolden sexual permissiveness and lead to the destruction of the family.^[11] Raab additionally notes that their unmentioned objective was to keep women in their homes and to restrict nonsupervised contact between men and women.^[11] Raab reports that many Muslim religious authorities castigated women's cycling as bid’ah (any technical innovation deemed heretical).^[11] He points out that women's cycling was criticized in the media and by law, and in some places, female cyclists faced physical assaults. He reports that despite opposition, in the early 20th century, women in the Ottoman Empire nevertheless went on to adopt cycling for varied purposes with a new sense of freedom.^[12] Feminist activists' efforts to expand the political rights of women, like those of Fatma Aliye Topuz, were helped along by the bicycle.^[12]^[11]

Clothing

Between 1885 and 1895, inventors and engineers vastly improved the previous generation of bicycle to what was then called safety bicycle.^[3] With these developments, a type of safety bicycle was designed for women in particular with a drop frame in order to accommodate women's clothes. However, the long skirts and the tight-fitted bodices of this time period made cycling an even greater challenge. Therefore, several modified outfits were offered to women that would accommodate the bicycle. Some modifications included divided skirts, skirts that shortened with drawstrings, skirts that converted to bloomers, skirt-securing devices that kept the fabric close to the ankle, and a bicycle corset consisting of a sturdy, straight under-bodice with extra back support and a looser fit. Of all the bicycle costumes, the bloomer costume was and still is the most widely known from this time period. This consisted of full trousers, gathered at the ankle, worn with a calf-length skirt with a fashionable jacket on top.^[10]

These clothes were met with mixed approval. Elizabeth Cady Stanton in her notes on whether or not women should ride a bicycle stated, "To sum up, I would say, let women ride .... If some prefer the [bulk] skirts flying in the wind exhausted in the wheels let them run the risk of their folly; If others prefer bloomers let them enjoy their choice- if others prefer knickerbockers, leave them in peace."^[2] In instructive books written for women on how to ride a bicycle, many authors insist that wearing bicycle costumes made it easier to ride.^[14] In both cases, it seems that the decision to wear these athletic costumes was a personal choice for women. By making this choice, women to a small degree were able to take control of their life. At the same time, it was presented as a rational choice as wearing the full fashion of the time could make cycling more difficult for the rider. Because of this the decision to wear these clothes was closely related to the decision to ride a bicycle.^[10]

For the most part, men were the main opponents of women wearing bicycle clothing and in particular, bloomers. This can be seen in a lot of songs from this time period. For example, a rendition of "Mary Had a Little Lamb" from 1895 written by Stanislaus Stange had a verse that went:

"Dear Mary," said the little lamb,
"It gives me quite a fright
To see the girls on bicycles,
They're such a novel sight.
Why is it they all Bloomers wear?
The sight my blood congeals."
Then Mary touched her forehead thus,
And gently murmured: "Wheels."^[15]

In this case, the very idea of the bicycle suit and women's potential to wear it disturbed some men. They saw these suits and in particular bloomers as ugly or shameful. In particular, they saw these bicycle costumes as a physical representation of women stealing men's characteristics, thereby blurring the lines between femininity and masculinity and what is socially acceptable for each group. What this fear reveals is a realistic notion that women were taking on a greater role of independence of which had previously been characterized as masculine.^[3]^[10]

To address modesty concerns, a proposed Iranian version of a women's bicycle would have a "boxy contraption that hides a woman's lower body".^[16]

Health

During the late nineteenth century, doctors began encouraging everyone in public to exercise more often and cycling became a popular activity in which to do so. However, doctors were worried about the effects of excessive cycling, particularly how it affected women. An 1895 article in The Literary Digest reviewed literature from the time period, which discussed the bicycle face, and noted that The Springfield Republican warned against excessive cycling by "women, girls, and middle-aged men."^[18] The bicycle face was described as a face usually flushed, but sometimes pale, often with lips more or less drawn, and the beginning of dark shadows under the eyes, and always an expression of weariness.^[18] These articles pushed forth the belief that excessive cycling made women vulnerable to many diseases such as developing an exophthalmic goiter, appendicitis, and internal inflammation.^[19] His article was subsequently discussed and analyzed in The Advertiser .^[20]

Another concern doctors had about women riding the bicycle was over their sexual health. Doctors believed that the bicycle saddle taught masturbation to women and girls. Riding astride anything was seen as too masculine for any proper woman. These physicians wrote in detail in medical journals about how the bicycle could be used for masturbation:

The saddle can be tilted in every bicycle as desired… In this way a girl… could, by carrying the front peak or pommel high, or by relaxing the stretched leather in order to let it form a deep, hammock-like concavity which would fit itself snugly over the entire vulva and reach up in front, bring about constant friction over the clitoris and labia. This pressure would be much increased by stooping forward and the warmth generated from vigorous exercise might further increase feeling.^[21]

