Topic:
To what extent have the attitudes of Americans towards women’s rights changed since the nation’s founding?
Background:
Since America’s beginnings, women have faced enormous obstacles, both cultural and legal, in attaining equal status with men. In many areas of American life from marriage, to politics, to the workplace, women have been treated as second-class citizens. Even as Americans fought for their independence from Great Britain, women in the United States were not allowed to vote, manage property, make binding contracts, sue in court, serve on juries or even speak in public.
Despite these obstacles, there have been leaders like Abigail Adams who have persevered in the struggle. As wife of the second President of the United States, few women had her writing skills and access to the center of power. She took advantage of the opportunity to appeal to her husband to "Remember the Ladies" in establishing the new country. His less than serious response demonstrated the uphill struggle women faced in changing conditions of their oppression.
While the position of women is hardly the same as it was 200 years ago, women still are confronted with discrimination in many aspects of their lives. However, Americans disagree as to the extent to which the law could or should be the vehicle for bringing about equality between the sexes.
Objectives:
Students will be able to:
- Describe the conditions of inequality between men and women at the time of our nation’s founding.
- Compare and contrast the views of Abigail and John Adams on women’s rights.
- Respond to a survey about the role the legal system should play in bringing about equality between the sexes.
Materials:
Handout 1A, "Letter from a Woman: 1757"
Handout 1B, "Abigail and John Adams"
Handout 1C, "Survey: Gender"
Time Required:
1 class period
Procedures:
Distribute Handout 1A, "Letter from a Woman: 1757." Have students complete the exercise on the handout. Then, as part of the whole class discussion, have students explain/answer the following:
- What do we learn about the conditions faced by women at the time this letter was written?
- How can you explain the fact that there was so much inequality between men and women in the middle of the 18th century, despite the fact that so many people came to the American colonies for the purpose of establishing a more democratic society?
- How would you react to this situation if you were a woman living at the time?
- Discuss what steps you would be prepared to take to change these conditions?
- What would be the most effective strategy for bringing about change in the conditions women faced in 1757?
Distribute Handout 1B,"Abigail and John Adams." Have students complete the exercise on the handout. Then, as part of the whole class discussion, have students explain their answers to the following questions:
- What is Abigail Adams saying in her letter to John?
- To which of the conditions mentioned in Handout 1.A, "Letter from a Woman: 1757," do you think Abigail Adams is referring?
- How effective an appeal to "Remember the Ladies" did Abigail Adams make in this letter to her husband?
- If you were Abigail Adams, how would you have voiced the appeal to your husband to provide better treatment for women?
- If you were John Adams how would you have responded to your wife’s letter?
- How did Adams actually respond?
- What can you point to in John Adams’ letter that would show that he was not very supportive of the appeal to gain greater rights for women?
- Was John Adams’ response justified?
- If you were Abigail, how would you have responded to John’s letter?
Distribute Handout 1C, "Survey: Gender." Have students complete the survey. Then, divide the class into groups of four. Ask half of the groups to discuss their reactions to statements 1-5 and the other half their reactions to statements 6-10. Then, as part of the whole class discussion, ask students to explain their answers to the following questions:
To the groups that discussed statements 1-5:
- With which of the four statements did you have the greatest agreement within your group? Explain.
- With which of the four statements did you have the greatest disagreement within your group? Explain.
To the groups that discussed statements 6-10:
- With which of the four statements did you have the greatest agreement within your group? Explain.
- With which of the four statements did you have the greatest disagreement within your group? Explain.
- Individually, with which statement did you most strongly agree?
- Individually, with which statement did you most strongly disagree?
- How can you explain why there has been so much disagreement among Americans over these issues?
- In general, in which kinds of situation where inequality exists should the legal system play a role?
- In which kinds of situations where inequality exists should the legal system not play a role?
Performance Assessment:
Have the class, working in groups, develop their own survey, entitled "The Status of Women Today." The purpose of the survey is to determine the respondents feelings about the status of women vis-a-vis men today. After developing at least 10 questions, students will conduct a survey of people, constituting the different representative groups in the community. Each group should tally the results, prepare a 2-4 page summary of their findings and conclusions. Finally each group should report their findings and conclusions to class.
Ask students to re-write appropriate portions of the Declaration of Independence, assuming that John Adams and Thomas Jefferson took seriously Abigail Adams plea to "Remember the Ladies."
Have students justify their revisions of the Declaration.
Further Enrichment:
Based on multiple intelligence theory.
Linguistic: After students have completed Handouts 1A and 1B, have them create a split journal. Instruct them to divide the page in half. In the left-hand column, they should write everything they learned about the role and conditions of women during revolutionary times (late eighteenth century). In the right hand column, they should express their feelings about the way women lived during those times.
After completing the split journal, have students prepare an editorial about the role of women in eighteenth century America summarizing the information they learned and the feelings they expressed in the split journal.
