Final answer:
The Women's Christian Temperance Union was instrumental in the temperance movement, leading to the 18th Amendment and nationwide prohibition. The movement was part of broader moral reform efforts, and although it initially achieved its goal, prohibition was ultimately difficult to enforce and contributed to illegal liquor trade.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Women's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) was a powerful force in the realm of moral reform and the temperance movement. This group promoted social reform by advocating for the prohibition of alcoholic beverages, which they saw as a source of social ills such as domestic abuse and worker inefficiency. The WCTU, alongside other temperance organizations like the Anti-Saloon League, played a significant role in the eventual passage of the 18th Amendment, which established prohibition in the United States. Despite their success, enforcement of prohibition proved to be difficult, resulting in widespread disrespect for the law, and an increase in illegal alcohol trade.
Women's roles in the temperance movement were motivated by the broader Cult of Domesticity and the associated moral reform initiatives. They saw themselves as victims of the alcohol-related behavior of their husbands and sons and took action to protect families from its destructive effects. By participating in the temperance movement and taking on organizations like the WCTU, women were engaging in a socially acceptable form of activism that later expanded to include other issues such as women's suffrage.
Prohibition efforts gained additional fervor during World War I due to anti-German sentiment and calls for grain rationing. These factors, along with the temperance movement's persistent advocacy, culminated in the ratification of the 18th Amendment in 1919.