Revolutionary Effects of Women's Role

Inferiority was an element of the past when considering the women greatly affected by the market revolution and the Second Great Awakening. During the late 1700s "Republican Motherhood" was a responsibility for wives to educate their children of the republic- about how it was against the tyrannical government. It seemed as if women had finally obtained power, but they were actually being degraded, ultimately giving men one less responsibility. Republican Motherhood restricted wives to household duties, preventing them from experiencing the work of men- preventing them from becoming independent individuals. Also, during the establishment of the constitution women were subjugated to adhere to traditional housework (chores, taking care of husband/children, etc.), were not allowed to vote, and were not permitted to serve in the military. Conclusively, women were presented as inferior beings, rather than equals. Ultimately, transformation came about because women had had enough. They demanded to be heard and when they were, they were unbelievably loud and clear. As a result of the Second Great Awakening and the mart revolution, women now worked in the mills, contributed to making up majority of the population during religions revivals, broke through the chains of the “cult of domesticity”, acquired higher education, and participated in reform crusades; therefore it is only appropriate to notice that women’s roles and opportunities have drastically revolutionized in term of family, the work place, and society.

No one would have ever predicted the market revolution, an economic revolution, would have promoted women’s progression. The eradication of farms and workshops in substitution for industry and commerce not only benefited the common man, but women also acquired a significant role too. In all actuality, women were compelled to revolutionize, not by men, but by fate. They were allowed to work in mills, ultimately eliminating their full attention toward traditional house work. “Everyone wanted to link their economic fate to the burgeoning economic market”, and fortunately women got a piece of the pie. Women were needed to cooperate for the benefit of the society, ultimately allowing them to progress toward equality. Unfortunately, because the women wanted independence through working the mills, they had to pay the price through hard labor and long hours (Doc B). Factory workers from Lowell, Massachusetts worked six days a week doing hard labor, compared to the farm women who only made food and clothes for the advancement of the pre-industrial economy. As the years passed by, women understood that in order to obtain power and equality, they had to collaborate and unify. During the Second Great Awakening, religious groups were fighting against the idea of dualism, which promoted the idea that churches were established to “enslave mankind”. Women, the majority, fought against the growing liberalism in religion. The role of women helped establish democratic control of church affairs and for people to get “saved”. The Second Great Awakening also made way for higher education. (Oberlin College is proof, which allowed admissions for African- American women). Institutions were initially built in the South where women learned of mathematics, philosophy, and other “man subjects”. Women defied the terms of the “cult of domesticity” by acquiring knowledge and becoming productive, educated individuals. Women were so addicted to learning that even secondary education was not enough to stimulate their eager minds; they needed the library and lyceum lectures as well. Education and wisdom is what led women to make change for their societies. Women like Lucretia Mott established the London antislavery convention, but was not as popular as Susan B. Anthony who stood for women’s right. Elizabeth Cady Stanton advocated women suffrage, and finally Doretha Dix, a teacher, petitioned the Massachusetts legislature, which resulted in better conditions for prisons. (Prisons that had cells that caused disease to spread) She eventually obtained a high role as a nurse for the Union Forces.

Through continuous actions, the role of women helped to promote equality and revolutionized society forever.


Extra Credit---
*Mount Holyoke was the first women college founded by Mary Lyon*
*The first textbook made was The McGuffey Reader by William McGuffey*