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Persecution or Prosecution: The Role of Gender in Anne Hutchinson’s Punishment
Modern feminists stand at a crossroads, torn between staunch opposition of the parts of the patriarchy that disadvantage them and a reluctant acceptance of the fragments of the same system that benefits them. The patriarchal structure that stands responsible for the wage gap and the glass ceiling is also responsible for the tradition of male chivalry, in acts such as paying for a first date. Similarly, American Jezebel depicts the harrowing tale of Anne Hutchinson, a pioneer at challenging the male orthodoxy with religion and firm ideas, who both benefits and suffers from the weight of womanhood. Even though Hutchinson proved a genuine threat with her preaching
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against violence towards Native Americans, the processes of prosecution and punishment were clouded by her gender. Her trial was riddled with bias against powerful women who spoke their mind, as her revelations of her status as a prophet infuriated the ministers of the Puritan church.
However, while her bold statements worked against her in their stark juxtaposition with the ideals of demure Puritan women, she received a comparatively lenient punishment because of the implications of the weakness of her gender. Though Hutchinson posed a genuine political threat to the colonies, her gender accounted for the harshness of her prosecution and the laxness of her punishment itself.
Hutchinson’s fearlessness in spreading her radical ideas about controversial issues, like renouncing attacks on Native Americans, caused many in the colony to abjure their religious learnings, proving her threat to the colonies. Hutchinson’s bold words during her trial evidence the confidence in her beliefs that allowed her to spread her novel ideas during her weekly bible interpretation meetings. During
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the trial she goes as far as to claim that even though many plotted against her “not to fear…[he was] the same God that delivered Daniel out of the lion’s den [and he] will also deliver thee.” In a colony as religiously entrenched as the Puritans of Hutchinson’s colony, the implications of Hutchinson’s words proved that regardless of the magnitude of the consequences of her actions, her firm belief in her relationship with God kept her rhetoric uncensored. Among the most notable parts of her trial, Hutchinson’s belief that God would protect her from the wrath of the misinformed in the colony allowed her to speak her mind, in contrast to the silence that many Puritan women at the time practiced. Furthermore, her fearlessness transcended her gender’s limitations. She was described by Winthrop as “a woman of haughty and fierce carriage, a nimble wit and active spirit, and a voluble tongue;… more bold than a man…[and] the woman leading all the action.” The extent of her courage to speak her mind proved to be a powerful political tool, regardless of her gender. Her rhetoric was powerful, not only because she was a woman, but because it challenged the orthodoxy that Winthrop and other Puritan leaders worked tirelessly to enforce, something which even men at the time were unlikely to do. Consequently, the expression of her personal ideology positioned herself to uproot the foundations of Puritan society in early America. However, the danger of Hutchinson’s ideas was more than the mere expression of her personal beliefs, but the effect they had on the larger population, especially women. The popularity of her Scripture readings grew in alarming popularity as “men began to accompany their wives to Hutchinson’s meetings in 1936,…eventually offer[ing] a second session of religious instruction each week, just as colonial ministers liked to give a Thursday lecture as well as their Sunday sermon.” Her threat to civil society proved twofold. First, her tremendous audiences allowed for the rapid proliferation of her unorthodox ideas, allowing people from all over the colony to hear her beliefs and integrate them into her their personal practices. Second, she was at a unique position to influence women, as her gender first attracted large volumes of women to attend her Scripture discussions, but her ability to tie religion into political messages allowed for women to have a strong inroad into political discussions. Often, women spent most of their time reading the bible and keeping strong religious affiliation without participating the important political discussions, but Hutchinson bridged the gap between these two important aspects of Puritan social life. For example, she used her social capital to “oppose English settlers’ efforts to vanquish Indian tribes… risk[ing] her life for her beliefs.” Most notably, her ideas caused tangible issues for the military when the enlistment numbers for the colony militia dramatically decreased as men who were inspired by Hutchinson’s teachings decided against fighting against the Native Americans. The great reach of her words, and her ability to rhetorically weaponize the Bible, a widely read and interpreted piece of literature at the time, proved the magnitude of the threat she posed to the colony. Although her ideas proved dangerous to the implementation of Winthrop’s agenda, the success of the trial was due not to the threat Hutchinson posed to the colony, but the bias against women of power.
