Elizabeth Cady Stanton : America 's First Feminist

had 10 brothers and sisters, but only one brother. Her only brother died at the age of

To admit or to label oneself as a feminist is to accept a whirlwind of judgment from those around you. It is without a doubt that the word “Feminism” or “Feminist” turns heads, and not necessarily for the right reasons. Many have resorted to mocking, disagreeing, and/or hating Feminism without even having a good grasp of what it is. The stigmas that feminists face are that they are radical, extremist, liberal, lesbians who hate men, refuse to shave and enjoy burning bras (Lee).Conversely, feminists are principally advocates for social justice and equality as well as aim for the establishment of equally divided power between the sexes. It is obvious that many are unaware of and uneducated on the misogynistic injustices plaguing our world and the toxic environment we all live in- both women and men. Feminism is a positive concept that works to eliminate injustices between both sexes and to establish the value of women, thus should be treated as such a concept instead of being a forbidden idea.

American History, it has done so much in time that has affected how we live life today and how we interpret things. American Literature reflects that and all it has left us with. Throughout the stories and passages we’ve read this course all of them have left a impact on how and why the writers wrote about what they did. It was all because of American History which later went on and fathered American Literature. American Literature has made society how it is today and painted a vivid picture of how American’s and people live and many of these writers had that in mind when they took these notes.

Feminism, according to Merriam-Webster (2016) is defined as "the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men." Though this is the definition of the term,

When thinking about feminism in today’s society we tend to direct our minds and thoughts to a more radical and powerful train of thought. Feminism has been going on for centuries, with two main ideologies at the forefront; liberal and cultural feminism. Someone who identifies as a liberal feminist is someone who believes that women and men are a like and equal in most respects and deserve equal roles and opportunities (Wood & Fixmer-Oraiz, 2017, p. 58). And cultural feminism is someone who identifies as someone who believes that men and women are fundamentally differently; you have different rights, role and opportunities (Wood & Fixmer-Oraiz, 2017, p. 58). The women’s rights movement can be understood and broken down into three “waves”.

There have been many great feminists throughout history, who have changed and shaped society, all who have worked toward one goal, to empower women all over the world. One of these women, Elizabeth Stanton who fought for women’s suffrage was able to shape the way a nation perceived and fought for the rights of their people, allowing the women of today to benefit from her accomplishments on a substantial scale.

Since the beginning of the United States, the women's rights movement has been a crucial part of women's lives. Elizabeth Cady Stanton was one of the leading activists of women's rights movement in the nineteenth century. The World's Anti-Slavery convention was held in London, England in 1840. Stanton, along with a woman named Lucretia Mott, attended this convention. They both were determined to have a women's rights convention when they returned back to the United States. In 1848, the first women's rights convention was held in Seneca Falls, New York. Elizabeth's speech, "Address on Women's Rights," became a famous address about the rights of women. This speech addresses the issues of unfairness directed toward each gender. Due to this

Elizabeth Cady Stanton forever changed the social and political landscape of the United States of America by succeeding in her work to guarantee rights for women and slaves. Elizabeth Cady Stanton was a leader in the 19th century for women’s activist and women’s suffrage leader. As an active American abolitionist, she gave many lectures and wrote books. Among those fighting for women’s rights, she was a primary leader. Though she was interested in women’s rights from many perspectives, Elizabeth realized that success hinged on women’s right to vote. Elizabeth often worked with Susan B. Anthony as a theorist and writer. Elizabeth was a very important person to the women’s rights movement, because she fought for equal rights of women to be considered equal to a man. Stanton’s unwavering dedication to women’s suffrage resulted in the 19th amendment to the Constitution, which granted that right. These facts will present to you the difficulties she encountered and her contributions.

During the Antebellum period of America which revolved around the 18th century, women were indistinguishable when coming to advocating for reform in female rights, support in the demolishment of slavery, and the endorsement to hold a valid position in education. Women justified the need for transformation in their civil and individual rights by comparison to men. Society had plagued the model view of a women by stating she was to be a subordinate to her husband, and to hold position which she can only accompany around household chores, the care of her children, and be detached from societal issues. According to Elizabeth Cady Stanton, an advocate for the suffrage of women’s rights, she states in The Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions of Seneca Falls, that,

Feminism one source defines as "The advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men." It is plausible to attribute this to the unfair pay, job appointments, and simply put discrimination against women in relation to the workplace. Although great strides have been made women are still being paid 90% of what their male counterparts are being paid. This

Mrs. HesterAmerican History I Honors16 November 2017Elizabeth Cady Stanton Women’s Rights has always been a big topic in the U.S. Many women throughout our history have strived to have the rights we deserve. Elizabeth Cady Stanton was one of the biggest women's suffrage leaders.

Thanks to Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and many other women rights activists, from 1880-1910, the percentage of employed females rose about 300% (“Women’s Suffrage in the Progressive Era”). Throughout the women’s rights movement, Stanton influenced many females to fight for what they believed in, from better job opportunities, to voting rights, to divorce rights, and more. Stanton is one of the females who started the women’s rights movement in the late 1800s (Foner and Garraty). Elizabeth Cady Stanton had an influential early life, was involved heavily in the women’s rights movement, and had many different beliefs that were the basis of the movement.

The movement for women's rights and the birth of feminism was indeed revolutionary with credit to many sources. One of which being the signatories of the Declaration of Sentiment written by Elizabeth Cady Stanton. This source is important because it shows that women—and even men, started to realize that women can do more than just clean and take care of the kids. They deserve to be represented equally in government and law

After the civil war, she focused more on women rights. She helped Elizabeth Cady Stanton establish the American Eagle Rights Association which called for the same rights to be granted to all regardless in her efforts traveling giving speeches to convince others to support women rights to vote. In 1872 she voted illegally taking matters into her own hands she was arrested for crime, and she fought the charges but failed. In the early 1880s, she published the first volume of history of women suffrage. Several more would follow up, although it was challenging in her later years she didn’t give up on her fight for women suffrage.

The definition of feminism is very elusive. Maybe because of its ever-changing historical meaning, it’s not for certain whether there is any coherence to the term feminism or if there is a definition that will live up to the movement’s variety of adherents and ideas. In the book “No Turning Back,” author Estelle Freedman gives an accurate four-part definition of the very active movement: “Feminism is a belief that women and men are inherently part of equal worth. Because most societies privilege men as a group, social movements are necessary to achieve equality between women and men, with the understanding that gender always intersects with other social hierarchies” (Freedman 7).