This is a paper on the intellectual history of the rise of the Grimke Sisters as reform activists. Sarah and Angelina Grimke were two significant intellectual and social figures in the era of the 19th century American reform movements; most notably in the causes of Abolitionism, women’s rights, and education reform, and were some of the first female public speakers and activists in America. Initially they had been daughters of Charleston aristocracy. But overtime their mindset developed toward a religious and intellectual thinking supportive of reformism, and in 1835 they began their involvement in abolitionist activism, and began their career as advocates and intellectual contributors in reform causes. The aim of this paper is to shed …show more content…
The establishment of the United States of America brought with it optimism and challenges in the task of seeking to establish the identity of the society. The influence of the Enlightenment and Enlightenment inspired movements spread throughout the population. The Second Great Awakening brought about a series of religious revivals and movements, encouraging reevaluation of religious thinking, and encouraging active participation of belief in life. While there were movements for the growing scholasticism of theologians and the beginning of building public education . Through this mix of influence various movements arose for the reforming of people and society; seeking to change them to fit conceptions of an improved state. At the same time established forces sought to traditionalize and institutionalize the conditions, relationships, and prejudices, they saw as proper and useful to their interests. The sisters found themselves situated in this ground. Sarah and Angelina Grimke were born into one of the top aristocratic families of Charleston. Sarah, born in 1792, and Angelina, born in 1805, were among the 11 children of John and Mary Grimke. Their father John F. Grimke was a judge and legal scholar, and their mother Mary Smith Grimke was related to some the most prominent people of Charleston. They Grimke family lived a luxurious life style, with their lavish Church Street
The Second Great Awakening refers to a period of religious revivals that occurred in the United States in the 1830s. After this, many more Americans became Christians. The Second Great Awakening made Americans want to reform the United States. Reformers began gathering many social and political changes. There was a push to prohibit alcoholic beverages, to increase public education, to support rights for women, and to outlaw war. One of the movements to arise out of the Reform movements was the Abolition Movement which called for immediate end for slavery. Therefore, the Second Great Awakening and the reform movements that it inspired helped
The Second Great Awakening and opportunities for education greatly altered women’s role in the household. They were given more freedom and power as a mother. In addition, women were able to work in jobs normally dominated by men. They were not confined in the house but were able to make contributions in society to gain their own income. Women also became the leaders of reform during this time period. They headed movements against slavery, mistreatment of the mentally ill, and restriction of women’s rights. With all these changes, women’s lives slowly evolved. All these radical ideas soon became the norm for
The Great Awakening brought together provinces, and furthermore acknowledgment of religious resilience. These two periods of the eighteenth century greatly affected American culture and how individuals think previously, then after these movemments. The Enlightenment changed individuals' view on legislative issues, religion, and human instinct, and The Great Awakening acknowledged religious resilience. Enlightenment for the most part affected instructed individuals in the American states. Even though the Enlightenment initially started in Europe, it spread to America. The Great Awakening brought assorted variety; it was caused by reestablishment of religion after many individuals in the provinces moved in the opposite direction of religion. The Great Awakening conveyed Christianity to individuals who strayed away from
By the early 1800’s, sisters Angelina and Sarah Grimke had already made a name for themselves as anti-slavery abolitionist. Speaking in tents and at religious gatherings. They Used their Quaker faith to help instill an equal mindset. The sisters, who were educators, were also authors. Several of their publications were for the supplication of the rights of African Americans. Written in a pamphlet by Angelina entitled: “Appeal to the Christian Women of the South” she wrote:
The Second Great Awakening revolved around the new concept of national reform through religious and moral changes. These changes and transitions occurred for the benefit of the country, by withdrawing the negative aspects of society such as alcohol overuse, low quality education and prisons, and most notably slavery. Religious leaders encouraged salvation and worshipping the Christian God to be best solution for successfully reforming and improving the nation’s predicaments. Religious ideas had a remarkable role constructing reform movements in the first half of the nineteenth century in behalf of religion offering the most moral and logical path towards a better society. People of the United States were in necessity of reforms, applying the religious ideas opened up new resolutions for all classes, races, and groups of people.
She includes illustrations and photos depicting various political cartoons, petitions, artifacts, and engravings between pages 80 and 81. In her preface she first introduces the limitation of having white, middle-class women reformers. Chapter one, The Roots of Reform, introduces us to how women, empowered by the church first start exploring various charitable forms of outreach, the effect of the Second Great Awakening, and the first leading women; such as Juliana Tappen and Maria Weston Chapman. Chapter two, Charity and the Relations of Class, explores the middle -and upper-class women's need to perform charity. (Again tying in religion) The poor merely existing as a way for the wealthy to earn their way into heaven. We see the invention of the poor house, and how to define who was the "worthy poor." We see the invention of the Asylum as well as early talks of abolitionism. Chapter three, "Drinks, Sex, Crime, and Insanity", introduces the first major movement of the antebellum era, temperance, and the role alcohol played in the antebellum life. We see the emergence of Susan B. Anthony. This is the chapter where we begin to see more radical action from women, and some earlier reformers step away because they are scared of how far the movements are going. These movements are beginning to keep the women out of the kitchen just a little too long. Women begin to have more say, and do more than just simply make speeches and hand out pamphlets. Chapter four, Antislavery, is where we see the biggest divides in the reform movement. Women were divided on issues such as colonization, ending slavery, or should they even be involved at all. Many women wanted to be abolitionists, but did not want to associate with black people. Chapter five: Women's Rights, explores the earliest movements in the women's right cause. We see the effects of the Seneca
Before the generation, American women as improved their educational standing , to secure additional legal rights, and acquired greater access the manufactured by the 1800’s. Women had participated outstanding in the religious revivals known the second Great Awakening and the swept across the floor. The result of the religion , american women mostly north became involved in numerous reforms efforts, including temperance, the abolition of slavery, the colonization of former slaves, and important of poisons. But majority of american women still led daily lives that to focused on their family, household, gardens and crops. The night before the war , most women in the U.S. lived in rural areas and regularly performed exhausting, physical work and around the homes.
