Evolution Of Feminism: From Seneca Falls To Today

The American Revolution was the initial push for women wanting rights. In a letter to Mary Otis Warren, Abigail Adams discloses that she asked her husband to include women and to not put all the power into the hands of men(Doc B). The American Revolution also greatly changed the lives of women. If the republic were to succeed, women must be educated so they could teach their children moral and virtue. Although their status in society stayed private and almost the same, women had a larger role in day to day life because of the Republican Motherhood. Women were honored to take on these news domestic roles(Doc C). Because of the increase in women’s education, women were able to contribute to other important movements such as the

In the Declaration of Sentiments, author Elizabeth Cady Stanton expresses her anger of the oppression experienced by women in the United States. After being rejected to attend the World’s Anti-Slavery convention in London, Stanton was frustrated because she was being rejected for being a woman. This motivated Stanton to share her own ideas on advocating women’s rights and changing the way women are treated in society because of the mistreatment done to her, as well as many women across the nation waiting for their voices to be heard. Stanton parallels the Declaration of Sentiments with the Declaration of Independence by using laws that the male population regarded as righteous and including how it had negative effects on over half the American population. This put into question male authority and supremacy, creating a more concrete argument by revealing what men already have under the law, to what women should have. The sophistication of the Declaration of Sentiments to a document that the U.S. government values highly, threatens the values of the U.S. by making women’s rights a more pressing issue. The Declaration of Sentiments targeted the U.S. government and the population by appealing to their own opinions and beliefs in order to recognize that women were being treated like second-class citizens. Although the Declaration of Sentiments never made a significant impact on the

There are many comparable similarities and differences between “Declaration of Sentiments of the Seneca Falls Woman’s Rights Convention” by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and “Letter to John Adams” by Abigail Adams. These similarities involve their purpose for writing the messages and the power that needs to be given to women. As for differences, both women appeal to their audiences in different fashions and the impact that their statements made on the future of women’s rights. Despite the differences in their writings, both women will make a lasting impression in the growing fight for women’s rights.

Home life for women, however, was not as pleasant as society portrayed it. Once married, any property that the woman owned went to her husband, not only this but women could not vote. In society, it was acceptable for men to beat their wives as long as they were using a reasonable instrument, about 10 percent of women avoided marriage because they did not want to face the cruelty of men and lose their land. In a way, women of the 19th century could be compared to black slaves and when slaves gained their freedom, women started taking stand for their own rights. Their main goal was to earn suffrage, the right to vote. With the right to vote they would have a say in the presidents and would be able to fight against their abusive husbands. Famous women’s rights leaders were Elizabeth C. Stanton, Amelia Bloomer, and Susan B. Anthony, Stanton held the first feminist convention in Seneca Falls, New York. Here, they demanded rights regarding suffrage, divorce, property rights, and equal wages. The Declaration of Sentiments, shown in document 7, was written by Stanton at Seneca Falls convention. Seen through her claims, women felt they should have the same rights as men and, since they also payed taxes, should be represented in the government. The Declaration of Sentiments stated that all men and women are created equal, as opposed to the original declaration which

The “Declaration of Sentiments” was written by Elizabeth Cady Stanton after women, including her activist counterpart Lucretia Mott, had been barred from participation in the abolition movement. Being told they could not take part greatly angered women because they were being continually told that they were inferior to men and only had use for looking pretty and birthing children. When women were unable to participate in the abolition movement they began to feel that they were lacking in rights as well and needed to start their own movement. On July 19, 1848 Mott and Stanton held the Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, New York. There, she wrote a document that would change

During the late 1700s, women were not seen as being equal to men. They were imaged as one who stayed at home and took care of the kids. No one ever imagined a woman voting. Some women actually supported the fight in allowing blacks to vote. During the time the 15th amendment passed, many women who supported Women’s Suffrage were disappointed in which they were excluded in the idea of allowing “everyone” to vote. Before the Civil War, the movement for Women’s Suffrage started to pick up steam, but had become lost due to the interruption of the Civil War. One of the acts that stood out the most for Women’s Suffrage was the Seneca Falls Conference in 1848. This was organized by two American activists, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott. They were the first to organize a conference to address Women’s rights and issues, and with sixty- eight women and thirty two men, they signed “The Declaration of Sentiments”, a document that was similar to the Declaration of Independence, but directed towards women’s rights. Getting suffrage for women was not an easy campaign. During 1890- 1919, many states were in a mix on their decision on suffrage for women. Some agreed with equal suffrage, others partial, and the rest wanted no suffrage at all for females as displayed in Document 6. Women’s Suffrage finally became a reality when it was ratified as an amendment (19th) in

Many people often have the debate about whether or not the American Revolution was conservative or radical. The revelation caused many changes within the colonies, but still nothing changed for the people who needed change the most. The oppression of women during this time period was still prominent in American society. Along with this there was also the oppression of African Americans. Power was kept in the hands of people that already held a voice.

