Growing a Race the Eugenic Feminism Fiction and Nelly McClung - Book Report/Review Example

Growing a Race: The Eugenic Feminism Fiction of Nelly McClund and Suffragists of the Imperial Age: The Expansion of the United States and the Comparative Book Review This book review shall compare the content of two books, Cecily Devereux’s Growing a Race: the Eugenic Feminism Fiction and Nelly McClung and Allison Schneider’s Suffragists of the Imperial Age: the expansion of the United States and the Woman Concern. These books have received acclamation from many readers and followers of the feminist movement as containing informative pieces in their chapters. Feminism is not a new topic in most democracies, especially in Europe the United States. Women have for a long time fought for their recognition as equal partners in any issue, and as such, they argue that they should be included in the making of important decisions pertaining to matters of interest to the nation. Cecily Deveraux’s book examines the implication of Nellie McClung in several instances, where she was adversely mentioned on the role she played in the creation and implementation of eugenical pieces of legislation in Canada1. Nellie McClung created a legacy celebrated by people all over the world to date. Nellie McClung is among the most popular individuals from the early years of the 20th Century who advocated for reforms and recognition of the rights of women2. Cecily Deveraux put the fiction of McClung within her work on social reform’s context. She tries to compare the work that she is doing in advocating for reforms in the social setup with the work that McClung did in the past in order to communicate her desire for changes in the way the society treats women3. Deveraux explains in her book why readers should understand her work in seeking reforms as eugenic. Further, she tries to present her ideas as eugenic. Deveraux tries to sell the idea that her work is concerned with preserving the human race. The book provides a challenge to the conventional reading of Nellie McClung’s fiction. Nellie McClung, who lived between the years of 1873 and 1951, is among the first women to promote feminism by advocating for the rights of women in a world where men considered women to be lesser beings compared to their male counterparts. In the past, many societies oppressed women, confining them to the status of any other property that they owned. Deveraux offers new insights in the book on the story of the pioneering feminist and celebrated author, situating her endeavors within the context of feminism that sought to bring about a racially homogenous dominion. Deveraux, in the book, revisits the degree to which the enduring legacy of McClung of advocating for the rights of women depended on the notions of British eugenicists. Some of these eugenicists include Caleb Saleeby and Francis Galton4. The author tries to assess the effect that the work of these eugenicists had on McClung’s work by looking for semblances with the methods she employed to advocate for the enactment of eugenical laws in Canada. In some of the chapters in the book such as the books of Pearlie Watson and Painted Fires, Deveraux tries to form an understanding of the fiction of McClung in relation to its alignment with the politics of nation and race. Further, she puts in an effort to construct some of the impurities of a racial nature that many women in the society back then viewed themselves as able to cure in a way that men could not. Women have for a long time presented themselves as available and able to sort out some of the ills that the society has faced for the longest while, such as racism. However, men have denied them the opportunity to contribute to debates on matters of concern to all members in the society. The belief widely held is that by including women in activities that seek solutions, there would be more chances at working out solutions amicably. In Allison Schneider’s book, the argument fronted by Carrie Chapman in 1899 that women in the United States had a duty to assist the island’s new inhabitants to civilization to barbarism set the ground for the demonstration of the ability of women in the United States to fight for their rights. Women in the US needed men in positions of power, especially men in political leadership, to recognize their rights5. They pushed for the recognition of their contribution to the politics of the country, since they felt that they had a role to play in discussing and finding solutions to matters of national interest. Carrie Chapman Catt was the leader of the National Association of American Women Suffrage, having succeeded Susan Anthony, who had led the association on the path of feminism in the 18th century for a considerable number of years6. These efforts led to the issuance of a statement by the political society, mostly controlled and run by men, to declare that women, too, have a right to full citizenship of the United States7. Just like the many suffragists who existed in those days, had adequate knowledge and experience on the empire language. She communicated the reasons for suffrage with vigor that could only compare to the imperialists’ whenever she was involved in public debates. Carrie Chapman Catt and other suffragists of her time changed the nature of their argument in their feminism efforts8. Suffragists that existed before Carrie and Susan’s time fought to have women’s say in matters such as abolition and slavery recognized. Suffragists in Carrie Chapman’s time argued their course for feminism against efforts by the United States to expand its territories. The United States had adopted an expansionist policy. The United States sought to expand its territory into Mormon and Indian territories in the Americas. Across the borders, the United States sought to conquer Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the Philippines. Women wanted equal say in these matters because they believed that there were immense benefits that the country stood to enjoy from such conquests. Because men had all along single handedly decided and determined the fate of the country and yet the society still faced