First, women were held to different standards about their acceptable roles in Puritan society, especially in the church. Winthrop and other high male church officials often argued that “it was dangerous to encourage ordinary people to pursue prophecy and revelation… In a man, especially a man of the cloth, this could be justified, they felt, but in a woman it was heresy.” Winthrop evidences the collective sentiment that Hutchinson’s infringement of her gender role, more than the credibility of her threat, warrants her punishment in trial. The double standard he described further evidences the role that gender played into her prosecution. Even during the decision of the specific charges to hold Hutchinson to, it was noted “the judges could admonish her for… running Scripture meetings in a manner not “comely or fitting” for a woman.” The charges the colony decided to hold against Hutchinson prove her gender was the central cause of the trial’s success. As depicted in American Jezebel, None of Hutchinson’s actions or teachings are prosecutable by any Puritan laws, but her actions from the female body allow for Winthrop’s persistence in continuing the trial until her eventual punishment for a prosecutable
offense. While Hutchinson’s gender prolongs her trial and works against her acquittal, her sentencing ends surprisingly relaxed due to the perceived weakness of women. LaPlante cites Hutchinson’s ability to stay in the colony under house arrest for the winter as a product of women’s ostensible inferiority in surviving the winter. The court allows for the leniency because of Hutchinson’s “innate feminine weakness.” Moreover, the court exemplifies the two sides of the feminine stereotype. The trial evidences how when women surpass their gender expectations and act outside of the limits of the passive feminine figure, the patriarchal structures within civil society inevitably quell strong female voices before they set an example for the extent of women’s capability. However, the same patriarchal structures perpetuate the notion of female weakness and allow for women like Hutchinson to enjoy a gentler punishment because of the misguided notion that the delicate women deserve a different standard than the conventional male. Hutchinson proved to be notable for her work, regardless of her gender. While she was also a woman, she was first and foremost a challenger of the conservative orthodoxy provided by Winthrop and other Puritan leaders. Her gender played a critical role in her prosecution and punishment, although it played contrasting roles in each. During her trial, it worked against her, her audacious words portraying her as someone even more irrational and delusional because of her gender. However, during the punishment, she received the modest house arrest punishment for the winter because she was not expected to survive otherwise. In short, her relationship to the patriarchy worked both for her and against her, proving the complicated and tenuous relationships women had, and continue to have with their gender.
LaPlante, Eve. Amrican Jezebel: The Uncommon Life of Anne Hutchinson, the Woman Who Defied the Puritans. New York: Harper Collins, 2004.