As the wife of John Adams, Abigail Adams became politically involved in the government part of the American Revolution. However, only her husband hears her concerns as he begins to establish the roots of the new nation. Three months prior to the official approval of the Declaration of Independence, Abigail Adams expresses the need of inclusion of women’s rights in the new laws in a series of letters to her husband. These letters during the American Revolution show the beliefs of white male supremacy and the prejudices even among loved ones.

Abigail Adams was in an era where women had no voice, and all the power was left in the hands of men and husbands. Women were just wives and mothers, who were only held responsible for motherly and wifely duties. Although women had much more to offer, and Abigail Adams was aware of women’s potential. So, she asked her husband John Adams to “Remember the Ladies” while fighting for Americas independence from Great Britain. She did not want him to give all the power to the men, and leave out the women’s voice and freedom they all desire.

Abigail Adams was very active in feminist rights. Adams husband, John Adams, disagreed with many of her views in forms of letters. Abigail Adams says, “I cannot say that I think you are very generous to the ladies; for, whilst you are proclaiming peace and goodwill to men, emancipating all nations, you insist upon retaining an absolute power over wives.” (Adams 264). In a letter responding to John Adams, she urged him

Sub-point B: The declaration of sentiments which is primarily known as the declaration of rights and sentiments is a document signed in 1848 by 68 women and 32 men at the Seneca Falls. It argues that women are oppressed by the government and the patriarchal society.

Of all the issues that were in the middle of reformation mid 1800’s, antislavery, education, intemperance, prison reform, and world peace, women’s rights was the most radical idea proposed. The Seneca Falls Convention of 1848 was a rally held by Elizabeth Cady Stanton with the common goal to eventually achieve equal rights among all citizens. Frederick Douglass, who became an acclaimed activist in the African American Equal Rights movement, accompanied the movement. Moreover, The Declaration of Sentiments was a document that reflected the ideals of the Declaration of Independence, reiterating the sentiment from the Bible that “all men [and women] are created equal.” Concurrent to the publication of this document, for the first time, women insisted that they were men’s equals in every way. The Declaration of Sentiments was pivotal in Women’s history, although it was not given credit until the late 20th century. However, immediately after the Declaration of Sentiments was published, women and activist groups were inspired to take action towards rights for all underprivileged American citizens. The convention took place in a small town in upstate New York, which was home to four of the five people who organized the gathering. (DuBois, 1999, p. 45) This was the first time female equality was discussed in a public place. The Seneca Falls Convention of 1848 was one of the most important events in women’s rights history.

In 1848 a group of women met at the Seneca Falls Convention in New York and began to formulate a demand for the enfranchisement of American women (Women’s Suffrage, 2011). Elizabeth Cady Stanton composed the Declaration of Sentiments, modeled after the Declaration of Independence, stating that “a man should not withhold a woman's rights, take her property or refuse to allow her to vote” (Kelly, 2011, para.3 ). The convention participants spent two days arguing and refining the content of the Declaration of Sentiments, then voted on its contents; the document received support from about one third of the delegates in attendance. The Seneca Falls Convention was not a resounding success, but it “represented an important first step in the evolving campaign for women’s rights” (Tindall & Shi, 2010, p.374, para.1).

The Declaration of Sentiments, drafted by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, demanded equality with men before the law, in education and employment. The Declaration of Sentiments was based on the Declaration of Independence, and the documents were quite similar in several ways. However, we can definitely notice significant aspects of the Declaration of Sentiments that differ from the Declaration of Independence.

At the end of the 18th century and during the 19th century, there were many changes to public ideology that affected the way that women perceived their roles in society. Prior to these changes, women had adopted the beliefs of separate “spheres” separating work into public life and their duties as mothers at home1. Women stayed at home to take care of the children and provide a warm, welcoming home for their husbands to take refuge from public life. Women became aware of their lack of legal and political power after the American Revolutionary War ended as they were denied the right to the same freedoms that granted the right to vote to the white, property-owning male population2. Despite granting women more liberty to run businesses, farms,