These doctors were not concerned with sexual health, but rather sexual morality. Young women were supposed to be chaste and pure. They were trained from a young age to guard their sexual innocence. The fact that the bicycle had potential to awaken sexual feelings in women not only threatened their sexual purity, but also threatened to destroy gender definitions of sexual morality. Therefore, the bicycle is seen again as blurring the definition of masculine and feminine characteristics.^[5]

At the same time as male doctors were stating the capabilities of women and the weakness of their bodies in relation to the bicycle, bicycle enthusiasts disagreed with this medical assessment, and asserted that the physical activity was good to improve one's health and vitality.^[22] Women began to express what their bodies were capable of through magazine articles. Women like Mary Bisland, Mary Sargent Hopkins, and Emma Moffett Tyng contested medical commonplaces and promoted new ones in their place. These women stated that cycling brought long-inactive muscles back to life, and helped riders feel better emotionally and encouraged women to use their own experiences with the bicycle to determine their physical limits. These women brought to public attention the positive aspects that help women riders. The bicycle not only makes them literally stronger, but also makes them more confident in their own abilities. This in turn not only gives women a greater agency over their body, but also mentally strengthens them to take on their previous domestic role and explore new roles in the public sphere.^[23]

The 1977 book Women in the Arab World by the Egyptian feminist Nawal El Saadawi, reports that Arab culture used to place undue importance on female virginity. For example, a girl whose hymen was damaged as a result of sports activities like cycling or horse riding had to face negative consequences in her family life and social stature.^[24]

Solo female bicycle travelers

Bicycle touring is a type of adventure travel, whereby a traveler uses a bicycle as the major means of transportation. A bicycle traveler might also use panniers to transport her equipment. Such travel can be almost completely self-sustained and autonomous, once the equipment includes a tent, cooking tools, a medical pack, repair tools, cooking fuel, water containers and multiple days of food supplies. Women Cycle the World is one of the many websites, which offer a list solo female long-distance cyclists and their blog.^[25] For instance, Rebecca Lowe crossed Iran, Dervla Murphy crossed Afghanistan and Helen Lloyd crossed Africa.^[26]^[27] The book WOW — Women on Wheels by solo female cycle traveler Loretta Henderson reported a global number of 245 solo female cycle travelers.^[28] Annie Londonderry is the first woman to have cycled the world as early as in 1894–95.^[8]

Issues of safety and security for solo female long-distance cyclists are often raised by those meeting them for the first time.^[29]^[30] Such sources often come off with encouraging answers and useful advice, such as researching road and destination, staying visible on the road, and planning lodging options such as camping, bed and breakfast and Warm Showers ahead.^[31]^[32]^[33] Around the world cycling record breaking Jenny Graham was even advised to carry a firearm in Yukon due to the 'bear season'.^[34] She got along with "three bells, a whistle, flash lights on the front and back of her bike and bear spray" instead of a firearm.

List of solo female cycle travelers
Name	Birth year	Nationality
Annie Londonderry	1870	Jewish-Latvian-American
Dervla Murphy	1931	Irish
Anne Mustoe	1933	English
Josie Dew	1966	English
Cristina Spínola	1976	Spanish
Jenny Graham	1979 or 1980	Scottish
Juliana Buhring	1981	British-German
Sana Iqbal	1987	Indian
Vedangi Kulkarni	1998	Indian

Gender gap

According to Jennifer Bonham and Kat Jungnicke lot of the gender and cycling literature studies reasons behind uneven uptake among diverse populations.^[12] Jennifer Bonham and Kat Jungnicke state that women may be behind in numbers among cyclists of low-cycling countries like Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, the UK and the US, but they have very similar numbers to men in high-cycling countries like the Netherlands and Denmark. That makes it incorrect to infer that women have any natural aversion to ride bikes.^[12]

Bicycle rallies in 21st-century Pakistan

Being influenced by sexualized patriarchal culture, various levels of seclusion of women from public participation are practiced in Pakistan. Taboos may require women to sit in a particular manner, not ride a bicycle, and limit public contact. Since the first Aurat March (an International Women's Day march) in 2018, women's bicycle rallies in Karachi were started. On International Women's Day 2021, around 150 women of various backgrounds participated in the bicycle ride.^[35]^[36]

Publications

During the 1890s, many women and some men wrote self-help books in order to help women learn how to ride a bicycle. Within these books, they gave tips and personal reflections about the impact of the bicycle on their lives. Frances Elizabeth Willard, the national president of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) wrote a book called A Wheel Within A Wheel, in which she discusses the exhilaration and health benefits she received by learning to ride as well as how she used cycling as a compelling social activity to stop men and women from drinking.^[1]

