Gender Roles

In New England Puritan ideas of gender dictated acts of gender for women in terms of behavior, demeanor, and speech at home and church, in public and private. Gender roles were clearly defined and categorized women as the weaker, vulnerable sex; physically, emotionally, spiritually and morally, subordinate to men in every instance and venue. Men were the heads of the household and of the church. They ruled what were deemed the important aspects of life. Women's role in society was that of domestic; they owned no property, made no significant wage and were entirely dependent on men for their subsistence. While the primary tenants underlying the American Puritan doctrine of the 17th century stated that women were no more susceptible to

A woman had a busy domestic life. A woman played the role of wife, mother, teacher and manager. She had to please her husband, bear and raise children, educate her children, and manage all daily household activities. In the home, the woman was the jack of all trades. Part of the role of the female was to take raw goods, and turn them into useful items, such as food, candles, and clothing. Women had to clean, butcher and prepare all game brought home to the family. A woman was a household factory. Many items in the home were created by women. All clothing was made by spinning, weaving and stitching. All cloth was washed by hand without the aid of any machines. Candles were made at home by weaving a wick and pouring hot wax into a mold. A woman had to be educated enough to teach her sons and daughters the skills of life. Women spent the majority of their time performing daily tasks, but still were able to have leisure activities such as painting, embroidery, and charity work. Women had very few legal rights. In the majority of colonies, women had no legal control over their lives. It was the consensus among society that

Before the Gilded Age and the Progressive Era, women were meant to remain in the household and do all the work there. They were supposed to take raise the children, maintain the house, support the husband, and be overall dependent on men. Women did not often work outside of their homes nor did they have any real independence to say or do whatever they pleased. For the most part, women were very dependent on men for most things in their lives. Women were meant to be meek,

The American Revolution, which happened during the last half of the eighteenth century, reshaped many aspects of life in America. The desire of the Founding Fathers to make America a republic played a very significant part in changing the role of women after the Revolution. The role of women as wives became more important as an emphasis on virtue was established; women were encouraged to find virtuous husbands and utilize their seductive nature to keep men virtuous. The roles of women as mothers also became more important in the republic, as patriarchy loosened and mothers were depended on to educate their children in the republican way. And finally, the role of women in politics was theoretically reduced due to the increasing demands of

In the mid to late 1700's, the women of the United States of America had practically no rights. When they were married, the men represented the family, and the woman could not do anything without consulting the men. Women were expected to be housewives, to raise their children, and thinking of a job in a factory was a dream that was never thought impossible. But, as years passed, women such as Susan B. Anthony, Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucy Stone, and Elizabeth Blackwell began to question why they were at home all day raising the children, and why they did not have jobs like the men. This happened between the years of 1776 and 1876, when the lives and status of Northern middle-class woman was changed forever. Women began to

Today, women are believed to be equal to men however this was not always the case. During colonial times, women did not have the same roles as women do today; men and women had fixed roles in society. Roles between men and women do not exchange due to strict gender roles. Additionally, married women were not exactly considered as companions instead, as the husband’s property. Although gender roles were a significant issue among women in early America, another issue was the background of these women. Factors such as race, religion, geography/region, and social class were substantial to the extent of control a woman had over her own life. These factors significantly shaped the lives of these women. For instance, white women had differences

In the early 1800 's women were expected to stay in the home and care for the children. They were not allowed to vote or own property. The women were also expected to care for their husband’s needs. When a woman entered into marriage she lost her rights to speak for herself and she could not work for wages outside the home. A shift in the societal environment for women started with an idea of equality which led to the beginning of the woman suffrage movement (Donnaway).

People of money and status were the only ones making the rules which made a harsh and unjust reality for some. In early America, women were controlled by their husbands. Women were referred to as belonging to their husbands, they were not treated equal to men. They weren’t allowed to vote and had to stay at home to take care of the house and children.

Women of the time lived, in some cases, like second-class citizens. Women were prohibited from praying aloud in some churches. Deprived from the right to vote, they lacked the ability to have their voices heard on public policy. The Cult of Domesticity, a common notion of the time, reinforced the idea that they belonged in the house, taking care of the domestic sphere, while the men attended to the public sphere. Married women found themselves deprived of any type of economic role in the

Even though the position of women may be seen as unfair or unacceptable today it was needed to keep order in Puritan society. The standard of obedience placed upon women and others such as Native Americans and Africans permitted some chosen few of the colonies to organize a set of rules and structuralize the colonies so that they maybe able to progress. Without this progress colonies would not have been able to form into the country it is today. Not to mention, because men have held dominant

Gender played a significant role in the Puritan civilization. Men had the higher priority throughout the timely spread of Puritanism. Women were a man's property and had little influence on the rules, punishment, and any executive decisions. Boundaries for a woman were rigid. A woman's only escape was gossip. They had the power to

As America was founded, all power resided to white male citizens. Being the man of the house, you were responsible for your family income, voting, defense, and bringing home the goods. Females were responsible for holding the house down, taking care of the children, cooking the meals, cleaning all around, and anything

Their roles were still emphasized as wives and mothers. Women were viewed as naturally suited to a different social role than men, and sometimes known as inferior to men. This was a social issue because woman had to be told where they were allowed to go and what they were allowed to do according to their husbands.

Though women were subordinates by both the eye of the church and the government, women found ways to express authority both intentionally and unintentionally. Women began to act independently in patriarchal society. In 17th century Euro-America Puritan society believed that men played a patriarchal role upon women, and that this role was instituted by God and nature. The seniority of men over women lay within both the household and the public sphere. The household, immediate family living in the same dwelling was subject to the male as head figure of the house. The public sphere also known as the social life within the Puritan community consisted of two echelons. These echelons consisted of formal and informal public. The formal

Being born a male meant you were taught what being a man was from the example set by the father. Alongside, the father role model they had to read the proper way to act as a man from “The New England Primer.” Once the boys grew older and became apprenticed, they were then expected to learn and perform as an adult tradesmen. Being a man meant you had social power, to be educated, to contribute to the community, to participate in government, to own property, and to maintain a family. The Colonial society was intensely patriarchal. Men were considered as the representatives of their families, and were to