During the first 80 years of America's history, the only citizens who were allowed to participate in national elections and other political decisions were white men who were wealthy enough to own property. White men who did not own property won the right to vote during and soon after the Civil War, and African American men were granted suffrage in 1868 with the passage of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. However, it wasn't until Congress finally passed the 19th Amendment in 1920 that American women were permitted to vote. At that time, there were many other things that female Americans were not allowed to do either.
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An image of suffragettes carrying flags in 1917, with the title, “Equal Suffrage.” A portrait of a Victorian family, focused on the mother‟s face,and switching to the father with the children. A 19th century photo of women washing clothes, fades to a woman doing the washing by herself. |
In the early 1800s, women were considered legal dependents of men, just like children are dependents of their parents today. A wife‟s job was to obey her husband and raise the kids. It was even worse if you didn‟t have a husband-- your father, or some other male relative, was expected to take care of you, and you had almost no social status. |
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Women nurses with flags as part of the Polish White Cross. World War I soldiers carrying of a dead soldier. A temperance drawing of drunken father physically abusing his wife and children. An etching of a slave woman being whipped. Poor woman immigrants at Ellis island, around the turn of the century. |
Women at the time had a lot to say-- many were tired of seeing their sons and husbands die in war, angry at the violence caused by alcohol abuse, and disgusted by the evils of slavery. But without the right to file a lawsuit, make a contract, own property, or most of all, vote, they couldn‟t do much about it. |
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An image of a statue commemorating the Conference at Seneca Falls. Suffragettes handing out pamphlets promoting the right to vote. |
In 1848, activists spearheaded the first real push for women‟s rights at the Seneca Falls Convention in New York. These women demanded fairness in child custody, divorce, property ownership, career opportunities, and equal pay. But above all, they wanted suffrage: the right to vote. |
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Women plastering a poster advertising equal suffrage. A painting of women signing petitions for voting rights. A portrait of Sojourner Truth with the quote: “There |
After the Civil War ended in 1865, women became even more vocal about equal rights. The 15th Amendment, which guaranteed suffrage to African American men, did nothing for women. Civil rights leaders, like the emancipated slave Sojourner Truth, gave voice to |
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Images of women working in factories and serving in the Navy during World War I. An editorial cartoon of Lady Liberty handing a woman the Ballot, with the caption: Congratulations. |
When World War I began in 1914, millions of men left to fight in the war, and women stepped up to keep America's factories working. Now, women‟s rights leaders had the power and influence to push for equal rights, and the 19th Amendment, which finally granted women suffrage, became law in 1920. |
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Suffragettes protesting for suffrage outside of the White House. A portrait of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony looking at a document together. An illustration of a woman on a horse with a trumpet marching to Washington. |
To win equal rights, women had to change legislation--but they had to change public opinion as well. Leaders of the various women's rights organizations, such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, did this in political ways--by holding marches and demonstrations and petitioning lawmakers. |
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A drawing of an early 20th century couple reading together. Portraits of Kate Chopin and Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Portrait of a smiling Victorian woman, looking confident. An etching of a woman by the sea, looking depressed. A cartoon of a woman behind a fence labeled “Woman‟s „Sphere‟”, alone with toys labeled “Fashion” and “Gossip”, peeking over the fence. |
Other women worked to sway public opinion by writing brilliant short stories and novels. Writers like Kate Chopin, Sarah Orne Jewett, and Charlotte Perkins Gilman used the tools of Naturalism to portray strong, independent women struggling against everyday sexism, helping readers across America understand how oppressive this discrimination really was. |
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A horse-drawn bandwagon promoting a political cause. A woman‟s suffrage headquarters in Ohio. Smiling suffragettes holding American flags. A modern protest for women‟s rights, zooms in on a protest sign reading, “Equality.” |
Of course, gaining suffrage did not completely level the playing field for women once and for all. In fact, women today are still advocating for equality in many areas. But thanks to the early crusaders for women‟s rights, and the feminist authors who helped spread their message, the ir advocacy is backed by the power to vote, and therefore, the power to change the country. |
Question
Why might Naturalism appeal to authors who wanted to improve the lives of American women?
