Historical Context : Women 's Rights

In certain communities in South Asia, the low status of girls has to be compensated for by the payment of a dowry by the parents of the girl to the husband at the time of marriage. This has resulted in a number of dowry crimes, including mental and physical torture, starvation, rape, and even the burning alive of women by their husbands and/or in-laws in cases where dowry payments are not met.

Women have always been fighting for their rights for voting, the right to have an abortion, equal pay as men, being able to joined the armed forces just to name a few. The most notable women’s rights movement was headed in Seneca Falls, New York. The movement came to be known as the Seneca Falls convention and it was lead by women’s rights activist Elizabeth Cady Stanton during July 19th and 20th in 1848. Stanton created this convention in New York because of a visit from Lucretia Mott from Boston. Mott was a Quaker who was an excellent public speaker, abolitionist and social reformer. She was a proponent of women’s rights. The meeting lasted for only two days and was compiled of six sessions, which included lectures on law, humorous

Throughout the history of the women’s rights initiative, activists have continually struggled to endorse their cause in a inoffensive, non-derogative style. With audiences acclimated to sexist societal norms, these pioneers had to advocate their ideas with tact and caution. If they were too enthusiastic, they were received as radical. Too meak, and none would listen. Finding a balance was imperative to the success of their message. This equilibrium is excellently exemplified in Virginia Woolf’s speech, “Professions for Women,” which was delivered to the Women’s Service League in 1931. In her oration, Woolf describes her inner struggles with the patriarchy in the context of her writing career. She tries to encourage other women to

Throughout history, battles and wars have been fought to gain some type of rights or freedoms. In 1775, the American Revolutionary War was fought for independence; In 1865, the American Civil War was fought to end slavery. Although no wars were fought, many battles were waged for women 's rights. The struggle for women 's rights begin in the mid-late 1800s at a time when women were not allowed to vote or own property. Women, as with African-Americans, during this period were not recognized as having any legal and political rights as men and whites, respectively. This attitude towards women, at the time, was ascribed to the “gender rules in the 1700s” where men thought of “women as fragile creatures always in need of male protection and always denied access to the public sphere." (Lecture 2, 6:19). If women wanted to gain their individualism, rights, and freedoms they were entitle to; they would have to unite and create opportunities to do so. The inequalities women faced was the foundation of the Women 's Suffrage Movement and many other organizations in support of women.

I think there were some reasons and conditions that gave rise to the early women's rights movement. First of all, women did not have right to vote, which made women have no ability to get respect from men. Second, women were not able to get the same work chance like men. Third, the law did not proetect their property, and divorce lasw favored men, which made women to pay the property taxe. Therefore, at the beginning of the 1800's, the women started to finght for themselves. the devoted their time and participated in the fighting for help the abolish of slavery and other thing. However, after the Civil War, women still did not get the same right as men, because the gender discrimination was still strong. the 15th amendment give the right

The stunning changes for women that have come to fruition over those seven eras in family life, in religion, in government, in jobs, and in education which did not simply happen suddenly. Women themselves made these improvements happen, purposely. Women have not been the aloof beneficiaries of phenomenal changes in laws and human instinct. Seven eras of women have met up to influence these adjustments in the most majority rule routes: through gatherings, request drives, campaigning, open talking, and peaceful resistance.

On July 19th, 1848 a convention took place in Seneca Falls, New York at Wesleyan Chapel to discuss the rights of women. Never in the history of the western civilization had a gathering like this ever taken place. Women had to fight for their right to vote, right to work, and their right to freedom. Women as a whole play a huge role in our society. Women are no less than men, so we figure they should be treated equally as men. That is exactly what Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Stanton, and many other women’s rights supporters set out to do, creating the Women’s Rights Movement. (1848-1998) Women in the 1800s through the late 1900s had to fight for their rights.