Elizabeth Cady Stanton wrote that the bicycle was a tool which motivated women to gain strength and take on increased roles in society.^[37] Susan B. Anthony stated in 1896: "Let me tell you what I think of bicycling. I think it has done more to emancipate women than anything else in the world. I stand and rejoice every time I see a woman ride by on a wheel."^[37]

Beatrice Grimshaw, who went on to a life of travel and adventure, describes a girlhood of Victorian propriety, in which she was: "the Revolting Daughter–as they called them then. I bought a bicycle, with difficulty. I rode it unchaperoned, mile and miles beyond the limits possible to the soberly trotting horses. The world opened before me. And as soon as my twenty-first birthday dawned, I went away from home, to see what the world might to give to daughters who revolted."^[38]

Within the experiences of all these women, they indicate a similar experience of the world opening up to them. In the literal sense, they could leave the private sphere for the public sphere and in doing so escape the cult of domesticity in which societal norms kept them imprisoned. At the same time, they see the potential for new opportunities in which women can take an active role within their community. Through these readings, the women begin to see their potential as active and independent members of society.^[39]^[14]^[1]

Contemporary legal status

In Saudi Arabia, women are banned from cycling for transportation purposes. Cycling may be used only for recreation and is subject to various religious restrictions.^[40]

In Iran, cycling in public spaces has been banned under a fatwa since 2016 despite widespread resistance amongst Iranian women.^[41] Advocates of women cyclists have been attacked by vigilantes.^[42]

Related Research Articles

A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A bicycle rider is called a cyclist, or bicyclist.

The penny-farthing, also known as a high wheel, high wheeler or ordinary, is an early type of bicycle. It was popular in the 1870s and 1880s, with its large front wheel providing high speeds, owing to it travelling a large distance for every rotation of the legs, and comfort, because the large wheel provided greater shock absorption.

Bicycle touring is the taking of self-contained cycling trips for pleasure, adventure or autonomy rather than sport, commuting or exercise. Bicycle touring can range from single-day trips to extended travels spanning weeks or months. Tours may be planned by the participant or organized by a tourism business, local club or organization, or a charity as a fund-raising venture.

A utility bicycle, city bicycle, urban bicycle, European city bike (ECB), Dutch bike, classic bike or simply city-bike is a bicycle designed for frequent very short, relatively slow rides through very flat urban areas. It is a form of utility bicycle commonly seen around the world, built to facilitate everyday short-distance riding in normal clothes in cold-to-mild weather conditions. It is therefore a bicycle designed for very short-range practical transportation, as opposed to those primarily for recreation and competition, such as touring bicycles, road bicycles, and mountain bicycles. Utility bicycles are the most common form globally, and comprise the vast majority found in the developing world. City bikes may be individually owned or operated as part of a public bike sharing scheme.

A fixed-gear bicycle is a bicycle that has a drivetrain with no freewheel mechanism such that the pedals always will spin together with the rear wheel. The freewheel was developed early in the history of bicycle design but the fixed-gear bicycle remained the standard track racing design. More recently the "fixie" has become a popular alternative among mainly urban cyclists, offering the advantage of simplicity compared with the standard multi-geared bicycle.

Vehicles that have two wheels and require balancing by the rider date back to the early 19th century. The first means of transport making use of two wheels arranged consecutively, and thus the archetype of the bicycle, was the German draisine dating back to 1817. The term bicycle was coined in France in the 1860s, and the descriptive title "penny farthing", used to describe an "ordinary bicycle", is a 19th-century term.

Bicycle culture can refer to a mainstream culture that supports the use of bicycles or to a subculture. Although "bike culture" is often used to refer to various forms of associated fashion, it is erroneous to call fashion in and of itself a culture.

Fashion in the 1890s in Western countries is characterized by long elegant lines, tall collars, and the rise of sportswear. It was an era of great dress reforms led by the invention of the drop-frame safety bicycle, which allowed women the opportunity to ride bicycles more comfortably, and therefore, created the need for appropriate clothing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bloomers</span> Type of womens garment

Bloomers, also called the bloomer, the Turkish dress, the American dress, or simply reform dress, are divided women's garments for the lower body. They were developed in the 19th century as a healthful and comfortable alternative to the heavy, constricting dresses worn by American women. They take their name from their best-known advocate, the women's rights activist Amelia Bloomer.

Cycling shorts are short, skin-tight garments designed to improve comfort and efficiency while cycling.

Sterling Bicycle Co. was a 19th-century American bicycle company first based in Chicago, Illinois before relocating to Kenosha, Wisconsin.

