What is the place of a woman? Throughout history, the role of women in American society has been called to question, as all equal rights movements eventually do. For the majority of America’s history, the role of women has been passive. Women, who are trained to be obedient and reserved, often did not take an active role in their rights. The woman who have stood up for their rights have developed how women have been viewed in the past two hundred years. As America developed and changed economically over the years, the resulting change impacted how others view the role of women. The role of women has changed alongside economical changes in the country, and feminists such as Catherine Beecher, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Beatrice Hinkle, Betty …show more content…
Women were seen as the authority figure in the home, giving women the power to teach the children and care for the home. Women were also seen as the superior moral figure, and moved into social improvement roles, such as teaching. Many women were in favor of this movement, the greatest advocate being Catherine Beecher.
Considered a very progressive and influential figure of the time, Catherine Beecher, was the main proponent of the argument that a woman 's place is in the home. In A Treatise on Domestic Economy, Beecher appeals to Christian philosophy in terms of democracy, stating that "society could never go forward, harmoniously, unless these superior and subordinate relations could be instituted and sustained". Catherine Beecher believed that the role of women as homemakers gave women more freedom. She argued that women have no place in civil and political affairs, except to “sympathize with their family”. She argues that women are powerful and influential, and that “No American woman, then, has any occasion for feeling that hers is an humble or insignificant lot. The value of what an individual accomplishes, is to be estimated by the importance of the enterprise achieved, and not by the particular position of the laborer.” The words of Catherine Beecher has influenced many thoughts of the role of women that are still in place today. While Domesticity was an enticing and exciting change for the role of women, not all women
For the longest time, women’s role in society was very narrow and set in stone. Women weren’t given the chance to decide life for their own, and there was a very sharp distinction of gender roles. Women were viewed as inferior, weak, and dependant. They were expected to be responsible for the family and maintainance of the house. But as the 19th century began, so did a drastic change in society. Women started voicing their opinions and seeking change. Trying to break away from this ideology called “cult of domesticity” was a lengthy, burdensome, and demanding struggle.
During the age of the homespun, the house was typically used as a factory on the farm, and the land was used to produce for the house that the women ran(Doc E). During the Industrial Revolution, women were given larger roles. For the first time, women worked to earn a wage, outside of their home, breaking out of the Cult of Domesticity. Women were able to leave the domestic setting and find low paying jobs in domestic service, textile factories, and piece workshops. Similarly, the lives of women changed greatly and the status of women changed slightly during the Second Great Awakening because of the emphasis on their spiritual
Women’s roles have changed greatly throughout history. As the advancement of culture, laws, and ideas altered ways of life, women’s lives also evolved in numerous aspects of society. Women’s roles changed greatly between 1815 and 1860. During this time, family dynamics changed as the mothers that were placed at the center of the household were given greater freedoms. In addition, women had more opportunity to take on jobs in the workplace. Women also fought for reform movements that altered their ways of life in the community. During the reform era of the United States, factors such as religion, education, and reforms greatly changed women’s roles in the family, workplace, and society.
Women did the same amount of work as men they got paid half of men wages because they were viewed as of less value. Since women were a cheaper labor force they were often hired to do men’s work, which often included working in dangerous and unsanitary conditions. Women became a necessity in the workplace, and they soon realized they did matter and that they deserved to be treated equally. Catherine Beecher was a women’s rights activist who fully believed in that sentiment. In “A Treatise on Domestic Economy” Beecher uses a key component of the Declaration of Independence highlighting that “all men are created equal and have the right to life liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” She uses that point to emphases the parallels between Democracy and Christianity. Beecher continues on to show the importance of subordination in some relationships. She states that women take a subordinate position in public affairs and in domestic life. Beecher informs readers that shouldn’t be the case. Women have greater importance and thus so, in turn, have greater responsibilities (A Treatise on Domestic Economy 240-244). With that realization, women fought for changes. It wasn’t much longer until political changes were legally required. Women fought for equal treatment in society, as a result, the feminist movement emerged. The Industrial Revolution was important in changing the role of women and getting the feminist movement to the point it is at the
While social change has brought on more changes than what women are a custom too, at one point in history women actually felt a form of importance in fulfilling their roles not only in the home; but outside as well. “These demographic shifts account for many new or altered roles, such as increased number of duel-earner families, later and fewer marriages, fewer children, increased life expectancy, and the massive migration shifting employees across a nation and across the globe” (Lindsey, 2011, pg. 275).
