Here, she pokes fun at the fickle customs of upper-crust British society, which tended to base a woman's worth on external appearances, instead of internal qualities like intelligence and compassion.
In Jane Austin's time women were valued for their external appearance. In modern society we tend to economically prey on their intelligence and compassion.
Everything was basically done by women and girls, day in and out
Name the parts, Mr. Jennings!” he said loftily
Betteredge stays true to his character. Despite him disliking the idea of working with Jennings, he still delivers because his Lady told him so--a loyal and proud servant through and through.
The Gendered Division of Paid and Domestic Work under Lockdown. COVID-19 and the Labor Market. (n.d.). IZA – Institute of Labor Economics. Retrieved July 27, 2020, from https://covid-19.iza.org/publications/dp13500/
Shafer, K., Milkie, M., & Scheibling, C. (2020). The Division of Labour Before & During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Canada [Preprint]. SocArXiv. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/24j87