Until the last hundred years or so in the United States, married women had to rely on their husbands for money, shelter, and food because they were not allowed to work. Though there were probably many men who believed their wives could “stand up to the challenge”, some men would not let their wives be independent, believing them to be of the “inferior” sex, which made them too incompetent to work “un-feminine” jobs. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, feminist writers began to vent their frustration at men’s condescension and sexist beliefs. Susan Glaspell’s “A Jury of Her Peers” and Zora Neale Hurson’s “Sweat” both use dialogue to express how women are capable of and used to working hard, thinking originally, being independent
This scandalous case centers on a woman named Katherine Watkins. On Friday, August 18, 1681, Katherine accused a slave by the name of John Long, also known as Jack, of rape. There was some evidence of violence, but there were also outstanding questions about her character and conduct. Those who testified, however, painted a different picture about certain events preceding the crime. They were John Aust, William Harding, Mary Winter, Lambert Tye, Humphrey Smith, Jack White (Negro), Dirk (Negro), and Mingo (Negro). Whether these individuals were so inclined because Katherine Watkins was a Quaker, rather than an Anglican, we can never really know. That certainly fueled the fire, though. The day in question involved an afternoon of cider drinking. Several of the witnesses in the testimonies recounted Mrs. Watkins sexual advances to multiple of Thomas Cocke 's slaves, particularly, a mulatto named Jack. John Aust pleaded that Katherine, at one point, had lifted the shirt of one slave and announced “Dirke thou wilt have a good long thing” (Sex and Relations, 53). She allegedly had thrown another on the bed, kissed him, and, “put her hand into his codpiece” (Sex and Relations, 53). The most interesting piece of evidence that Aust brings forward is that Jack was actually avoiding Watkins at the party, an apparent attempt at avoiding any intimate entanglement with her (Sex and Relations, 52). Finally, he reported that Watkins and Jack had gone into a side room (Sex and Relations, 53). Later in the trial, Humphrey Smith seemingly referred to Aust 's testimony. His deposition suggested that he and Aust had some reservations about Jack 's guilt (Sex and Relations 54). Clearly, the character of the plaintiff was considered important evidence in the trial of a slave for rape. The reasonable extenuating circumstances of the case might have granted the magistrates leave way
Literary historicism, in the context of this discussion, describes the interpretation of literary or historical texts with respect to the cultural and temporal conditions in which they were produced. This means that the text not only catalogues how individuals respond to their particular circumstances, but also chronicles the movements and inclinations of an age as expressed in the rhetorical devices of its literature. Evaluating the trial of Anne Hutchinson within such a theoretical framework means speculating on the genesis of her theological beliefs with recourse to prevailing theories of gender, class, and interpretation. Because texts are self-contained spheres of discourse, nuanced interpretations of them can be undertaken with greater assiduity than in the case of individuals whose private experiences remain largely concealed from the interpreter's knowledge. A historical analysis of Anne Hutchinson herself is hence, in the present discussion, secondary to the analysis of how she comes across in textual discourse as a palimpsest of seventeenth century gender controversy.
In Puritan led Massachusetts Bay Colony during the days of Anne Hutchinson was an intriguing place to have lived. It was designed ideally as a holy mission in the New World called the “city upon a hill,” a mission to provide a prime example of how protestant lives should have subsisted of. A key ingredient to the success of the Puritan community was the cohesion of the community as a whole, which was created by a high level of conformity in the colony. Puritan leaders provided leadership for all facets of life; socially, economically, religiously, and even politically. A certain hierarchy was very apparent in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, in which ministers always seemed to have gotten their way. Governor Winthrop got his way in 1637 by banishing a woman, Anne Hutchinson, whom he thought posed a threat to the structure of the colony. I believe that there is a legit rationale for her banishment, this being her religious ideas that were very close to that of the Antinomians who Governor Winthrop was not too fond of. I also think that this was not the primal reason. In my mind, Anne’s gender played a large role in determining whether or not she actually posed a serious threat to the solidarity of Massachusetts.
The male Puritans of the Massachusetts Bay Colony did not like women to think that they were above them, such evidence is the trial of Anne Hutchinson at Massachusetts Bay in 1637. The document is a transcripts of Anne’s trial. Anne Hutchinson was a rebel during her time and she was fond of the concept of Antinomianism, if your not as fond with this concept,let’s break it down “Antinomiansim” is a greek word it is formed from the words “anti” and “nomos”, “anti” means against and “nomos” means law when combined they form antinomianism which means in its simplest form, against the law or against laws. The transcript was most likely at first kept just for records but eventually it was kept not only to preserve history but to capture the human spirit.
How was Anne Hutchinson's trial an ordeal for her and how was it an ordeal for
Anne Hutchinson has long been seen as a strong religious dissenter who paved the way for religious freedom in the strictly Puritan environment of New England. Another interpretation of the controversy surrounding Anne Hutchinson asserts that she was simply a loving wife and mother whose charisma and personal ideas were misconstrued to be a radical religious movement. Since this alleged religious movement was led by a woman, it was quickly dealt with by the Puritan fathers as a real threat. Whatever her motives, she was clearly a great leader in the cause of religious toleration in America and the advancement of women in society. Although Anne Hutchinson is historically documented to have been banished as a religious dissenter, the real motive for her persecution was that she challenged the traditional subordinate role of women in Puritan society by expressing her own religious convictions.
