Just Do It

1. List 3 things that you see in the image. What do you think the text above the picture means? What is the significance of the woman’s kneeling position? Why do you think the artist created this image? Just Do It

2. Examining the Ties Between Abolitionism and the Women’s Rights Movement Lessons plans developed for the Digital History Reader www.dhr.history.vt.edu

3. Guiding Question How did women’s involvement in abolitionism influence the struggle for women’s rights?

4. Women’s Role in Society • Belief in separate, very distinct, characteristics between men and women • Certain behavior expectations for each gender • Woman: religiously pious, morally pure, physically delicate, highly emotional and intuitive, submissive to her husband, and above all else devoted to the domestic pursuits of housekeeping and child-rearing • Man: strong, coarse, reserved not emotional, intellectual, rational, and skilled and enterprising enough to make a living for himself and his family in the emerging areas of commerce and trade

5. Private Sphere Exists in the home Women dominated in this sphere, they had the power and influence Public Sphere Exists outside of home Men dominated this sphere Business, industry, politics, and law Two Spheres

6. Rationale of Two Spheres • Private Sphere: • Seen as representative of femininity • Home seen as wellspring of social virtue • Public Sphere: • Seen as representative of masculinity • Competitive business world corrupted • As long as each gender stayed in their place society would remain in balance

7. Women and the Law • Woman civilly dead upon marriage • Could not sue or be sued • Make contracts • Buy or sell property • No control over decisions regarding children or custody • No vote • As early as 1776 Abigail Adams asked her husband in Continental Congress to “Remember the Ladies,” yet no concrete advances made

8. Second Great Awakening • Northeastern United States transformed by industrialization and urbanization and many social ills popped up • Turned to religion to rectify them • Distributed Bibles, provided aid to poor, campaigns against prostitution, and attempted to rid of the influence of alcohol and drinking • Women seen as more pious so emerged as leaders of the movement • Giving them a voice

9. Abolitionism • 1830s some religious activists added slavery as a sin to eradicate • William Lloyd Garrison • The Liberator : Anti-slavery weekly • Published handbills, newspapers, booklets, and held meetings and speaking events • Women became very involved in the abolitionist movement

10. Instructions • With a partner you are going to investigate 4 pieces of evidence in order to aid you in your quest to answer the day’s guiding question. We are going to determine how abolitionism and the women’s movement are linked. • The pieces of evidence are divided into 2 categories (Political Action and Political Consciousness) and you need to pick 2 from each category to examine. While examining them you need to answer the accompanying guiding questions. • The evidence can be found at the following address: http://www.dhr.history.vt.edu/us/mod04_women/evidence.html • Pick from the following evidence: • Political Action: 1, 3, 4, 5 • Political Consciousness: 11, 13, 15, 16

11. Think of the frantic mother, Lamenting for her child, Till falling lashes smother Her cries of anguish wild! Shall we behold, unheeding, Life’s holiest feelings crushed? When woman’s heart is bleeding, Shall woman’s voice be hushed? Read the following poem. What emotion is conveyed in the poem? What is the message of the poem? How does this relate to women fighting for abolitionism? How does this relate to the woman in the public and private sphere? Wrapping Up…