During the time period between 1825-1840, ideals such as equality, liberty and the pursuit of happiness defined democratic ideals. The reforms during this period of time were based on the craving to make America a utopian society. In addition, the 2nd Great Awakening expanded much of the democratic ideals by increasing church membership, especially in women also it inspired social reforms such as prisons, slavery, alcohol, education, women rights, and mental ill. Furthermore, it increased religious diversity. So the Reform Movements in the period of 1825-1850 did much to expand democratic ideals on abolition of slavery, women's rights movement, and American Temperance.
After 1815, a women’s status in society was shaped both by the “market revolution” and the “Second Great Awakening”. The “market revolution” was a drastic change in the nation's economy through transportation, education, legal reforms. Examples of these reforms would include the creation of canals, roads, railroads, and the technology needed to commute between places, an increase in teacher wages, school terms, and curriculum, and the spreading awareness of massive movements such as the temperance, abolitionist, and prison reform movement. The “Second Great Awakening” was a revival of religious spirit that attracted social minorities, such as women, African-Americans,and native Americans, that produced many new sects of Protestantism, such
The Second Great Awakening was a religious revival movement during the 19th century that challenged women’s traditional roles in religion. The Second Great Awakening gave women a more effective role in society. For Elijah Pierson and his wife
Sarah and Angelina Grimke were the first Southern women to become influential abolitionist, which spoke on the end of slavery; as well as social and political equality for freedmen and women as well. The Grimke sisters stretched the boundary of women’s public role, by giving speeches to audiences with men and women, and by speaking in front of a state legislature about African American rights. Sarah and Angelina broke many of the social and political boundaries subjected on women.
Another factor of Angelina’s progress is the radical nature of her arguments and the generation of loud opposition. “Success raises up opponents” . Angelina Grimke represented the most radical and controversial themes of her time. Not only was she a female Southern abolitionist and a champion of women’s suffrage, she publically proclaimed her contentious ideas to the masses. The very idea of “speaking to mixed audiences was a social taboo” . Women did not speak publically, certainly on political issues; these matters were seen to be too far above them. Angelina’s public response to Beecher and various other conservative opponents provoked dismay as she “extended the scope of [her] commentary beyond a simple defense”…and proved it to be “a powerful offensive on
The innovator from 1815-1860 was the Grimke Sisters, who had the most substantial influence on American expansion and culture. The Grimke Sisters innovation was Radicalism. The Grimke sister felt that it was time for a revolutionary change in society. The sisters were members of the Quakers Society, which was located in Philadelphia (Roark, Johnson, Cohen, Stage, & Hartman, 2014). Angelina Grimke decided to draft a letter to Garrison portraying as if she was a white person from the south that had been sent away during slavery. Moreover, Garrison soon publish the letter that was drafted by Angelina Grimke that inspired her to assume another career opportunities that would stir up radical changes throughout the United States (Roark, Johnson,
Angelina Weld Grimké was born in Boston, Massachusetts February 27, 1880 to Archibald Henry Grimké and Sarah E. Stanley. As a result, Grimké was born into a rather “unusual and distinguished biracial family” (Zvonkin, para. 1). Her father was the son of a slave and her master, who also happened to be the brother of the two famous abolitionist Grimké sisters: Angelina and Sarah. Grimké’s mother, Sarah, was from a prominent, white middle class family; she left Grimké and her African American husband due to racial pressure from her white family and, as a result, Grimké was raised entirely by her father.
In “An Appeal to the Women of the Nominally Free States”, Angelina Grimke immediately addresses all women as her “Beloved Sisters”, white or black. She establishes her audience right away and attempts to connect them through the powerful use of the sisterhood mentality. She begins to remind all women of their important duties in the world and then questions why women are stripped of political rights and duties solely because they are women, even though they are a crucial part of society. She goes on to explain slavery as a brutish crime “by which man is robbed of his inalienable right to liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, the diadem of glory, and honor, with which he was crowned, and that sceptre of dominion which was placed in his hand when he was ushered upon the theater of creation.” (Grimke). Grimke uses this vivid explanation of slavery to connect the oppression of African-Americans to the oppression of women and how women cannot forget that it is their duty to help their fellow oppressed citizens, regardless of their skin color. She says that it is not only their moral duty but also their political duty to act as members of “The Great Human Family”. She then begins to specifically describe how slave women are