Women's Role In The Chesapeake

The British colonies in the Chesapeake region and those of the New England region were both similar yet different in certain ways. One because both the colonist that settled there were looking for new opportunities. However, it was mostly second son aristocrats, which means the first born usually inherits the better half of the father’s riches. Their lives in England had either been mistreated or they were unable to flourish economically. Regardless of whether they were searching the land for expansive homesteads, religious freedom, or exchanging and merchant opportunities, the colonist in both regions were searching for another land in the New World. They were getting away from issues they had experienced in England, which took into consideration colonists to be similar.

For women in the Southern Colonies had very few legal rights such as not being able to vote or preach.

Bryan, Dan. “The Antebellum Home and Women’s Culture (part 2).” American History USA. March 22, 2012.web. 18 February, 2017.

Women in the 1600s to the 1800s were very harshly treated. They were seen as objects rather than people. They were stay-at-home women because people didn’t trust them to hold jobs. They were seen as little or weak.

Around the late 18th to early 19th century, colonial American New England life was centered on living independently and being finally free from the British Empire after the Revolutionary War. Establishing control of a newly founded government with set functions and a first president, there were progressive changes that America had to act upon post-war. However, behind the political aspects that are greatly highlighted in American history, the roles of women in society, particularly midwives shouldn’t be cast aside. Although women were largely marginalized in early New England life because of their gender, nevertheless Laurel Thatcher Ulrich’s A Midwife’s Tale is instructive because it demonstrates the privilege of men’s authority in society

The distinction between men and women in the Antebellum-era Southern United States can be identified in the roles that each gender was expected to fulfill as parents, spouses and citizens. While young men and women alike were encouraged to marry and immediately start a family, females were primarily given the task of caring for their children and husband. Because they were viewed as the ‘morally superior gender’, women were supposed to raise the next generation of obedient citizens, while men were free to pursue a career and get involved in politics. As a result, a movement arose to expand the rights and freedoms of women, with the ultimate goal of creating a society where equal opportunities are

Surprisingly, Native American women had more freedom than the white women in the Chesapeake, Middle Colonies, or New England region. Some Native American women were given rights such as controlling land, political power, marriage and divorce in choice. There were matrilineal kinship system, in fact, marriage was not the most top rite of passage for them.

For decade women have been discriminated by society, all around the world. In many countries women are still treated as the inferior sex. “daily life for women in the early 1800s in Europe(Britain), was that of many obligations and few choices. Some even compare the conditions of women in time as a form of slavery.” (Smith, Kelley. "Lives of Women in the Early 1800s." Lives of Women in the Early 1800s. N.p., 2002.) Women have always been expected to find a husband, get marry and have children and nothing less was expected of them. Women during decades ago and even today in 2017, many women live by the norm that if you don’t get marry you’re a dishonor/disgrace to the family. Many men treated women as objects and without a doubt not as equals.

In colonial North America, the lives of women were distinct and described in the roles exhibited in their inscriptions. In this book, Good Wives the roles of woman were neither simple nor insignificant. Ulrich proves in her writing that these women did it all. They were considered housewives, deputy husbands, mistresses, consorts, mothers, friendly neighbors, and last but not least, heroines. These characteristics played an important role in defining what the reality of women’s lives consisted of.

While reading about American history the thing that I found most appealing was the limited rights that women had during this era. Although women gave the early settlers longer life expectancy and brought hope to their future, women still were not considered equal to a man. Women were discriminated against and didn’t play an important role in early American history. Generally, women had fewer legal rights and career opportunity than men because they were considered weak and not able to perform certain tasks. Different women came from different ethnic backgrounds and were all created equal in the eyes of men. Men believed that women served only one purpose which was to take care of the household. Being a wife and a mother was considered

Sally Hemings was a slave on the Monticello plantation in the late 18th century, and her experience helps us to understand that her gender aided the way she was treated versus if they went by the color of her skin (Dilkes Mullins). {Woman during this era were thought of as property, they were objectified, they were treated poorly and had no choice. Their husbands were liable for anything that they did} [Being a female during this era outweighed what one 's social status was. It did not matter what race you were, but if you were a woman, you were treated as such] (Dilkes Mullins).

When the topic of the American revolution during the years 1765-1783 is discussed, the mind races through all the horrifying battles men fought, the declarations men made, the brave male soldiers they drafted, and the founding fathers who wrote the constitution. But what is rarely mentioned is all the behind the scenes work women were responsible for while men were off fighting in the military. The war disrupted their ordinary lives, and the everyday roles men were employed in needed to be filled. Women throughout the United States assumed untraditional roles to so that life would continue, now being involved in politics, factories, businesses, commanding the household, and helping during battle.

Anthropologic studies of culture are about observation through a lens that is defined by the observer. In order for it to be free of bias, the observer needs to remove any and all preconceived notions and their own ’world’ references while functioning ‘emically’(Kottak 2013). Part of the observer’s job is to look into the past and present, reconciling roles within that culture (Kottak 2013). Gender roles are an important area of study (Kottak 2013). In the study of roles of female and males within a society, some early tradesmen, scholars and observers often overlooked women’s roles when addressing Native American culture (Mann 2000). However, looking back at early settlers,

There were three pillars of the New England life, prayers, chores, and church. A rhythm only broken by an unexpected visitor, a little bit of gossip, or the discovery of a wild berry patch. An English girl who was ten years old, growing up in the seventeenth century in Massachusetts would be highly trained in domestic arts. She would haul the water, sweep the floor, feed the chickens, milked the cow, and so much more. If she was lucky, a girl had sisters to share hand-me-downs,

Following the event of World War Two, America during the 1950s was an era of economic prosperity. Male soldiers had just returned home from war to see America “at the summit of the world”(Churchill). Many Americans were confident that the future held nothing other than peace and prosperity, so they decided to start families. However, the 1950s was also a time of radical changes. Because most of the men in the family had departed to fight in the war, women were left at home to do the housework. Even after the war, women were urged to stay at home to take care of the children. On the other hand, males would deal with financial businesses to keep their family out of poverty. These gender roles were embedded