the serious ills, women sought to step up their fight for their voice to be heard. The intention of suffragists such as Carrie Chapman was to advocate for better methods of solving some of the problems that the society faced. In that regard, they wanted women to be represented at the highest levels of decision-making organs in the United States9. Allison Schneider displays high levels of care when she examines the political movements of American imperialism and women suffrage. She tries to find a relationship between the two phenomena, in the process expressing the intertwined nature of the two movements. American imperialism and women suffrage were inseparable in those days, despite both of them having complications in their histories10. Both books have tried to communicate the idea of feminism through the stories of other characters in the fight for the recognition of the rights of women. This is a fair strategy, considering the fact that the authors give the readers an opportunity to read about the progress of feminism from more than a hundred years ago, and measure the effects of such actions. Readers can compare the hardships that women underwent in those periods and compare them to the current environment where women are equal to men in most democratic states. From these books, it is evident that women were concerned with their contribution to national debates, aside from seeking to provide solutions to societal ills. The struggle to get recognition on the national scene in Canada and the United States was evidently a difficult endeavor, considering the challenges that the suffragists faced11. They all sought to address specific issues affecting the public, but because of chauvinistic tendencies by men in those societies, women found themselves gagged and voiceless. It is imperative to note that the efforts by feminists and suffragists did not get much support from politicians of those days. The reforms that women fought hard for took a long time before they were put to practice. For a long time they were dreams, and as such there was no certainty about when women would have their rights12. The approach that the two authors use in their books indicates that women pegged their efforts for recognition with prevailing political events of the time. While Deveraux connects McClung’s crusading activities to rampant racism at the time, Sneider connects the activities by Carrie Chapman to the expansionist agenda of the United States13. This gives the impression that for their course to be understood and taken seriously, women had to show their need to be involved in these events. Their articulation of these issues as presented in the books was informed, therefore giving the impression that women could take part in these debates too. Both books show that women had adequate information and skills to take part in debates. Women managed to create the impression that they were equally competent in the provision of ideas and solutions to the prevailing problems and conquests undertaken by their countries. Allison Schneider shares in her book that the long narrative of the United States imperial history and suffrage went on through the war between the United States and Philippines and the was between the Spanish and the United States that continued into the twentieth century. She gives an example of the 1920s, where suffragists in the United States, having been enfranchised through an amendment of the federal constitution in particular the Nineteenth Amendment, successfully lobbied for the imposition of woman suffrage on Puerto Rico, which was by then a colony of the United States. The Congress accepted and passed this proposal, despite the Puerto Rican legislature having opposed the proposal14. In some circles, this move by the United States qualifies as an act against democracy, one of colonial rule over its territories. In other circles, people view this act as a triumph of sisterhood in democracy, which served to bridge the boundaries caused by oceans and cut across color15. Either way, there had occurred a shift of significant magnitude in the years following the formation of competing associations advocating for women suffrage in the United States in the year 1869. These rival associations lobbied the congress to declare that women had a right to vote, and were successful in this quest. The decision made by the legislature of Puerto Rico to enfranchise women, despite resulting from coercion by the United States Congress, highlighted the gains made by feminists over the sixty-year period. Devereux provided the story of McClung’s efforts to seek the recognition of women’s rights in English Canada. The fruits of her efforts began manifesting themselves when Manitoba was Canada’s first province to enfranchise women16. McClung’s wrote a book, which had considerable influence because it shared the idea of women enfranchisement to the other provinces of Canada. In 1920, there was a federal vote in Canada, seeking to enfranchise women across all the provinces of Canada. The publication of the book was done in the United States. This contributed to the spread of the ideologies shared in the book beyond the borders of Canada17. The authors of the two books under review sought to communicate the notion that women were of higher moral standards compared to men. Deveraux documented her belief that McClung argued her case for woman enfranchisement and right to vote on the basis that women could be trusted to make moral decisions that would benefit not just women, but also men and children. Her argument had become the subject of analysis by historians, who shared that her notion most likely found its origin from the sexual differences that exist between men and women18. Further, they posited that McClung’s basis was resultant from the effects of maternal instincts, which can be explained biologically. This approval contributed significantly to the acceptance of woman enfranchisement in many countries. McClung maintained that the care and love of children was rooted deeply in the hearts of all women19. Allison wrote that suffragists faced weighty challenges in the sense that many people opposed to