The American Revolution, which happened during the last half of the eighteenth century, reshaped many aspects of life in America. The desire of the Founding Fathers to make America a republic played a very significant part in changing the role of women after the Revolution. The role of women as wives became more important as an emphasis on virtue was established; women were encouraged to find virtuous husbands and utilize their seductive nature to keep men virtuous. The roles of women as mothers also became more important in the republic, as patriarchy loosened and mothers were depended on to educate their children in the republican way. And finally, the role of women in politics was theoretically reduced due to the increasing demands of
The economic “market revolution” and the religious “Second Great Awakening” shaped American society after 1815. Both of these developments affected women significantly, and contributed to their changing status both inside and outside the home. Throughout time, women’s roles and opportunities in the family, workplace, and society have greatly evolved.
During The American Revolution there was showings of how women's roles were at the time.At the time that the soldiers were at Valley Forge there were women nurses. There was not really a lot of things woman could do back then so the start of nursing was a positive thing for them back then.After the American Revolution women were starting to make a little progress with an impact, starting out with Abigail Adams. Abigail Adams,wife of John Adams,was a speaker,and she explains to him along with the public about the importance of women.After she spoke women all around started to make boycotts. At this point women had few rights,and married women had something called the coventure law.This law stated that women were based on their husbands identity,and when women get married they lose any rights to all her property.
Dating back throughout history woman were often considered to be too soft or docile to work. In the early 1800’s, as well as the 1950’s, it was thought that woman should not only be pure in heart, mind and body, but that they should be submissive to their husbands and not work outside the home, this was known as the Cult of Domesticity (Keister & Southgate, Inequality: a contemporary approach to race, class and gender, 2012, p. 228).
In the mid to late 1700's, the women of the United States of America had practically no rights. When they were married, the men represented the family, and the woman could not do anything without consulting the men. Women were expected to be housewives, to raise their children, and thinking of a job in a factory was a dream that was never thought impossible. But, as years passed, women such as Susan B. Anthony, Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucy Stone, and Elizabeth Blackwell began to question why they were at home all day raising the children, and why they did not have jobs like the men. This happened between the years of 1776 and 1876, when the lives and status of Northern middle-class woman was changed forever. Women began to
Women always played a prominent role in the history of America. Usually, women are considered to stay at home and raise their children. However, every individual should play an equal part in the society development by utilizing their skills and efforts. This spirit can be seen during World War II, when women realized the need of the hour and they decided to participate in war activities. Millions of women started to work outside the home and also worked in the military.
The desire of the Founding Fathers to make America a successful republic played a significant part in changing the many roles that women found themselves in after the Revolution. The role of women as wives became more important as republican ideals established an emphasis on marriage. Society saw marriage as a miniature representation of a republic. Therefore, republican ideals like independence and the freedom from arbitrary power allowed women as wives more value and power within their families. The roles of women as mothers also became more important in the republic, as patriarchy loosened and the nation depended on mothers to educate American children in the republican way. And finally, the role of women in politics was theoretically
In that time, women were known to stay home and take care of their children, cook and clean. So having an opportunity
During the early 1800's women were stuck in the Cult of Domesticity. Women had been issued roles as the moral keepers for societies as well as the nonworking house-wives for families. Also, women were considered unequal to their male companions legally and socially. However, women’s efforts during the 1800’s were effective in challenging traditional intellectual, social, economical, and political attitudes about a women’s place in society.
At the end of the 18th century and during the 19th century, there were many changes to public ideology that affected the way that women perceived their roles in society. Prior to these changes, women had adopted the beliefs of separate “spheres” separating work into public life and their duties as mothers at home1. Women stayed at home to take care of the children and provide a warm, welcoming home for their husbands to take refuge from public life. Women became aware of their lack of legal and political power after the American Revolutionary War ended as they were denied the right to the same freedoms that granted the right to vote to the white, property-owning male population2. Despite granting women more liberty to run businesses, farms,