Cherokee Women Summary

The Nation had a system of matrilineal heritage, meaning that clan membership was passed down through the mother. “Cherokee women could also introduce new people into the Nation through their marital choices.” (Yarbrough 387) This gave Cherokee women the power to integrate outsiders into the Cherokee Nation, and thus made them key in treaties between Cherokees and Europeans/Americans. As a result, Cherokee lawmakers passed a multitude of laws to protect their women and regulate their marital choices. However, an alteration to Cherokee marriage law permitted patrilineal heritage of Cherokee membership.

Pride and Prejudice deviates from the social norms it is being accused of by showing and portraying female characters going against what was expected of them. An example being the refusal of marriage that would be financially securing for the family. Pride and Prejudice also deviates from social conventions at that time because Austen writes Pride and Prejudice as a social satire and makes humor of the traditional roles of women. Compared to other novels with female characters at the time, such as Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Jane Austen’s female characters in Pride and Prejudice break the social norm for women and do not portray them as passive. Pride and Prejudice, published in 1813, is about five sisters whose mother is desperate to see them married off.

Moreover, Intersectional feminism opens the door for oppressed women who are different from the overly white, middle class, cis-gendered and able-bodied women who claim to “want power for all women”, but will not advocate and let her privilege be called out by a woman of a different race. Another key point is that though people of white decent cannot be oppressed in the ways that a person of color can be, they can use their privilege to bring light upon the people who need help. If society would shine more light on the oppressed women of the world, then they could understand the trauma and heartbreak it feels like to not be treated equally to a woman of the Caucasian

Feminism has been a prominent and controversial topic in writings for the past two centuries. In Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre the main character, Jane Eyre, explores the depth at which women may act in society and finds her own boundaries in Victorian England. As well, along with the notions of feminism often follow the subjects of class distinctions and boundaries. There is an ample amount of evidence to suggest that the tone of Jane Eyre is, in fact, a very feminist one and may well be thought as relevant to the women of today who feel they have been discriminated against because of their gender. At the beginning of the 19th Century, little opportunity existed for women, and thus many of them felt uncomfortable when attempting to enter many parts of society.

In Wollstonecraft’s Vindication of the Rights of Women, she questions the place of a woman in society. She writes in the 18th century, at a time of women oppression. Her argument is both passionate and logical, as she persuades the reader to reconsider the role of a woman in society. As a woman herself, she is able to give insight into the thoughts and desires of a woman. However, she is also careful to consider the place of men in society and what their role should be.

Using these words, the authors draw the line of distinction between the roles of “the saint” and “the whore” (200). Secondly, independent women in fairy tales were often associated with the concept of evil because they menaced the patriarchal order itself (203). No longer relying on men for emotional or economic support, these women were harder to control (203). However, back in the days when these tales were crafted, “most women had not been by tradition so fortunate as to enjoy the economic independence that would enable them to run their lives as wished” (203). As a result, their roles in society were entirely defined by their relationships with men (207).

Before the women’s rights movement gained momentum, women were treated unfairly, so they united together to fight for their rights. During the nineteenth century, women lacked many basic, human rights and were often belittled by men because it was believed they could not be as superior as them. Women were discriminated in law, religion, education, politics, and professions (Finkelman 405). Unfortunately, there is a lengthy list of rights women didn’t obtain. Once the reform movement began, however, abolitionist women realized their rights could be compared to those of slaves, and a few bold women decided to do something about the inequality of men and women (Finkelman 405).

1960’s Feminism Like I mentioned earlier, “The Help” seems to be an imperfect depiction of the 1960’s so far. And again, feminism was shown in the most stereotypical ways. Yes, it was very empowering to see how women can be liberated, but it was very cliché, feminism could have been shown in much more meaningful interesting ways. A hint of feminism in The Help may be most evident in post-college Skeeter, the young woman who questions restrictions placed on her by society 's traditions.

Virginia Woolf in her essay, “In Search of a Room of One’s Own” is astonished by the scarcity of women authors the Elizabethan period and is thus determined to find the causalities of this enigma. She makes clear the deficit of literature produced by female writers is an outcome of the male-dominated culture of the time, which entailed considerable difficulty for women to accomplish anything more than of those roles prescribed by society. I find Woolf 's arguments to be credible to the fullest, albeit it would have been preferable if she spoke of the male-female divide in more detail. On a related note, Anna Quindlen 's "Between the Sexes, a Great Divide" is a formidable choice for exemplifying the complexities of this bisection. In her essay,

The poem 'Phenomenal Woman' begins with directly addressing the stereotypes that are placed on women in society. This is done when Angelou states what she feels a woman's qualities are supposed to be by saying. ' I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size' which shows the reader that while she might be aware of the pressures and expectations that are placed on women, she is not willing to conform to these; an idea that comes from the fact that the first stanza is based around her successes despite being different from what some would call the "ideal woman". This is a way of presenting sexism in the poem because it shows that women are fully aware of the standards that are placed upon them and while this particular part in the poem can be seen as referring to successes, it also raises awareness to the fact that some may still be oppressed due to not adhering to these expectations.

Colonization lead to the separation of the sexes and the belief that man is superior to woman. Native American women were portrayed in popular media such as Westerns as inhuman, which sent a negative message about Native American women and all women. This excerpt describes the way that women were described, “rarely speaking or showing any emotion, these women were often depicted as nearer to animals than human beings, and their dehumanization was compounded by their depiction as beasts of burden or slaves to their owners- their husbands” (Anderson and Young 165). The colonization of Native Americans has had a lasting effect on the women and men, however the women seem to be underrepresented. “As a result of colonial policies, Indigenous women are overrepresented in recent statistical data on issues such as domestic violence, imprisonment, suicide and general poor health” (Anderson and Young 173).

In conclusion I believe that Theda Perdue’s book describing what was going on inside Cherokee Nation at the time of the removal era which I think gives it the upper hand between the two. As I stated earlier, Cherokee Removal gives you historical perspectives and documents from the time period which gives you a way better sense as to what was actually going on. What Hath God Wrought seems to be already interpreted for the reader. Theda Perdue merely takes what was written and combines it for the reader to interpret themselves. That’s why I firmly believe Cherokee Removal does a better job of describing the racial climate at the time.

Of the many Native tribes, two of them were the Iroquois and the Cherokee. These two tribes had many interesting characteristics and ways of life. Some of which they share. In some ways, they differ. The Iroquois were located and lived in present-day New York, at the northeastern woodlands area.

The Trail of Tears and the California Gold Rush were two noteworthy events in history that resulted in the movement large amounts of people to a new part of the country. These migrants left their home territories, both forced and unforced, to settle in a location. Perdue argues that the power shift women experienced before the Cherokee removal defined their roles and shaped female gender during the Trail of Tears. By analyzing the California Gold Rush, Hurtado discusses how a woman’s race and class defined her gender. These authors introduce the conversation about how these significant migratory events in history impacted the lives of 19th century women.

It is not a new idea that women can function well in positions of authority? There have been many women who played crucial roles in leadership positions throughout history. The history of the Cherokee Indians contains several examples of women who have risen to positions of influence in their society! Such women were named “Beloved Women” by the tribe. A Cherokee woman could, “take her husband’s place in war.” and be given the name “War Woman” as a result.