Angelina Grimké, Catharine Beecher, and Sojourner Truth are three entirely different samples of the women's movement, although they did live at the same historical time. Their experiences and social environments shape their differing opinions on women's place in society. Raised with the same beliefs as her slave-holding family, Grimké believed in moral equality that transcended gender. Beecher questioned instructors' abilities, which were not the norm. At the 1850 Women's Rights Convention, Truth's passionate address criticized gender and racial injustices and advocated for women's empowerment and respect. The paper will demonstrate how Angelina Grimké, Catharine Beecher, and Sojourner Truth's diverse backgrounds and personal hardships affected their views of women's responsibilities. …show more content…
In the bitter letter published in "The Liberator," Grimké expresses the profound concept that rights are not just an arbitrary legal entity but find grounding in the moral existence of a person: "Since I delved into the rights of enslaved individuals, I have unavoidably gained a deeper comprehension of my own rights, as I discovered that the anti-slavery movement serves as a platform for a more comprehensive investigation, understanding, and teaching of human rights than any other reform initiative (p. 1)." 1)". Her study leads her to a crucial belief: "If morality is the foundation of rights, then the circumstances of sex cannot grant a man greater rights and responsibilities than a woman." In her argument, Grimké argues that men and women are morally equivalent, suggesting that sex differences are excessive and unfair and throwing doubt on society in her
Over the centuries, writing has changed, and it is still changing today. There are also many different types of writing that are taught and studied. Three major types are considered the classics. Those three categories are poetry, drama, and prose. Throughout history, writers have stood out from other in their time. The three that will be the focus of the analyzation and comparison are Anne Bradstreet, Thomas Paine, and Phillis Wheatley. All of them have different backgrounds, different styles but have one thing in common. They are all are writers who are considers major contributors to the classics.
The authors’ literary works had a way of communicating and expressing their way of life by their own writing styles. The authors I will discuss shared their experience adapting into American culture. The authors I chosen to discuss is Anne Bradstreet, Phillis Wheatley, and Thomas Paine who are distinctly different people who share a common background, but overcome different obstacles living in America. The criteria I have to share about their life experiences is their own writings and documented information from credible resources. The analyses and interpretations in the authors writings gives us idea about who they are because of their hardships in America, a new government, and their new culture.
In Julie Roy Jeffrey’s, The Great Silent Army of Abolitionism, the main argument is that although many historians have only focused on the male influence towards eliminating slavery, it was actually women who were the driving force and backbone of abolitionism. Jeffrey explores the involvement of women, both white and black, in the cause and uses research from letters, societal records, and personal diary entries to delve into what the movement meant in their lives. The first chapter of Jeffrey’s book is entitled “Recruiting Women into the Cause;” it goes into detail about how women first got involved in the abolitionist movement. This involvement mainly started in 1831 when women began submitting publications, such as poems, about anti-slavery in a newspaper, published by William Lloyd Garrison, entitled the Liberator. In 1832, Garrison started a women’s section/department in his newspaper in the hopes that it would encourage women to get involved.
Angelina Grimke and Sojourner Truth were both prominent American civil rights activists of the 19th century who focused on the abolition of slavery and women’s rights issues, respectively. While both of these women challenged the societal beliefs of the United States at the time regarding these civil rights issues, the rhetorical strategies used by each of these women to not only illustrate their respective arguments but also to raise social awareness of these issues was approached in very different fashions. Angelina Grimke promoted the use of white middle-class women’s positions in the household to try to influence the decision makers, or men, around them. On the other hand, Sojourner Truth, a former slave turned women’s rights activist,
The 19th century was a time of great social change in the United States as reflected by the abolitionist movement and the women’s suffrage movement. Two very influential women leaders were Angelina Grimke and Sojourner Truth. Grimke was born a Southern, upper class white woman. She moved to the North as a young woman, grew involved in abolitionism and women’s rights, and became known for her writing, particularly “Letters to Catherine Beecher”. Sojourner Truth was born into slavery as Isabella Baumfree; she escaped to freedom, changed her name, and became an active speaker on behalf of both the abolition and women’s rights movements. Truth’s most famous speech is “Ain’t I a Woman?”. While both Grimke and Truth use a personal, conversational tone to communicate their ideas, Grimke relies primarily on logical arguments and Truth makes a more emotional appeal through the use of literary strategies and speech.
