"I wanted to have my own career. I wanted to be independent." from Phyllis Horvitz Friedman '49
Title
"I wanted to have my own career. I wanted to be independent." from Phyllis Horvitz Friedman '49
Creator
Lesley University
Source
From 7:15 of Phyllis Horvitz Friedman's oral history.
Publisher
Lesley University
Rights
Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright.
Language
English
Type
Sound
Identifier
3.001 Lesley University Archives Oral History Collection, 2008-2010
Interviewer
Alyssa Pacy
Interviewee
Phyllis Horvitz Friedman
Transcription
AP: "Moving forward in time a little bit…why did you choose Lesley?"
PHF: "Well, there’s there more than one reason. The war was still on when I had to choose a place and I was an only child and believe me that little chick was not to go far away from home because traveling was so uncertain. So I had a radius to choose from. And I wanted to be able to get an education…well I wanted to get…or have an education that would enable me to earn a living upon graduation. I didn’t want to end up like a number of people I knew, working for a ladies dress shop or something like that. Although I’m sure they were an asset to wherever they were. I wanted to have my own career. I wanted to be independent. I didn’t want to have to depend on anyone."
AP: "Was…that unusual at the time?"
PHF: "Not for me. My father was very independent. He was one of nine. And he wasn’t born in this country. He came here when he was twelve or thirteen. And he was very bright. He had three scholarships upon graduating from high school. I remember one to MIT, one to the United States Naval Academy, which was very unusual for Jewish man in those days, and the other one was some polytech institute. And he wanted to go to the Naval Academy. And his father said to him, “Marsh, you’re not going to school.” He said, “Why?” He said, “Because you will always earn a living and you have to watch out for your brothers and sisters.” The ones who were younger than him. And it was true. He took care of them all. It was an awful thing…that was triage. The first I ever heard of triage. Although I didn’t hear of it at that age…someone mentioned it. He was there to perform triage and save the family."
PHF: "So I think I learned the value then of being able to do something where you would be independent. My father went and made his own life. But he…was…sorry as long as he lived."
AP: "So obviously you choose teaching as a profession."
PHF: "Yes. Well, it wasn’t wide open for women in those days either. And my father was still a traditionalist and I had to have a good reason so when I told him why I wanted to go to Lesley I had it all presented to him. Why. All my reasoning. It’s like writing a school term paper (laughs). And he thought about it. He said, “I’ll let you know.” And he said, “I agree with you. You try to go to Lesley.” That was the school that afforded me more of what I thought I wanted. I would also have a liberal arts education with it."
7:15
PHF: "Well, there’s there more than one reason. The war was still on when I had to choose a place and I was an only child and believe me that little chick was not to go far away from home because traveling was so uncertain. So I had a radius to choose from. And I wanted to be able to get an education…well I wanted to get…or have an education that would enable me to earn a living upon graduation. I didn’t want to end up like a number of people I knew, working for a ladies dress shop or something like that. Although I’m sure they were an asset to wherever they were. I wanted to have my own career. I wanted to be independent. I didn’t want to have to depend on anyone."
AP: "Was…that unusual at the time?"
PHF: "Not for me. My father was very independent. He was one of nine. And he wasn’t born in this country. He came here when he was twelve or thirteen. And he was very bright. He had three scholarships upon graduating from high school. I remember one to MIT, one to the United States Naval Academy, which was very unusual for Jewish man in those days, and the other one was some polytech institute. And he wanted to go to the Naval Academy. And his father said to him, “Marsh, you’re not going to school.” He said, “Why?” He said, “Because you will always earn a living and you have to watch out for your brothers and sisters.” The ones who were younger than him. And it was true. He took care of them all. It was an awful thing…that was triage. The first I ever heard of triage. Although I didn’t hear of it at that age…someone mentioned it. He was there to perform triage and save the family."
PHF: "So I think I learned the value then of being able to do something where you would be independent. My father went and made his own life. But he…was…sorry as long as he lived."
AP: "So obviously you choose teaching as a profession."
PHF: "Yes. Well, it wasn’t wide open for women in those days either. And my father was still a traditionalist and I had to have a good reason so when I told him why I wanted to go to Lesley I had it all presented to him. Why. All my reasoning. It’s like writing a school term paper (laughs). And he thought about it. He said, “I’ll let you know.” And he said, “I agree with you. You try to go to Lesley.” That was the school that afforded me more of what I thought I wanted. I would also have a liberal arts education with it."
7:15
URL
https://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/oral_histories/50/
Citation
Lesley University, “"I wanted to have my own career. I wanted to be independent." from Phyllis Horvitz Friedman '49,” Digital Exhibits | Lesley University Archives, accessed May 8, 2024, https://lesleyarchives.omeka.net/items/show/172.