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Women owe many of the rights they have today to Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s relentless efforts and life-long work and advocating for Women’s Rights. Stanton wasn’t only a suffragist, she also strived for women to get women to be able to divorce their husbands. She wanted women to try to keep themselves from getting pregnant. She wanted women to have "sexual freedom" and be able to marry whoever they choose, regardless of race.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton was born Elizabeth Cady on November 12, 1815 in Johnstown New York. She was the eighth of eleven children of Daniel and Margaret Cady. Her father was a Federalist attorney who served a term in Congress, and was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1847. Her mother was the daughter of Colonel James Livingston an officer in the Continental Army during the American Revolution.
Elizabeth studied at Johnstown Academy until she was 16, she learned Latin, Greek, Math, Religion, Science, and French. She was in many co-ed classes where she could compete with the boys. She spent a lot of time with her father, he would give her access to his law library, and even let her debate with the law clerks. Elizabeth came to understand that married women had very little rights, they couldn't own property, have a say in their income, employment, or in the custody of their own children. She went on to get the best education a woman could get at the time at Emma Willard’s Troy Female Seminary.
She went to live with her cousin, Gerrit Smith, a leading abolitonist, philanthropist and religious critic. Living with him got her more closely involved with the abolitionist, temperance, and women’s rights movements. While living with Smith, she met and fell in love with Henry B. Stanton. Although it was going against he...
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Elizabeth Cady Stanton Quotes. Goodreads.com, n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. .
How Prohibition Worked. HowStuffWorks.com, n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2013. .
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Seneca Falls Convention. National Portrait Gallery, n.d. Web. 9 Oct. 2013. .
Showcasing Great Women. National Women's Hall of Fame, n.d. Web. 8 Oct. 2013. .
Stanton, Elizabeth Cady. "Declaration of Sentiments." Seneca Falls Convention. Seneca Falls, New York. 19 July 1948. Speech.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton was one of the most renowned women to lead campaigns for women’s rights. Her efforts were focused on "opportunities for women, for married women’s property rights, the right to divorce, and the right to custody of children; her most radical demand was for women’s right to vote" (Davidson and Wagner-Martin 845). In general Stanton wished to instill independence and self-reliance in all women. Stanton was an inspiring orator of speeches including the Declaration of Sentiments as well as the book The Women’s Bible. Upon analysis of her speeches and other works, as well as gaining knowledge of her background, one is able to assume that personal experience strongly affected her writing, which illustrates her writing as representative in that it addressed inequality based on the issue of gender. Another factor that influenced her writing was the way in which she interpreted the great works, the Declaration of Independence and the Holy Bible. Noticing the obvious discrimination and guidelines set for women, Elizabeth Cady Stanton composed a new "women friendly" version of each that she called the Declaration of Sentiments and The Women’s Bible.
Susan B. Anthony was indeed a strong, driven, and disciplined woman who had a great desire and passion to abolish slavery. Upon meeting Elizabeth Cady Stanton she became immersed in the women's rights movement, dedicating her life to obtaining equal rights for all. Many men pursued Susan but she never married, she did not want to be "owned" by a man. Instead she chose to dedicate her entire life to this cause.
Before Elizabeth Cady Stanton had any impact and attempts to start speeches like her “the solitude to self” speech or her speeches at Seneca Falls. Most women were treated as a cook and a maid, they stayed home to take care of the children. They were to be bossed around by their husband. It was actually better off if a woman was single or widowed. Also, all women were not allowed to vote. Women had a say in typically nothing that is until Elizabeth finally took a stand.
However, the writers of the Constitution had omitted women in that pivotal statement which left women to be denied these “unalienable” rights given to every countryman. Gaining the support of many, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the leader of the Women’s Rights Movement declared at Seneca Falls that women had the same rights as men including the right to vote and be a part of government. The Women’s Rights movement gained support due to the years of abuse women endured. For years, men had “the power to chastise and imprison his wife…” and they were tired of suffering (Doc I). The new concept of the cult of domesticity supported women’s roles in society but created greater divisions between men and women.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton’s speech was very impactful thanks to her well thought-out address, emotionally impactful statements, and rhetorical devices. By using emotional, logical, and ethical appeals, she was able to persuade many, and show a first hand look at someone personally crippled by the lack of women’s rights in her time. Through her experience, she was able to give an exceptional speech conveying the deprivation of women in her time, changing society, and helping women reach equality in America.
Born on February 15, 1820 in Adams, Massachusetts (SBA House), she was brought up into a large Quaker family with many activist traditions. Quakers believed highly in education and a strong work ethic from an early age. “They believed in peace, temperance and justice, and this was to affect her adult concerns about injustices toward women, as well as social problems that come from alcohol,” (Grace). As well as believing that men and women were equal partners before God, which later had an influence on her belief in women's rights. Her mother, Lucy, loved to sing and dance which led to much controversy between her father’s harsh Quaker faith, which later on to her convictions of women equality. “No toys or music were allowed in the Anthony home for fear that they would distract the children from God's word” (Linder). Anthony’s father, Daniel, ran a cotton mill with strong values to refuse slave-picked cotton. At the age of six, Anthony and her family moved to Battenville, New York because Daniel was asked to manage other mills (Grace). Her education began in quaint schools in the small of New York but at fifteen, bega...
