Women's Rights Dbq

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Women in the antebellum market period and the Second Great Awakening worked hard to gain more rights, but they were still a long way off from equality with men. From 1815-1860 many, but not all, women went from doing what was expected of them to pushing the boundaries for equality. They gained bravery and knowledge that urged them to fight for the rights they deserved. Some women stayed in the roles that were expected of them and looked down on women who pushed the boundaries of being a woman. Either way, the antebellum market revolution and Second Great Awakening both played a part in evolving the women’s role in the family, workplace, and society in the years 1815-1860.
Women’s roles in the family mainly revolved around being mothers and
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In document C, Harriet says, “I do not see why...women, with the strength and the enlightening power of truth on their side, may not do something.” Harriet questioned why only men were appointed for duties that women could handle just as well. In document E, one woman claimed that men were very ignorant and wicked. The speaker believed that men were too ignorant to recognize that women deserved more, and even equal, rights (Document E). In a petition issued to the Massachusetts legislature in 1853, independent women argued that they, along with all women, were fully entitled to vote and hold office (Document I). They believed, just as Harriet did, that they were equally as capable to hold the same occupations as …show more content…
Many were willing participants in the market economy, and they worked diligently to develop their own industries. Women were now able to earn money to provide for themselves, and in some cases their families, instead of only men having this responsibility. However, fair wages became a significant issue. Factory workers were receiving significantly more wages than workers in other fields (Document D). The antebellum market revolution allowed more opportunities for women to grow in society. The “Bloomer Costume” cartoon portrays women dressed in men’s bloomers and smoking cigars (Document H). This represents the fear that men were gaining towards women. The artist of the cartoon was worried about women gaining more rights, as demonstrated by the women being the center of attention of the cartoon, without any men with them. Women had started to take on roles similar to men, and some men worried that they could take