The Puritan Revolution of 17th-century in America endorsed an intimate classification of women with domestic life that achieve a wide acceptance throughout the 18th century. Women were thus locked in the "created" domestic sphere while men were busy in the political sphere. However, Anne Hutchinson was a religious dissenter and she challenged the Puritan principle of conformity with religious laws was a symbol of godliness and that the Bible as the sole source of those laws. Nevertheless, Hester was a feminist and she challenged the Puritan belief of women belonging in the "cult of domesticity."
An outspoken female in a male hierarchy, Hutchinson had little hope that many would speak in her defense, and she was being tried by the General Court. In 1636 she was charged with hersey and banished from Massachusetts Bay Colony. Several years later, when she moved to New York, she was killed in an Indian attack. Anne challenged the Puritan clergy. She believed that: "1.One can feel one's salvation and is filled with the spirit of God after conversion.
The Salem Witch Trials were a time of confusion, where half a dozen girl accusers threw the town of Salem on its head. The end result was 19 hung and one crushed to death for failure to admit or deny witchcraft and 150 more were imprisoned throughout the course of the trial (Hall p38). The Puritans came to the “New World” for their religious freedom to fallow their ideals for a new way of life, the “perfect way of life.” They were issued charter--to live on the land--. The King Phillip’s war labeled as “[t]he bloodiest war in America’s history …which…took place in New England in 1675” (Tougias par.1) had a dramatic effect on the Puritan society. Their charter was revoked and reinstated at least twice throughout the course of the war. This stress of having their land revoked and reinstated without a doubt placed pressure on the society as a whole to develop and become self-sustaining entity free from England. After the war people would look to the church even more than they had in the past for guidance. This set the seen for the problems to come. The churches relentless attempt to maintain the society that they had established was the cause of the Salem witch trials.
2. Hutchinson kept open her house for comers and electrified these people about the revolutions from god. And her
“There is a double standard here that shapes our perceptions of men and women in ways that support patriarchy as a system. What is culturally valued is associated with masculinity and maleness and what is devalued is associated with femininity and femaleness, regardless of the reality of men’s and women’s lives”,( Johnson 64). In the movie Mona Lisa Smile, Betty’s mother was pressurizing Betty to make her husband read a poem at the wedding not just to act like he enjoyed the marriage but mainly because it was a tradition for men. When Betty said she didn’t care about it, her mother refused and still insisted that she should do it. Women are looked down upon when it comes to the assignment of gender roles and this is because of labels that the society has placed on the female gender. In a home, the father is always the head of the home, providing food and clothing for every family member but there are some women who like to be independent and would also love to work and make money and cater for the family. In the 19th century, women were told they were home makers and were not allowed to endeavor further in higher educational studies. Wellesley College was a college built to raise future wives and not future leaders meaning that society had already placed women below the ladder without any intention or thoughts of them climbing back
As women, those of us who identify as feminists have rebelled against the status quo and redefined what it means to be a strong and powerful woman. But at what cost do these advances come with?... ... middle of paper ... ... Retrieved April 12, 2014, from http://www.feminist.com/resources/artspeech/genwom/whatisfem.htm Bidgood, J. 2014, April 8 -.
Throughout history, women have remained subordinate to men. Subjected to the patriarchal system that favored male perspectives, women struggled against having considerably less freedom, rights, and having the burdens society placed on them that had been so ingrained the culture. This is the standpoint the feminists took, and for almost 160 years they have been challenging the “unjust distribution of power in all human relations” starting with the struggle for equality between men and women, and linking that to “struggles for social, racial, political, environmental, and economic justice”(Besel 530 and 531). Feminism, as a complex movement with many different branches, has and will continue to be incredibly influential in changing lives.