Margaret Fuller Feminist Perspective

During the late 19th and early 20th century in America, the rise of Feminism challenged the traditional gender roles. The female authors of this time period represented realistic aspects of women’s struggles, which often reflected limitations from society and their own lives. The three female authors who advocated women’s struggles in their writings were Sojourner Truth, Willa Cather, and Edith Wharton. In the speech to the American Equal Rights Association, Truth reveals that women do not have rights to present their voices in the court. Cather addresses women’s devastating labor life after the marriage in “A Wagner Matinee.” Likewise, in “April Shower”, Wharton portrays men’s criticism upon economically successful women. American female authors of the late 19th and early 20th century demonstrates the ideas of Feminism by men objecting to representation in politics, prohibiting career over marriage, and criticizing economic self-sufficiency.

In her 1945 article, Woman in the Nineteenth Century, Margaret Fuller illustrates a world in which “there exists in the minds of men a tone of feeling toward women as toward slaves”, and where men hold “the belief that Woman was made for Man”. Two books, Herman Melville’s Moby Dick and Woman in the Nineteenth Century, provide male and female perspective in the 19th century. These separate texts exemplify two sides of the same coin. On the one hand, Woman in the Nineteenth Century provides perspective of the feminine experience in a male dominated world while Moby Dick portrays a society from a male point of view and experiences woman as subservient to himself.

Fuller personifies what is wrong with the thoughts of people in nineteenth century society. She is a well-educated,

Two-hundred years is a sizeable gap of time that allows plenty of room for change. American society had been rapidly changing from the early seventeenth century to the late nineteenth century, but despite this, the roles and rights of women have remained locked in place. There were many factors to consider as to why women were not allowed to flourish in their time and exceed these boundaries, and while some accepted it, there were many that opposed and faced these difficulties head on. Two female authors, one from colonial times, and one from nineteenth century America, have written about the obstacles and misogyny they’ve overcome in a male dominated literary career. Despite the two-hundred-year gap between the lives of Margaret Fuller and Anne Bradstreet, they both face issues regarding the static stereotype that women are literarily inferior and subservient handmaids to men.

Frances Perkins came from a wealthy family in Maine. From her mother, she inherited the propensity to be stingy with money, earnest, and brutally honest. In 1902, she attended Mount Holyoke College, where she used her glibness to barely get by. Instead of focusing on improving her strengths, Frances’ professors sought to improve her weaknesses; Especially her moral ones. This was done with the idea in mind that if she were to overcome her shortcomings, she would be able to conquer anything life threw at her. After graduation, Frances struggled to find something meaningful to do with her life; That is the tragedy of The

During the early nineteenth century, Transcendentalist movements called for reform and urged independent and intuitive thinking across the United States. One important transcendentalist was Margaret Fuller Ossoli, a woman who strived to change the ways of thinking in Americans, specifically men who could make an impact in politics, in order to create the reform that Transcendentalists were passionate about. Fuller urges Americans towards reformation and attempts to show the deteriorating condition of American society in her essay titled “Fourth of July.” In her essay, Fuller not only tries to establish her credibility among a skeptical male audience by appearing fair-minded and well-reasoned, but she also attempts to instill a sense of responsibility

Author Barbara Welter in her article, The Cult of True Womanhood: 1820-1860 discusses what one may argue is true womanhood and why it is necessary for woman of society. There are multiple ways that one may look at Welter’s text, the first, being within the time frame that it was written, and what it says about society at the time the text was written. The other, is out of context and discussing it as a whole within the feminist movement.

Catharine Maria Sedgwick was born in Stockbridge, Massachusetts on December 28, 1789. She was one of seven surviving children born to Theodore and Pamela Sedgwick. Her father was a very PROMINENT politician, who traveled often. Her mother suffered from severe depression that left her hospitalized frequently. Sedgwick was especially close with her four brothers, who encouraged her to write. She attended several schools during her childhood, however, she FELT DISADVANTAGED BECAUSE OF THE POOR EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR GIRLS at that time. Catharine converted from the STRICT TEACHINGS OF Calvinism to the more liberal Unitarianism CHURCH and focused her first book, “A New England Tale”, on the BIGOTRY of Calvinism, which she published anonymously.

