Primary Source Analysis #2 “Abigail and John Adams Debate Women’s Rights,” is of two letters first from Abigail and the second was John Adams with his response to Abigail. The 1774 letters showed how Abigail was advocating for women’s rights as John Adams defines the authority males really have in society. Abigail Adams was the wife of John Adams and was vital for his successes. Before she became his wife she was part of a “picture perfect nuclear family” (Biography), with her father being a minister; she was “early introduced to public service and civic responsibility” (Biography) and was self-educated. Even though John Adams wanted to be too because he didn’t get enough from schooling, he eventually went into law. She was an advocate …show more content…
These letters were supposed to be just between Abigail and John Adams, these aren’t government documents but personal. This source was created when John Adams, was first part of the Congressional Congress and then Sons of Liberty to successfully gain independence. They wanted the colonies separate from the British and to form laws. He helped draft the Declaration of Independence and had The Treaty of Paris of 1783 enacted, in conclusion ended the revolutionary war by negotiating peace between the United States and Great Britain. He also advocated against the Stamp Act that was put in place by the British to tax everyone, by putting taxes on postage, newsletters, and legal and commercial documents. Even though they were independent, the British still owned trading. The text states that the “[leaders] have been told [their] struggle has loosened the bonds of government everywhere” (Cobbs 103), this quote proves that the way the government or the authority was structured back then even though there were unhappy people and even the women being recognized as, “another tribe” (Cobbs 103) there was still the necessary amount of authority to gain independence. Without the, “extraordinary code of laws” (Cobbs 103), independence wouldn’t of happened as it did, with the formation of the treaty. There could have been more wars. John Adams was very important because even though he didn’t fight in the revolutionary way he advocated for the people as much as he
Abigail “worried that her habit of speaking her mind would get her husband into trouble” (McMichael, 8). In 1797, John Adams became the president with Abigail as his first lady. As a first lady, Abigail was not present in the white house very often, however, that did not stop her from writing letters and speaking out to the public. She was a strong advocate of equal public education for women and freedom of African-American slaves. Abigail helped John with his presidency and gave him confidence to fulfill his duties. After John did not win reelection in 1800, together, John and Abigail retired in Quincy, Massachusetts. Abigail never stopped supporting women’s equality and continued to write letters, which were published into a book after her death by her grandsons. Abigail died in 1818 at her home at the age of
This letter is a fine example of Abigail Adams' strong feminist and strong federalist views. These letters represented the turmoil felt by women during the uncertain times facing the colonies. The views of Abigail Adams became the first in a long line of cries out for women's equality.
Abigail Adams was a woman of high character and a loving soul. She was selfless in her thinking and remarkable in the way she handled people. Her management skills were above average for the normal female in the 1700s. She held many worldly interests that tied her to the political fashion of society. She was well cultured and was able to apply this to her role of a politician’s wife with great attributes towards society. She became the “buffer” with regard to her husband's temper and lack of diplomacy. She participated in many political activities. Her independent thinking, character, faithfulness, and hard work gave her the ability to succeed in society in the 17th century. Even though Abigail Adams was not formerly
Adams establishes her credibility by not only being John Quincy Adams mother, but by also being the wife of the soon-to-be President of the United States. Her ethos helps reassure John that he is following the right path because he is following his mother’s advice. With her ethos, she clearly expresses how important his travels are, but she won’t have to worry about him not listening or not following her advice. She is able to put in the allusion to the past without it sounding like a lecture. She uses her pathos to encourage her son, knowing that the respect at the end of his travels would be worth the
The author of this document is Abigail Adams, a white female that is married to John Adams. She lives in a time where women have no form of representation, and they live in the shadow of men. Because of this, Abigail takes up a woman’s traditional role and performs activities such as manufacture clothing for her family, soap making, creating gun/cannon powder for her husband, and other chores for the benefit of her household (Adams, Paragraph 12). Fulfilling this role has shaped her by securing her inferiority to her husband and other males. She as a woman lacks power both socially and politically when it comes to the opposite gender; however, it is just this that has cultivated her attitude towards her government, the male sex, and even her own spouse. By requesting that her husband remember to give rights to women, it shows that she was brave enough to present her opinions even though they were unwelcomed (Adams, Paragraph 9). She is headstrong in the sense that she is willing to rebel if she does not receive the proper representation that she is asking for. Also, by mentioning that the women would rebel, Abigail displays her intelligence because she could foresee the inevitable future if women’s rights were not improved (Adams, Paragraph 9). She sees the world for what it is, unjust. Moreover, her social and political inferiority did not result in ignorance. Based on her vocabulary, writing style, and comprehension/expression of such complex ideas, she reveals that she is
Abigail Adams wrote a letter to her husband John Adams called Remember the Ladies. Abigail is writing this letter during the Revolutionary War. The timing of the letter is significant because the country is at war for freedom and equality. In her letter Abigail pleas with her husband for women’s equality. Abigail’s purpose for writing to John regarding women’s equality is so that he will think of women as they adopt new laws. Throughout the letter Abigail uses different points of view, word choice, and varying tones to persuade her husband to see the need for laws that are considerate of women.
