American Revolution: Republican Motherhood

The Fem-pire Strikes Back! The American society was shaken up by a revolution and a second great awakening from 1815 - 1860. These developments significantly affected women both inside and outside the home. Although they were still considered inferior to men, women gained new opportunities in the working profession as nurses, teachers, and domestic servants because of the proliferation.

While male slaves simply received punishment from the masters, women slaves were also targeted by the masters’ wives, whose anger stemmed from their jealously and embarrassment that their husbands

1. How did revolutionary America see both improvements and limitations in women’s roles and rights? Revolutionary America saw improvements and limitations in women's roles and rights through various methods. One of the common limitations in women's rights is the topic of gender versus power. In most cases, the husband had legal authority over their wives, ultimately considering the women to be unfit for citizenship.

Between 1825 and 1850, republican motherhood was a term used to illustrate the idea of women’s roles being defined. It encompassed the vision that women should be expected to take time out of their lives and teach their families, specifically children, civil virtues. Expected to have high moral standards and be pure, good civilians, women were put on a pedestal for all to see; meaning, they were intended to act as virtuous girls who had no problems. Women stayed in a sphere, the cult of domesticity, and were not allowed to move from their place and cause trouble. Simultaneously, slaves and African American people were developing their own sphere.

Women were considered inferior to men; they had to rights and most of all no voice. Typically, as the old saying goes ‘they were to be seen and not hear’. Revolutionary Mothers, by Carol Berkin tells of the general stereotypes of women in America, the roles in which they played during the America revolution, and lastly it tells the story of the women through their own words. Stereotypes of Women In chapter one, Berkin states “God had created her to be a helpmate to man….and formed her for this purpose…to be frugal, and obedient (2005, p.4)”.

They also supervised the slaves to make sure they are doing their work, if the slaves were sick the women would care for them. The women in families did all the funeral stuff in the family. The wealthier the women were the more time they stayed inside. The women were to keep to themselves they were not supposed to gossip or even listen in on it. Men thought that women brought evil, they were useless.

In the book Revolutionary Mothers, author Carol Berkin discusses women’s roles in the American Revolution. She separates out the chapters so that she can discuss the different experiences and roles of women during the period. She utilizes primary and secondary sources to talk about how women stepped into their husband’s shoes and maintained their livelihoods and how they furthered the war effort on both sides, as well as how classes and race effected each woman’s experience. Berkin’s main goal was for the reader to understand that although women’s roles aren’t traditionally discussed when talking about the American Revolution, nevertheless, they played a major part in it.

Men believed that women served only one purpose which was to take care of the household. Being a wife and a mother was considered

This is because they had the means to support themselves with one income; therefore, women could stay at home. Domesticity was not common among poor and slave families because both men and women had to work to support their families. The concept of domesticity, specifically the difference between the treacheries outside world and the comfort of home, greatly changed socio-cultural perceptions of children. After domesticity developed, childhood became viewed as a distinct stage of life, in which children’s innocence and morality needed to be nurtured and sheltered from the evils of the world. Domesticity provided the opportunity for wives to offer more nurturing and attention to their children.

Women were regarded as a reflection of their men so they are to be honorable and chaste without being vulgar, they should not be heard. Even though these women might be noted in some cases as inferior, they still participated a great deal and influenced the

Slaves were beaten and whipped, separated from their families and were viewed as property in the eyes of the law. However despite the similarities between the two sexes, there were many differences. Women were treated far more worse than their male counterparts. The male slave was considered to be more valuable.

Women and children are socialized to be submissive to male authority and the women’s role is clearly taking care of the home, the husband and the children (Coltrace, Park & Adams,

This routine to which women adhered was known as the "Cult of Domesticity" and it was the reasoning behind these women's home lives. Moreover, the market revolution created a myriad of economic dependencies that were not beneficial to many who dwell in the lower rungs of society. These people were, "immigrant and black day laborers, outwork seamstresses, the causal poor," that were effected by, "a combination of overstocked labor markets and intense competition among

Women who did not conform to societal rules and roles would be ostracized and shamed. Either carted around town or abused by the men in their lives until they bent to their will. At this time, women were seen as inherently subject to men and voraciously sexual. Due to this assumption, women were kept at home to prevent interaction with other men. Their voracious appetites could not be fulfilled by other men if they were forced to stay at home and do housework, thus keeping the wife faithful to her husband and isolating her from her community.

“Women could not be doctors, priests, judges, or lawyers” (Hopkins 8). For several years there was these bias towards men and because of that women were not entitled to vote, did not receive an education unless you were of royalty, and they were forced to surrender any land inherited to them to their husbands or brother. Women were also only allowed to move to a new community by marrying a man from a different