“Women wrote 12 of the 27 best selling novels published between 1850 and 1860. Their stories about heroines who overcame hardships no doubt helped their female readers imagine all kinds of new possibilities.” Their life’s battles they wrote about helped new generation women realize they can overcome anything and new possibilities in life. “Other women found work as launderers, domestic servants, or cooks.”They are doing everything they was told not to do and more. They are taking advantage of their time being. “Others reluctantly found change thrust upon them. Either way, women’s traditional roles and responsibilities were forever changed as many of them adjusted to life during war.” Some just bettered themselves, some

Thesis: A “true women” in the 19th Century was one who was domestic, religious, and chaste. These were virtues established by men but enforced and taught by other women. Women were also told that they were inferior to men and they should accept it and be grateful that someone just loved them.

Margaret Fuller Ossoli was an American transcendentalist who believed in reform. Fuller created her writings following the Civil War. She was writing during the time of Ralph Waldo Emerson. This essay, “Fourth of July”, is a snippet from her original writing, “Life Without and Life Within”. Fuller is directing this piece for future generations in the hope of encouraging the transcendentalist movement. She is using her influence as a woman, to encourage women to be involved and active in society. Through this writing she uses several tools and styles to persuade her audience to create a society of reform. Her powerful use of language draws in the reader's while calling for political change, abolition of slavery, and to encourage the

Furthermore, the society believes that “no married woman can represent the female world, for she belongs to her husband” (747). In this passage, Fuller explains how society feels that the woman is the unequal property of the husband, as she can no longer represent females. She views this as a huge inequality because she feels in a marriage no partner should have more power over the other, much less consider them property. Ultimately, Margaret Fuller tries to stop the inequalities within society by describes the various rights that society tries to keep women from obtaining.

Margaret Fuller grew up in a well-educated household, and her politician father equipped Fuller with an artillery of intellect despite women’s lack of presence in higher level education. Full of confidence, she put these gifts to use and studied amongst other bright minds, such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. As part of an intellectual movement and the romanticism era of literature, Fuller contributed to the philosophy of individualism. And to achieve this ideal society of free thinkers, the individuals themselves must be free. In 1835, Margaret Fuller published Woman in the Nineteenth Century to use the respect she gained as an intellectual peer to influence others to support women’s rights to the same freedoms as men.

Literature changes as current events change and as the structure of society begins to shift. American feminist literature started to become prevalent during the Victorian era, or around the latter part of the 19th century. This is the time when the first wave of feminism in the United States hit. The Seneca Falls Convention - the first women’s rights convention - and the emergence of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony’s American Equal Rights Association in the middle of the 19th century are among some of the noteable events that sparked this movement in literature. Women across America were inspired by the changing of the times, and that is reflected in many American female authors’ writings.

The role of women in the society is always questioned and for centuries, they have struggled to find their place in a world that is predominantly male oriented. The treatment of women was extremely negative; they were expected to stay home and fulfill domestic duties. Literature of that time embodies and mirrors social issues of women in society (Lecture on the Puritans). But, slowly and gradually, situation being changed: “During the first half of the 19th century, women 's roles in society evolved in the areas of occupational, moral, and social reform. Through efforts such as factory movements, social reform, and women 's rights, their aims were realized and foundations for further reform were established” (Lauter 1406). Feminist poets like Emily Dickinson and Anne Bradstreet talked substantially about feminism in different lights in the past two centuries. They were very vocal and assertive about their rights and the ‘rights for women’ in general. While they might have been successful at making a good attempt to obliterate gender biases but still there are lot of disparities between the two genders. Nevertheless, their poetry reflects a deep angst.