A roadster bicycle is a type of utility bicycle once common worldwide, and still common in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and some parts of Europe. During the past few decades, traditionally styled roadster bicycles have regained popularity in the Western world, particularly as a lifestyle or fashion statement in an urban environment.

A step-through frame is a type of bicycle frame, often used for utility bicycles, with a low or absent top tube or cross-bar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Annie Londonderry</span> American cyclist, world traveler

Annie Cohen Kopchovsky, known as Annie Londonderry, was a Jewish Latvian immigrant to the United States who in 1894–95 became the first woman to bicycle around the world. After having completed her travel, albeit mostly by ship, she built a media career around engagement with popular conception of what it was to be female.

Cycling quickly became an activity after bicycles were introduced in the 19th century and remains popular with more than a billion people worldwide used for recreation, transportation and sport.

Cycling is a popular mode of transport and leisure activity within London, the capital city of the United Kingdom. Following a national decline in the 1960s of levels of utility cycling, cycling as a mode of everyday transport within London began a slow regrowth in the 1970s. This continued until the beginning of the 21st century, when levels began to increase significantly—during the period from 2000 to 2012, the number of daily journeys made by bicycle in Greater London doubled to 580,000. The growth in cycling can partly be attributed to the launch in 2010 by Transport for London (TfL) of a cycle hire system throughout the city's centre. By 2013, the scheme was attracting a monthly ridership of approximately 500,000, peaking at a million rides in July of that year. Health impact analyses have shown that London would benefit more from increased cycling and cycling infrastructure than other European cities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cycling in Detroit</span>

Detroit is a popular city for cycling. It is flat with an extensive road network with a number of recreational and competitive opportunities and is, according to cycling advocate David Byrne, one of the top eight biking cities in the world. The city has invested in greenways and bike lanes and other bicycle-friendly infrastructure. Bike rental is available from the riverfront and tours of the city's architecture can be booked.

Bicycling in Islam is a topic of discussion in Islam, primarily in regard to its use by Muslim women. Religious scholars are worried in particular about the effects of cycling on women's modesty and mobility.

Juliana Buhring is a British-German ultra-endurance cyclist and writer. In December 2012, she set the first Guinness World Record as the fastest woman to circumnavigate the globe by bike, riding over 29,000 kilometres (18,000 mi) in a total time of 152 days.

Mrs Sarah Maddock (1860–1955) was an Australian endurance cyclist during the 1890s and early 1900s and the first woman to ride a bicycle from Sydney to Melbourne and later Sydney to Brisbane and back.

References

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1 2 3 4 Christie-Robin, J.; Ozada, B. T.; Lòpex-Gydosh, D. (2012). "From Bustles to Bloomers: Exploring the Bicycle's Influence on American Women's Fashion, 1880-1914". The Journal of American Culture. 35 (4): 315–331. doi:10.1111/jacc.12002. ProQuest 1285120225.
1 2 3 4 5 Raab, Alon (2022-10-31), "Wheels of Fire", Routledge Companion to Cycling (1 ed.), London: Routledge, pp. 396–398, doi:10.4324/9781003142041-52, ISBN 978-1-003-14204-1 , retrieved 2023-02-07, ... . As in other lands, opposition to cycling was quick to appear, mostly from conservative elements and religious fundamentalists who often labeled it the Devil's Chariot. Several Muslim religious authorities designated it as bid'ah (any technological innovation deemed heretical) with bans on cycling in Yemen and Saudi Arabia. In other places most of the attacks – expressed in the press but also in laws and physical assaults on riders – were directed at women cyclists. Claims that cycling harms reproductive organs, encourages sexual permissiveness and the destruction of the family were common. Unstated was the desire to confine women to their homes and to prevent unsupervised meetings between men and women. Still, women cyclists persisted. . ...
1 2 3 4 Bonham, Jennifer; Jungnickel, Kat (2022-10-31), "Cycling and gender", Routledge Companion to Cycling (1 ed.), London: Routledge, pp. 24–32, doi:10.4324/9781003142041-4, ISBN 978-1-003-14204-1 , retrieved 2023-02-07, .. Since the 1990s, this debate has often started with the observation that in low-cycling countries, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, the UK and the USA, men are much more likely to cycle than women. By contrast, women in high-cycling countries like The Netherlands and Denmark are as, if not more, likely to cycle than men (e.g. Aldred et al. 2017). These national differences, along with historical accounts of women cycling (e.g. Jungnickel 2018), counter arguments that women have a 'natural' aversion to riding a bike (Garrard, Handy & Dill 2012). Much of the gender and cycling literature is concerned with examining how and why cycling is or isn't available to diverse populations and the barriers in place that impede its uptake. ..
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