woman suffrage believed their measure posed a significant threat to the institutions that they lived under. The opponents of woman suffrage further spoke against these efforts, saying that such an action threatened the order that the society had adopted, the welfare of the people and harmony, which had taken so much effort to build. Despite these challenges, women suffrage remained a pertinent issue in emerging states. New amendments to the United States constitution, the Fourteenth Amendment of 1868 and the Fifteenth Amendment of 1870, created a novel definition of United States citizenship, in the process allowing for the enfranchisement of black men20. The history of woman suffrage and feminism in general gains support from the accounts in both books, with adequate justification of woman suffrage and feminism forming the basis for intense lobbying in the Congress and petitioning of the executive. Women attribute these efforts to their desire to contribute to the creation of a free society that considers the views of both genders before making crucial decisions on matters of importance to the entire country. However, the approach on suffrage and feminism as given by Deveraux and Allison bear some differences. Deveraux presents the movement for suffrage as an effort to liberate women from the control of men in all spheres21. The action by McClung to write a book to gather support for her ideas was an effort towards the declaration of suffrage for women not just in Canada, but also in other foreign countries. Her decision to fight for the rights of women was not specific to a single political event, or to a particular social ill. From the book, she hoped to achieve the recognition of women as members of the society with equal rights as men. McClung not only sought recognition, but also inclusion of women in decision-making organs in Canada and spread her idea beyond. McClung did not use lobbying as a method of pressing her concerns. The impression created by the book is that she preferred to appeal to the entire public, so that the people in positions to make the desired changes would do so as a matter of public pressure22. On the other hand, Allison uses the story of Carrie Chapman Catt to show the desire by the women of America to be involved in discussions and decision-making on sensitive matters. It is imperative to note that unlike McClung, who wanted to spread her idea and even took the initiative to produce a book, Carrie was more interested in political inclusion. This is evident from the method she employs to put her issues on suffrage across to the leadership of those days. Carrie opted to use lobbying in Congress so that woman suffrage can be recognized. Further, it is imperative to note that the Association that Carrie headed was a national association that raised matters of concern to American women only. From the chapters in the book, Carrie did not express her plans for the spread of feminism and woman suffrage out of the borders of the United States. In that regard, it is safe to conclude that she managed to achieve her target when the Congress amended the law to recognize woman suffrage. Soon after the amendment of the constitution, women had their say in the plans of the United States to expand their territory both within and outside their continent. Suffragists in America lobbied the United States Congress to pile pressure on the legislature of Puerto Rico, then an American colony, to impose woman suffrage23. This is seen as an action that would only be extended to another territory of the United States, not an effort to see woman suffrage spread to other places in the world where women were ignored in the making of critical decisions concerning them. In conclusion, the two books reviewed have successfully brought out the struggle that women underwent in an effort to gain recognition and to have their rights recognized and respected. The authors exhibit their knowledge of the topics of suffrage and feminism. They have also undertaken considerable research on the topics and issues of concern, providing chronological events as they occurred in history. In addition to that, Allison and Deveraux have managed to capture the importance that feminism and woman had, coupled with the effect that they had in these societies that men predominantly ruled without consultation with women since time immemorial. The sequence of events as they unfold in both books shows the progress that the characters involved in advocating for the rights of women. McClung’s efforts led to the spread of feminism and the introduction of woman suffrage in all the provinces of Canada24. Not long after Carrie lobbied the United States Congress on woman suffrage, women were in a position to offer their contribution to important issues within America and its territories25. From lobbying for the recognition of their right to vote in federal elections less that fifty years earlier, women in America managed to be included in America’s expansionist plans, even participating in the introduction of woman suffrage in Puerto Rico26. This is an important point to note because it indicates that the fight for recognition of the rights of women played a major role in the widening of the democratic space in the United States. The two books by Allison and Deveraux provide an interesting read on the history of women’s rights advocacy. Bibliography Bashford, A., & Levine, P. (2010). The Oxford handbook of the history of eugenics. New York: Oxford University Press. Devereux, Cecily Margaret. Growing a race Nellie L. McClung and the fiction of eugenic feminism. Montreal [Que.: McGill-Queen's University Press, 2005. Dowbiggin, I. R. (2003). Keeping America sane: psychiatry and eugenics in the United States and Canada, 1880-1940. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press. Grekul, J., Krahn, A., & Odynak, D. (2004). Sterilizing The "Feeble-minded": Eugenics In Alberta, Canada, 1929-1972. Journal of Historical Sociology, 17(4), 358-384. Sneider, Allison L.. Suffragists in an imperial age: U.S. expansion and the woman question, 1870-1929. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008. Read More