The Declaration Of Sentiments: The Ideology Of Women

The Seneca Falls Convention of 1848 was the first spark to women's rights movements in Antebellum America. Without this meeting, life for women today could be entirely different. Rights that seem obligatory to women today, like being able to vote, and occupational diversity for women. Women such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Coffin Mott helped to kickstart the innovative ideas produced before and through the convention.

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

Women, like black slaves, were treated unequally from the male before the nineteenth century. The role of the women played the part of their description, physically and emotionally weak, which during this time period all women did was took care of their household and husband, and followed their orders. Women were classified as the “weaker sex” or below the standards of men in the early part of the century. Soon after the decades unfolded, women gradually surfaced to breathe the air of freedom and self determination, when they were given specific freedoms such as the opportunity for an education, their voting rights, ownership of property, and being employed.

When the women’s right movement began in the antebellum years in the northern United States, it seems to be sparked by the abolitionist struggles against slavery. A Women’s Right Convention at Seneca Falls, New York in the late 1840s was one of the biggest emergence of women’s rights. Leading this convention were many prominent women including Lucretia Mott, Susan B. Anthony, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, who were all trained in the school of

The first women’s right convention was held in Seneca Falls, NY with about 300 attendees which include women and men, such as Frederick Douglas. Whereas the agenda was clear to abolition all social, economic, and legal discrimination against women.

The Seneca Falls Convention was the first woman’s rights convention in the United States. The assembly was organized by many women who were present in abolition and temperance movements, and lasted for two days, July 19–20 on 1848 in Seneca Falls, New York. The convention’s main purpose was to bring attention to unequal treatment of women, and brought about 300 women, including around 40 men. The Seneca Falls Convention played a major role in women’s rights throughout the United States and is composed of important before, during, and aftermath history.

Led by a fair number of women, the Second Great Awakening opened new possibilities for women. The idea that women were subordinate to men was slowly becoming a thing of the pass. Women broke the social norm and began to lead reform movements in order to gain rights. The Grimké sisters regularly spoke to coed audiences about abolitionist efforts in order to gain support and spread the idea of abolition (Pastoral Letter to the Liberator, 1837). However, women didn’t fully receive equal legal status and rights until the mid-nineteenth century. The Seneca Falls Convention ultimately paved the way for women’s rights and the Declaration of Sentiments proposed “women’s equality in everything from education and employment to legal rights and voting”(Hewitt, Lawson

This was frowned upon by most of the community because women were said to be needed at the household where they should stay and take care of the household. As more women colleges opened such as the Holyoke Seminary, a school that opened specifically to educate women. As women became more educated, they tried to gain a voice in the community and among the nation socially and politically. An example of this is Dorothea Dix where she protested and changed many of the prison treatment and also treatment for the mentally ill as stated in Document F. Women would later to go on to where bloomers which symbolizes that they were equal to men in every way. One way that they were gaining a political voice was at the Women's Rights Convention at Seneca Falls, New York in the mid 1800's. Elizabeth Stanton stated the Declaration of Independence which stated, "all men and women were created equally." This convention launched the modern Women's Rights Movement, and made women's voice be heard around the nation. In addition to this women petitioned for multiple women's rights that would be passed. This movement gained women equal rights to men due to the Second Great

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.

Another important reform movement was that of women suffrage. In the early 19th century, married women could not enter into contracts without their husband 's consent. Women also lost all title to property or future earnings upon marriage. Children were also legally controlled by the father. Women were also often left without protection against kidnapping or even imprisonment by husbands and other male relatives. Women were also denied educational opportunities in a male dominated society. There were many women involved in this movement but there were a significant few who stood out. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott organized the Seneca Falls Convention, and many other movements along with many papers and declarations calling for a women 's right to own property and to vote. Later the two formed the National Women 's Suffrage Association.

(Goldfield, 338) Since the cult of domesticity was making women inferior to men, women decided to do as the slaves did and fight for their own freedom. The women’s rights movement began in the mid-1800s. Female and male abolitionist found it necessary that women should be able to have the same rights as men. Just because biologically they are different, it does not mean they do not deserve the same rights. Women were denied the right to vote, property and a right to an education or job. (Goldfield, 338) At first the women’s movement was slow. Many women were afraid to speak out in fear of being shunned by their community. This was a brand new scary task that Women for the first time were going to deal with. A women speaking out against the norms of society was seen as a terrible thing to do. When you have many women speaking out for the same thing a change must be done. When the first national convention for women’s rights was called in Seneca Falls, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott were able to successfully use the Declaration of Independence as a model for their own Declaration of Sentiments. (Goldfield, 339) In their Declaration they branded that “male patriarchy as the source of women’s oppression” (Goldfield, 339) Stanton and Mott called for full women’s rights and to become independent citizens. Although the fight for women’s rights was always an important issue, most abolitionists deemed it less important

Consequently, when the lack of rights and political power limited their contribution to the abolition movement, several women such as Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton began championing women’s rights and organized the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848.13 In spite of the lack of support for the movement from other groups, the participation of the women involved became possible after women began working within the public spheres for the previous movements and thanks to the new ideology supported by the Second Great

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.

In the 1800’s a women was suppose to have four things Piety, Purity, submissiveness, and domesticity. These principles shaped the “Cult of True Womanhood” an idea that women were to be seen but not heard. Women had no say when it came to politics, they couldn’t own property, they were not allowed to do many jobs, and they couldn’t even speak in front of men. They had the duty to be a mother and raise their children but even thought they had this responsibility it was the husband who had the complete control and guardianship of the children. Because of these ideas it was very difficult for change to happen. When women started to receive more education they began to ask questions about why they were being denied these rights, which began the