Women throughout American History - Essay Example

Women throughout American History All through history women have possessed limited career opportunities and civil liberties than their male counterparts. Motherhood and wifehood were perceived to be women’s most considerable professions. Nonetheless, in the 20th century, women in numerous countries attained the right to vote and enhanced their employment and educational opportunities. Perhaps the most essential, women fought for and to a large extent realized a reassessment of conventional notions of their duties in society. In addition, women in America were perceived to be second class citizens and in a number of occasions to be used and owned by members of the male population. Even though these views still persist in several regions in the world, women have accomplished tremendous progress with regard to equal rights. These civil rights were most notably established in the 19th and 20th centuries with noteworthy laws, for example, the Married Women’s Property Laws enacted during the 19th century and the 19th Amendment. The most significant accomplishment was realized in the 1920 elections when a large number of American women were allowed to exercise their rights to vote for the initial time. It took tremendous efforts of activists and reformers and approximately a century to win this right. Even though the consequences were astounding, the campaign was extremely demanding. Nevertheless, in the final part of 1920, the 19th Amendment of the constitution was formally approved, incorporating American women and for the first time asserting that like men, women, ought to have all rights and responsibilities that is associated with being an American citizen (Hemming and Savage 48). This paper will look at how women have suffered for numerous years, but the efforts they have put in have shown throughout history. From the early periods women have been specifically perceived as an innovative source of human existence. However, historically, women in America have been regarded both as a major source of evil and temptation, and mentally mediocre to their male counterparts. In contrast, the attitude towards members of the female population in the Eastern part of the world was initially extra approving. For instance, in ancient India, women were not denied of individual freedoms or property rights by marriage. Nevertheless, in America, children of the male gender were considered to be of significance than female children. On the other hand, when women were allowed intellectual and individual freedom, they made tremendous realizations. In the middle periods nuns played a significant part in Europe’s religious life. In America, women made significant contributions towards the fight for education for American women (Rosenbloom 37). Emma Willard established the Troy Female Seminary in 1821. This was the foremost American educational institution to give females a college education identical to that offered to men. Also, in 1841, Oberlin College was the institution that gave the bachelor’s degree to the first three women, Mary Caroline Rudd, Elizabeth Smith Prall, Mary Hosford, in America, and in 1862 it gave a degree to Mary Jane Patterson, an African America woman. Women in America were for a long time perceived as biologically inferior to men, delicate, and not able to engage in activities needing intellectual or muscular development. In preindustrial America, domestic activities were left for women and females, leaving what were considered as significant activities, for example, plowing and hunting to men. This did not take notice of activities, for example, taking care of children, washing clothes, and milking cows which needed sustained, burdensome labor. Also, the American community regarded the natural biological responsibility of women as their foremost social responsibility as well. This made middle-class children to learn from their mother’s example that caring for children, cleaning, and cooking was the responsibilities required of her when she became an adult (Sigerman 39). In colonial America, females went to master’s schools for males when there was space. Nevertheless, by the final periods of 19th century the size of women students had tremendously escalated. Higher education was extended due to the augmentation of female’s colleges and women’s admission to regular universities and colleges. Also, at the start of the 20th century women attained 19% of undergraduate college degrees. The illusion of the innate inferiority of women tremendously affected the position of women in American law. In the ancient history of America, a man practically owned his children and wife as he did his physical belongings. If a destitute man decided to take his children to a poorhouse, the mother or wife was lawfully defenseless to oppose the decision. Nevertheless, a number of American communities transformed the common law to permit females to own belongings in their own names, function as lawyers in the courts, and to sue for property with the permission of their husbands. Equality law, which was established in England, laid emphasis on the standard of equal rights instead of tradition. Equity law had a liberalizing impact on the civil liberties of women in America. For example, equity law allowed women to sue their husbands. Women also started working in large numbers outside their households, evidently in garment shops and textile mills (Maclean 73). Women also worked in crowded rooms and poorly ventilated places for approximately 12 hours in a day. These women put up with the harsh working conditions to extend their horizons, save for marriages, and support their families economically. During the colonial period in America, women who had the capacity to support themselves often owned boarding houses or became seamstresses. In a number of occasions there were women who occupied jobs and worked in professions available largely to members of the male population (Bataille and Lisa 26). There were women singers, doctors, writers, lawyers, teachers, and