Abigail Adams’ letter stated, “I long to hear that you have declared an independency. And, by the way, in the new code of laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make, I desire you would remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the husbands. Remember, all men would be tyrants if they could. If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice or representation.” Abigail tells John that women will not stand for the maltreatment in a new republic, she then explains that men should not be given any authority that can be used against women, and society should treat women as equals. John not only disagree with Abigail’s letter, but also wrote back saying, “…we know better than to repeal our Masculine
* She and John were not used to the expenses of clothing, servants, and hosting dinners for other dignitaries. This was made even worse by the low salary John was being paid by Congress.
As members of Congress drafted laws to guarantee the independence for which the colonies were fighting, Abigail wrote to John begging him to remember that women also needed to be given the right to independence. Her most famous letter about the need for women's rights was written to John on March 31, 1776:
Abigail Adams writes a letter to her son while he is exploring with his father, a U.S president John Adams. Adams meticulously constructs a piece of writing that emphasizes the importance of their journey and summarizes her high expectations for him.
Abigail Adams married a man destined to be a major leader of the American Revolution and the second President of the United States. Although she married and raised men that become such significant figures during their time, her herself was played an important role in the American society. The events that happened in her life, starting from childhood and ending in her adult years, led her to be a Revolutionary woman. Three main reasons behind her becoming such a strong, independent woman was the fact that she married a man who had an important role in politics, growing up with no education, and raising a family basically by herself.
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.
Withey’s book also includes much information about the politics and government of the time, while also painting a portrait of Abigail Adams as an intelligent, resourceful, and outspoken woman, as well as involving details of her domestic life, with excerpts from multiple letters that she and John wrote to each other. The reader is able to read these passages and understand the public and reserved sides of Abigail Adams, who was both a believer in the emancipation of slavery and an early feminist, and had advised her husband of keeping women in mind while he
Once again, the only way Abigail could communicate with him were letters. The letters this time were full of even more meaning because Abigail would report what she knew about the British and what they were doing. She knew how important this all was. She even took young John Quincy to the top of Penn’s Hill to watch the Battle of Bunker Hill on June 17,1775. Although not all the people saw eye to eye with Abigail on her ideas, her husband agreed with her. In June of 1776 John was appointed to the committee of five men to help create the Declaration of Independence. Abigail was very please but she still longed for more. She had a broader idea then the delegates, she believed both sexes should have equal rights. In one of her most famous letter she wrote “remember the ladies, and be more favorable to the than your ancestors”. While they did adopt the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 it failed to give rights to women or blacks. Abigail was not discouraged and that was good because there would be many more chances for her to make a difference. John was soon appointed head of the Board of War and would turn to Abigail in seek of help many times. He valued his wife’s opinion and once even wrote “I want to hear you think or see your thoughts”. In a letter she wrote to him at one point of his job as the board leader said “These are times a genius would wish to live…great necessities call out great virtues (Page
Abigail Adams faced many hardships throughout her life. She was the daughter of a minister and had two sisters and a brother. In the 1700’s, children did not have a high survival rate due to the amount of diseases and nothing to treat them with. Abigail Adams said in her old age that she “was always sick” (Akers 5). This reminds people how tough life was in the 1700’s and how easy it was to pass away from a mere cold. Abigail also did not have any education growing up. Women, in the colonial era, were not supposed to have an education and were supposed to watch the kids, cook, and clean. Readers of this book learn that many women back then were illiterate and were self-taught, if they had any education. Abigail did find a love for literature due to her sister’s spouse, Richard Cranch. He influenced her love for literature at a young age and she started to become more literate. Along with the disease and educational deficiency, women were considered as property. A young woman could either give up