Have students engage in research using whatever sources they are familiar with, to discover additional writings by Abigail Adams providing evidence of the conditions women faced in America at the time of the Revolution. Then have students conduct research to determine the conditions women faced in other parts of the world at the time of the American Revolution. Have students evaluate if conditions for women were better or worse in other parts of the world and ask whether their research revealed other information that supports or refutes Abigail Adams portrayal of women.
Logical/Mathematical: List some of the rights that were denied to women during the late eighteenth century on the chalkboard (e.g. right to vote, right of married women to own property.) Have students discuss the reasons for the denial of each of these rights and establish a cause/result relationship. Then have students list the actions women could take to change these inequalities and indicate the probable result these actions would have had in the late eighteenth century.
Have students locate a survey or poll about the status of women in recent years. Then compare the questions asked in that poll or survey with the questions in Handout 1C. Determine percentage figures for both and compare the results.
Kinesthetic: Have students role-play a scene of Abigail and John Adams discussing women's rights. Use their letters and any additional information discovered during research to determine their viewpoints.
Spatial: Have students draw a series of pictures demonstrating the inequalities that women suffered in comparison to men and discuss the impact of these inequalities.
Have students visualize in their mind what life would have been like for a woman in the late eighteenth century.
Draw a timeline demonstrating the evolution of women's rights in the twentieth century.
Intrapersonal: Have students write a reflective journal entry expressing their feelings about whether women have achieved equality today.
Interpersonal: Divide the class into groups of equal size and have each group discuss the way women were treated in the eighteenth century as well as the reasons for this treatment.
Group members should be evaluated on how well they assist each other in mastering the information learned in the lesson (positive interdependence). The teacher will then select one student in the group to discuss the issue and determine which group engaged in the best analysis.
- Have students undertake research to find additional sources to Abigail Adams who could provide evidence as to conditions women faced in the Americas at the time of the revolution.
- Have students undertake research to find evidence of conditions women faced in other parts of the world at the time of the American Revolution.
- Have students find an example of a poll about the status of women in recent years. Have students compare the questions asked and the conclusions offered to their own survey.
Dear Cousin:
You inquired as to the treatment of women in the colonies. Unfortunately, all the talk about democracy in the colonies and calls for the overthrow of British tyranny has done little toward improving the lot of women.
We still have few legal rights and economic opportunities. We are prohibited from most occupations outside the home. We are not allowed to vote, manage property, make binding contracts, sue in court, serve on juries or speak in public.
Although marriage is something that most young girls look forward to, few realize that according to English common law a married women gives up her status as an individual. Any money or land a woman possesses becomes the property of her husband. A working woman has no right to keep her own earnings or even her personal belongings.
Mostly a woman’s day revolves around life on the farm. The kitchen is our domain. There is no time for reading or politics. In fact, we make no political choices, being covered by our husband’s political identity.
Finally, should we desire to end an unhappy marriage, one finds it almost impossible for a woman to obtain a divorce. If, indeed a revolution is coming, as some say, we look forward to a better day for women.
Sincerely,
Your cousin Mary Ann
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Exercise: Assume it’s the year 1757. You are part of a womens’ rights group, protesting outside your state legislature. Based on the letter above, construct a sign expressing your demands. Your sign should have no more than three words to a line and no more than three lines.
Abigail Adams and her husband John, who would eventually become the second President of the United States, wrote the letters below to each other, while John was engaged in the struggle to win America’s independence from Great Britain.
March 31, 1776
My dear husband,
I long to hear that you have declared the nation’s independence - and by the way, in the new Code of Laws, which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make, I desire that you would Remember the Ladies, and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the Husbands. Remember all Men would be tyrants if they could. If particular care and attention is not paid to the Ladies, we are determined to stir up a Rebellion and will not hold ourselves bound by any Laws in which we have no voice, or Representation.
That your Sex is Naturally Tyrannical is a Truth so thoroughly established as to admit of no dispute, but such of you as wish to be happy willingly give up the harsh title Master for the endearing one of Friend. Why not put it out of the power of the vicious and Lawless to treat us with cruelty. Men of good sense hate those customs which treat us only as servants to your Sex. Regard us as beings placed under your protection by the Supreme Being and use your power only for our happiness.
Lovingly,
Abigail
April 14, 1776
My dear Abigail,
As to your extraordinary Code of Laws, I cannot but laugh. We have been told that our Struggle has loosened the bands of Government every where. That Children have become more disobedient, that Students in the colleges have become less respectful, that Negroes will not listen to their master and Indians slighted their guardians. But your letter is the first indication that another group more numerous and powerful than all the rest (women) were growing discontented. Your letter is so bold I will not forget it.
Although our Masculine systems are in full force we dare not exercise our power to the limit. We can only go so far. In fact, in practice, you know we are really your subjects. We are masters in name only, and rather than give up this title which would completely subject us to dictatorship by petticoat, I hope General Washington will fight against all forms of oppression and mob rule
All my affection,
John
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Exercise- Assume you were Abigail Adams. In the space below write a response to your husband’s letter.