The Rise Of Feminism In The 1800's: A Precursor For Greater Protest

“[Feminism] asks that women be free to define themselves -- instead of having their identity defined for them, time and again by their culture and their men.”¹   In the 1800’s, women lived lives of oppression, “negation and repression – silence, submission, ‘abstinence or continence,’”².  The newly discovered memoirs of Isabella Alden show a clearer picture of the treatment of women, and particularly feminists in this time period.  In the 1800’s, women began to resist the codes of behavior placed on them by the conduct manuals, marriage and a gender based justice system.  They were finally propelled out of silence, however, due to the need for proper education, and religious vocation.
        An excerpt from a poem written in 1682 is an example of the negative attitude men had towards women, not just then, but dating back to the Roman and Greek times,  “Woman!  By heav’ns the very Name’s a Crime, Enough to blast and to debauch my Rhime…When Eve was form’d; and with her, usher’d in Plagues, Woes, and Death and a new world of sin.”⁵ As is obvious from this excerpt, women were subject to much ridicule.  Men tried to meld women into objects worthy of their praise, and in the process destroyed any glimmer of personality evident in the souls of young women.
    Women did not immediately realize that the restrictions placed on them by the conduct manuals were the result of male domination, and robbing them of their individuality. Conduct manuals such as John Gregory’s A Father’s Legacy To His Daughters tried to meld women into objects of male desire “within the publicly sanctioned form of marriage”⁶ In these booklets, women are taught ‘natural femininity’ which is really a term romanticizing submissive behavior.  These books stressed the importance of chastity in young women.  Also addressed in the conduct manuals were the issues of dress, dancing, theater or free time, and the touchy subject of prostitution.  These conduct manuals were basically instruction books on how to attract male attention, go about courting, and eventually marry.  Budding feminists, like Mary Wollstonecraft, attacked these books and everything they represented.  In addition to conduct manuals feminists were also speaking out about the woes of marriage and the gender-biased justice system. I
    In the Early Republic women were thrown into unwanted marriage, and were subjected to the biased rulings of the judicial system.  Marriage was considered important for the sake of social stability; despite this solidity being achieved through the subjugation of women.  Though marriage was romanticized in the conduct manuals, after the vows had been exchanged, many young women were faced with a very repressive situation. In order to have a “happy marriage,” women were expected to not only be obedient, but also have no secret thoughts.  The conduct manuals cautioned that if all of a women’s efforts were not concentrated toward having a good marriage, “her life would be uneasy – all her pleasures insipid.”⁴   As well as being subjugated by men in marriage, women were unfairly treated in the judicial system. Women were denied reparations in cases of seduction. The only exception to this was when a father sued because his reputation had been injured through her fault. In murder cases involving spouses the penalty was much more severe for women than for men. In fact, women could, and often did, receive the death penalty for stealing even in cases where she stole in order to feed her family. However, the most atrocious crime against women that was overlooked by the authorities was that of husbands committing their wives to mad houses or prisons in order to be free to enjoy a mistress⁵.  Although this terrible treatment should have caused women to revolt, it was actually issues related to education and religious interpretation of morality that finally propelled women to action.
   Education was a topic of dispute in the eighteenth century, and it was the first subject that urged women into protest.  However, even feminists could not agree on how to equalize the educations of boys and girls.  Only the richest of daughters were given formal educations, and educated women were viewed as sexually unattractive. The only subjects girls were taught were reading and French. The rest of the courses were wifely duties and activities such as dancing and needlepoint.  The issue of education alone was not enough for women to protest.  The emergence of moral issues backed by religion was the final concern; the encouragement of the churches warranted action from women, serving as a gentle poker to urge women to enter into controversy.  It was when the issues of temperance and slavery became enough of a concern that the churches encouraged women to protest that women were thrust out of their confines. Women began forming their own public and private groups.  Temperance became a vocation for women, because it was viewed as a wifely duty to keep her husband sober.  On the other hand, by protesting slavery, women were acting for their religion, and protesting the tyranny of men as well.  These practices were embraced by the evangelical groups, but were opposed by the Lutherans.  Women established themselves as unobtrusive contributors to causes that eventually became major issues.  The issues that started women on the path to revolution eventually led to a constitutional amendment, and the abolition of slavery, which is symbolic of the greater achievements to come for the women who were finally speaking out.
   In the 1800’s, women refused to put up with the wrongs done to them any longer, whether it was through the conduct manuals, marriage and a gender based justice system or any other injustices to their gender.  What finally brought women to protest was the need for proper education, and religious activism.  It was a very long road to achieving women’s rights, and feminists had to fight both men and women in the gender biased society. Men generally ignored feminists and women who were still loyal to the way of life they were brought up with were disgusted by any display of independence.  The only area of the community in which feminists received support was from those churches in support of their causes.  Women were both successful and unsuccessful in establishing the reform movement in that it was the first time male domination was really challenged, and it led women to begin pondering their role in society.  This is apparent by the larger efforts to rebel in the 1840’s.  However, the Temperance Movement ended up being a failure, and the attempts made to eradicate male domination were futile as well.  However, had there never been people like Alden, who broke the silence and paved the way for women to rise and be heard, women might have never achieved the prominence that they have now.  Overall, the escalation of feminism in the eighteen hundreds was a precursor for greater struggle later in the century. 

Endnotes

1)      “Creative Quotations”. 1996-2000. 
Available: http://bemorecreative.com/home-cq.htm

2)      Jones, Vivien.  Women In The Eighteenth Century
New York, NY: Routledge, 1990 
Pg 14

3)      Watts, Kit. “Moving Away From The Table:  A Survey Of Historical Factors Affecting Women Leaders”. April, 1998. 
Available: http://www.sdanet.org/atissue/wo/welcome2.html

4)      See citation #2

5)      See citation #2

6)      See citation #2

7)      Hill, Bridget. Eighteenth Century Women: An Anthology
London, England: George Allen& Unwin (Publishers) Ltd., 1984
Pg 245