Although women did not have the same rights as men, they came to possess a mentality that was a force to be reckoned with in a fight for equality. In 1848 at Seneca Falls, New York, 150 women and 30 men met to dispute the male sovereignty of the time. At this conference, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, an educated, married abolitionist, presented the “Declaration of Sentiments”. This document was a testament to the drastic changes the United States would have to go through to include women in its widespread ideals. As the basis for their argument, the writers of the Seneca Falls Declaration utilized the Declaration of Independence to catch the attention of the public and display the severity of the situation. However, in her oration, Stanton changes the male centralized voice of the Declaration of Independence. When addressing the self –evident truths, she expressed that “all men and women are created equal” instead of the original phrase that excluded women (Anthony, Stanton, and Gage, 239). Their document was further structured with 18 grievances and 11 resolutions; each was meant to recognize women as equal members of society. As the current government has “become destructive of [life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness], it is right of those who suffer from it to refuse allegiance to it, and to insist upon the institution of a new government” (Anthony, Stanton, and Gage, 240). Because women were rightfully entitled to an equal station beside men, they demanded the recognition of the rights that society was currently denying them. The most controversial resolution presented at the conference was the desire to vote. Women wanted this ability because they deserved to have a voice in the laws that would inevitably affect them. As free American citizens, it was their inalienable right to vote and have some form of representation in legislation. The Seneca Falls Conference and the Declaration of Sentiments was just the beginning of a public fight for women’s equality and rights.
Through their struggles, Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton were able to win many rights for American women. 1 Born on November 12, 1815, in Johnstown, New York, Elizabeth Cady grew up around wealth and privilege, the daughter of Daniel Cady, a well-known judge, and Margaret Livingston. In 1826, the death of her brother Eleazar motivated her to excel in every area her brother had in an attempt to compensate her father for his loss. After her graduation in 1833, she became interested in the world of reform at the home of her cousin Gerrit Smith. There she fell in love with the abolitionist Henry Brewster Stanton.2 After the Stanton's moved from Boston to the village of Seneca Falls, New York, in 1847, Elizabeth found herself in a very non-active community.
After teaching for 15 year, she became active in temperance. However, because she was a women she was not allowed to speak at rallies. Soon after meeting Elizabeth Cady Stanton she became very active in the women’s right movement in 1852 and dedicated her life to woman suffrage.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton was an important element of the Women’s Rights Movement, but not many people know of her significance or contributions because she has been overshadowed by her long time associate and friend, Susan B. Anthony. However, I feel that she was a woman of great importance who was the driving force behind the 1848 Convention, played a leadership role in the women’s rights movement for the next fifty years, and in the words of Henry Thomas, “She was the architect and author of the movement’s most important strategies ad documents.”
Women’s rights pioneer, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, in her speech, The Destructive Male, expresses her feelings about Women's suffrage in 1868, and brought to light the misconception that women are not equal to man and imply that men bring more destruction than restoration.
As a young lady, Elizabeth Blackwell was similar to other women her age. She had an emotional and passionate nature and had many romantic pursuits. However, in 1838, she moved with her family to Cincinnati, Ohio to escape the charged atmosphere of New York City, New York because of her father's very vocal abolitionist standing. Later that same year, Samuel Blackwell died, leaving the three older Blackwell girls to take care of the family, which was traditionally a male role. When she was seventeen years old, Elizabeth began a boarding school for ladies with her two older sisters despite society's opinion of what young ladies should and should not do. Once her brothers were old enough to support the family, Elizabeth refused to give up her teaching career. She went to Kentucky, a South state where she was forced to deal with many prejudices. Upon her arrival, she discovered that the slow-moving Kentuckians were not yet ready for her. In a letter to her sister, she wrote:
The early women's movement was dominated by an uncompromising attitude of right versus wrong. This attitude came from the involvement of this same segment of society in the abolitionist movement. While intellectually appealing, in "Not Wards of the Nation: The Struggle for Women's Suffrage," William H. Chafe tells us that early women's rights advocates "were generally dismissed as a 'class of wild enthusiasts and visionaries' and received little popular support (Oates 153). One of the founders of this movement was Elizabeth Cady Stanton.
Stanton, Elizabeth Cady. Declaration of Sentiments of the Seneca Falls Convention. in Interpreting the American Past, ed. Luke Stowell Norfolk: Old Dominion University, 2013
Susan B. Anthony was an activist for the Women’s Rights Movement. As a child, she was raised to be independent and outspoken. As a leader, she did just that. She stood up for what she believed in. Anthony organized, traveled, and spoke to people about what needed to be modified for women. Her parents were Quakers, which is a branch of christianity. They believed that all men and women should study, work, and live as equals (“Biography of Susan B. Anthony”). She adopted these thoughts and became a leader of the movement for women. She recognized her passion for women’s rights and dedicated her life as a suffragette, an advocate of women’s right to vote (“Biography of Susan B. Anthony”). A meeting with Elizabeth Cady Stanton led to lifelong friends in political organizing for women’s rights and women’s