preachers. However, by the initial periods of the 19th century, standard occupations for working females were restricted to domestic work and factory labor. Women were barred from the professions, save for teaching and writing. The necessary educational requirements, specifically for the practice of medicine, enhanced. This stopped a large number of women, especially, those who had numerous children or married early, from engaging in professional occupations. Even though home nursing was perceived to be a proper occupation for females, nursing in health institutions was largely undertaken by men. Nonetheless, Elizabeth Blackwell graduated at the top of her class in Geneva Medical College, in 1849, becoming the earliest female doctor in the United States. In 1857, Marie Zakrzewska, Elizabeth Blackwell, and hers sister, Emily, established the initial American hospital devoted to serving children and women, and managed by women, the New York Infirmary for Women and Children. Since 1920, women in America have had the right to vote, nonetheless, their political functions have been nominal. It was not until 1984 when a main political party selected a woman from New York, Geraldine Ferraro, to vie for vice president. Elected in 1917, Jeanette Rankin of Montana was the foremost female member of America’s House of Representatives. In addition, the first black female to be nominated to the House of Representatives was Shirley Chisholm of New York, in 1968. In addition to holding political office, women also attained the right to serve on juries, in the final period of the 19th century (Sigerman 64). In addition, Elizabeth Stanton was the first woman to run for Congress in 1866. She attempted to contest the ambiguity of the United States Constitution with reference to women occupying public office. In the final period of the 18th century, personal freedom was being passionately discussed. In 1845, one of the earliest women journalists, Margaret Fuller, created the work, Woman in the Nineteenth Century. In this work, she asserted that people possessed limitless abilities and that when individual’s tasks were illustrated with regard to their sex, human progress was extremely restricted. In addition, a large number of feminists presumed that a cooperative society found on socialist economic ideas would show respect to the rights of women. In 1892, the Socialist Labor Party was one of the foremost national political parties in America to incorporate woman suffrage as a board in its manifesto (Rosenbloom 81). The term new woman came to be employed in the common press during the early 20th century. Additional young females started to attend school, living on their own in city residential areas, and working in both white and blue-collar jobs. During the 19th century, women in America planned and took part in a wide range of reform movements to outlaw alcoholic drinks, to introduce prison reform, to enhance education, and to free the slaves during the pre-Civil War time. The abolitionist sisters Angelina and Sarah Grimke of South Carolina bravely protested against slavery in the public domain at a period when it was considered respectful for females to talk in the midst of a crowd made up of both men and women. A number of women derived similarities between the status of slaves and that of women. In their opinion, both women and slaves were expected to be passive, obedient, and cooperative to their husband and masters. Women, for example, Lucy Stone and Harriet Tubman were abolitionists and feminists, believing in both the rights of people from the black community and the rights of women (Crow 96). The Union triumph in the Civil War made women abolitionists believe that their effort would lead to suffrage for both members of the black community and the women. Nonetheless, the 14th Amendment and 15th Amendment to the Constitution, implemented in 1868 and 1870 correspondingly, permitted suffrage and citizenship to members of the black community but not to women. A woman-suffrage adjustment to the Constitution, tabled to each Congress from 1878, recurrently failed to ratify. During this period, a number of women, including Myra Bradwell, Victoria Woodhull, and Virginia Louisa Minor tried to utilize the 14th Amendment in the legal institutions to obtain the right to practice law or vote; nonetheless, they were all not successful (Rosenbloom 112). In 1874, Annie Wittenmyer established The Woman’s Christian Temperance Union to aid in the alcohol ban and help in the battle for women’s suffrage. In conclusion, it is essential to know that no matter the region all over the globe, women play a significant part in society. In addition, the significance of women throughout history cannot be disputed particularly in the history of United States. Women such as Susan Brownell’s responsibility in the United States history were extremely essential. Such women fought for women to hold identical freedom and rights as men (Crow 61). Also, the struggle for women to have equal rights in the United States required tremendous effort and persistence. Even though women sought equal rights and freedom for almost a century, they eventually realized these rights with time. It is evident that women and their rights movements made advancements since the early period. Works Cited Bataille, Gretchen M., and Laurie Lisa. Native American Women: A Biographical Dictionary. New York: Routledge, 2001. Print. Crow, Barbara A. Radical Feminism: A Documentary Reader. New York: New York University Press, 2000. Print. Hemming, Heidi, and Julie H. Savage. Women Making America. New York: Clotho Press, 2001. Print. Maclean, Nancy. The American Women's Movement: A Brief History with Documents. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2008. Print. Rosenbloom, Nancy J. Women in American History Since 1880: A Documentary Reader. New Jersey: Wiley-Blackwell, 2010. Print. Sigerman, Harriet. The Columbia Documentary History of American Women Since 1941. New York: Columbia University Press, 2007. Print. Read More