To further analyze a more spoiled African American of the time, Phillis Wheatley did address the issues of her race as much as Sojourner Truth did. Wheatley mainly wrote “to Whites, for Whites and generally in the Euro-American tradition at that time” (Jamison 408). Her content focused on Christianity, morality, virtue, and other non-African-American-related topics. Her poetry has an underlying attitude of a white, not an African American. She shares the same views and attitude as a Caucasian, therefore she is part of African American literature because she was born into it, but she did not share the particular views and struggles of the African American population. She was heavily praised, because it was not expected from an African such as herself, although her upbringing should be considered. Some white men admired her work, because it was more than
Her book includes brief documentaries of Grimke Sisters, Maria Stewart, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and Sojourner Truth; all became important symbols of the continuity between the antislavery and women's rights movements. Beginning in the 1830s, white and black women in the North became active in trying to end slavery. These Women were inspired in many cases by the religious revivals sweeping the nation. While women in the movement at first focused their efforts upon emancipation, the intense criticsm that greeted their activities gradually pushed some of them toward an advocacy of women's rights as well. They discovered that they first had to defend their right to speak at all in a society in which women were expected to restrict their activities to a purely domestic sphere.
Up until and during the mid -1800’s, women were stereotyped and not given the same rights that men had. Women were not allowed to vote, speak publically, stand for office and had no influence in public affairs. They received poorer education than men did and there was not one church, except for the Quakers, that allowed women to have a say in church affairs. Women also did not have any legal rights and were not permitted to own property. Overall, people believed that a woman only belonged in the home and that the only rule she may ever obtain was over her children. However, during the pre- Civil war era, woman began to stand up for what they believed in and to change the way that people viewed society (Lerner, 1971). Two of the most famous pioneers in the women’s rights movement, as well as abolition, were two sisters from South Carolina: Sarah and Angelina Grimké.
After many years of battling for equality among the sexes, people today have no idea of the trails that women went through so that women of future generations could have the same privileges and treatment as men. Several generations have come since the women’s rights movement and the women of these generations have different opportunities in family life, religion, government, employment, and education that women fought for. The Women’s Rights Movement began with a small group of people that questioned why human lives, especially those of women, were unfairly confined. Many women, like Sojourner Truth and Fanny Fern, worked consciously to create a better world by bringing awareness to these inequalities. Sojourner Truth, prominent slave and advocate
Isabella was one of the most influential and courageous slaves born and known in the United States. Many do not know her by her birth name, but rather as her freed name of “Sojourner Truth”. Truth was a significant figure in human rights, such as women’s suffrage, and the abolishment of slavery during the 19th century in America. Her actions could be seen as one of the best attempts by an ex-slave at breaking the grip of oppression over slaves and women. Truth’s importance to American history is ground breaking and with her background of being a slave and as an oppressed woman, only intensified her involvement and lead to some surprising, yet successful attempts. Although only the good outcomes are mentioned, Sojourner faced numerous hardships from difficult confrontations of activists to disgust from the observers.
Jeffrey, Julie Roy. The great silent army of abolitionism: ordinary women in the antislavery movement. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1998.
Sojourner Truth is an American legend. She began life as a slave and ended her life as an outgoing speaker and free woman. Sojourner led a very disadvantage life but was able to rise above her hardships. Truth was a motivational speaker even though she was not able to read or write. Sojourner Truth continues to impact lives today through her works.
Sojourner Truth’s speech entitled “Ain’t I A Woman?” became popular for its honest and raw confrontation on the injustices she experienced both as a woman and an African-American. The speech was given during a women’s rights convention held in Akron, Ohio in May 1851 and addressed many women’s rights activists present (Marable and Mullings, 66). Sojourner began her speech by pointing out the irrational expectations men have of women and contrasting them to her own experiences. She exclaims that a man in the corner claims women “needs to be helped into carriages and lifted ober ditches or to hab de best place everywhar,” yet no one extends that help to her (67). This is followed by her rhetorically asking “and ain’t I a woman?” (67) Here, Sojourner is calling out the social construction of gender difference that men use in order to subordinate women.
At one of Paul’s demonstrations in DC, they are speaking to women factory workers who are not aware that they should be able to vote for something like having a fire exit in the factory. Gaining the support from working class women was very important to the movement because these women are at the brunt of society’s negative views and are most affected by the societal hardships. Paul’s feminist movement received additional support from Ida B. Wells, an African American women rights activist, as long as they were allowed to march with the white women, not behind them. Although this minute aspect of the movie did not thoroughly discuss the racist issues also present at the time, it made me think about Sojourner Truth’s speech ‘Ain’t I a Woman?’ Representation from all races and social classes is imperative in the fight for women’s equality because African American women are women too, color does not matter.
Gilkey’s “strange dilemma” is a significant paradox in human life. In his setting, him and his peers are placed in a significantly stressful environment. People from many different backgrounds, economic statuses, religions, and ages are forced to live together in an uncomfortable, cramped, and dirty camp. In this new environment, a person’s primary goal is survival, followed by survival and success for themselves and their families. Within this raises the large moral dilemma that Gilkey’s references.