Origins of the Women’s Rights Movement discusses, the impact and the significance of the revolutionary convention that changed the course of women's history. The main subject of the book is women, The book also covers women's activism, from 1840-1890, focusing on the incredible figures --Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucy Stone, and Susan B. Anthony that started it all and it also discusses their accomplishments. McMillen addresses the stories of the four figures lives, and how those women took up the leadership on the cause of women's rights, and the astonishing progress they accomplished during their lifetimes, and the lasting legacy they left behind and transformative effects of the work they did. In Seneca Falls, New York, over

To declare that the women’s rights movement in the United States failed to accomplish its goals in the early –mid 19th century because the slavery issue was never resolved is unfounded.

In the UN article they talk about an increased in number of dowry murders especially in south Asia. Furthermore, this same point is tackled on by MacKinnon where she says that you cannot say that women are human if they are still being burned when their dowry is not enough. Consequently, the above views all enforcing the fact that women are killed when their dowry was not enough; reinforce violation against

It also represents a careful deliberation, effort, and commitment to this life-long engagement he is getting himself and his bride into. It is a cultural way of ensuring that the women is not to be brought down by marrying a man who makes her suffer in poverty. This is not universally entirely an anti-feminist value, it can even be good for women in practice at the end of the day for its intention is to guarantee married women of a safety net for her new family’s economic status and well being. In a society that makes a law that bans dowry system because of the reason that such an act propagates the objectification of women and therefore curtails women’s rights, it will also be a law that goes against the cultural values of the communities that uphold the belief systems such as that in Thailand. In this case, the intrinsic value, judged by the intent and the consequence that it brings, dowry system does not have an intrinsic value that goes against the progression of women’s right, and therefore, in Okin’s view, this area of culture could be tolerated under the realm of multiculturalism.

In Provoked and “The Disappearance” by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, they describe how the Indian women leave their native country and immigrate to Western countries due to the arranged marriage that they have no rights to choose. Although the Indian women try to learn and integrate into Western culture, their husbands expect them to be a traditional Indian woman who should stay home and take care of the children, certainly isolated from mainstream society. If the Indian women try to rebel or challenge their husband’s authority, they are subject to their husband’s abuse in the fact of their machismo culture. This is because men try to retain their authority in the household as well as their status in the house. Men sometimes needed to take a step back and make a concession toward women by learning to respect women’s choice. This is because everyone has a different cultural background that shapes how one behaves and acts in the society based on his or her social group. If men offer freedom to their women, they will be able to retain their authority in the household.

I am in complete agreement with the speakers view that only by questioning accepted wisdom we can advance our understanding of the universe. When we shake and question the rules of the universe, we gain knowledge.

Forced marriage is mostly seen as a global issue since the practice is more common in parts of South Asia and Latin America. In particular, India has the most problems with the issue. “Love Marriages”; in which individuals choose to get married out of love; tend to not be the norm

In addition to the decrement status of women, women also lose self-esteem due to this evil rooted custom “Dowry”. Dowry doesn’t only affect the bride alone, but it extends to the family members because they have to arrange and fulfill the demands of groom’s family including all the responsibility of ceremony expenses. In her article “Marriage and Family - South Asia” Pauline Kolenda adds, “Most brides' families in the north bore the greater part of the expenses of the feasting and the household goods and gifts, the most onerous expense being that for the bride's jewelry” (72). When the bride’s parents are forced to provide unexpected amount or gift as a dowry by a groom’s family, it is obvious that a woman will feel the burden on her family. In their article “Dowry System a Curse” Roshan Kumar Jha and Barsha Jha explain, “Earlier the system was prevalent only among the wealthier families, but now, unfortunately, the greed for dowry has struck even the most ordinary families and has become an unspoken requirement during marriages. As a result, the family members are in debt and the bride filled with guilt as a misfortune to the family. Moreover, some cultures represent dowry as a right to demand as a compensate for a groom’s education and liability even if the bride is more qualified than the groom. This questions on a woman's self-respect of not being able to stand against the man based society. For an example, in his article “Dowry System in India - Causes, Effects &