ipl-logo

Gender Roles In The American Revolutionary War

1008 Words5 Pages

Military conflicts often produce unanticipated social transformations. The case of the American Revolutionary War is no exception. The war had awakened a new class consciousness through the struggle over who would rule and who would fight. Slaves and Indians began to see their way of life change by the outcome of the war and women began to expand their role within the home. But, not all things changed for these groups. Power still lied in the hands of the planters and the elite. Although, societal realities were changing for all demographics, political power remained secured in the planters and elite. Throughout the eight years of America’s battles for independence; class, race, and gender experienced changes within the new nation that was …show more content…

Since the men were gone women began to have a more prominent role within the household by having to assume responsibilities they otherwise would not have had. From the documentary “Mary Silliman’s War” we know that women were not so caught up in the politics of the fighting and generally opposed it. We also know that women helped as washer women in refugee camps for displaced citizens or at army encampments. Gender roles did not change drastically after the war had been fought, but the new roles they did experience were an …show more content…

White Americans won their independence and experienced social change, like a new class consciousness that brought every class closer together. Slaves got their first taste of freedom by being able to join the army and help in the war effort. Indians saw their little respect from Americans wither away as the revolutionaries won their independence, they knew their land was soon going to be taken from them. Woman, while not by much, enjoyed an improved standing in the home and American culture as a whole was shifted from a virtuous and sceptic nation to one with a little more hierarchy than intended. The American Revolutionary War had been fought to garner the right to govern their own country, but had the unintended consequence of creating a more equal nation for

Show More
Related
511 Words | 3 Pages

American Revolution DBQ The American Revolution changed American society politically, socially, and economically, as the American colonists overcame their differences and broke away from British rule. During the American revolution, Americans began to develop different political views than that of their European counterparts. Following the Revolution, the Americans created a new type of national government, a republic.

Read More
1167 Words | 5 Pages

The chapters of our textbook, America: A Narrative History, written by George Brown Tindall and David Emory Shi, takes us on a historical yet comparative journey of the road to war and what caused the American Revolution, an insight into the war itself, and a perception to what life was like in America after the war was over. The essays of the book, America Compared: American History in International Perspective, collected by Carl J. Guarneri gives us a global context and a comparison between the North and South Americas in the dividing issues of labor, slavery, taxes, politics, economy, liberty, and equality. Part One These chapters in our textbook Tindall describes; the road to the American Revolution, the road to the surrendering of the British, and the road to the American colonists receiving their independence and developing the government which the people of the United States will be governed by. The road to the American Revolution consisted of several events, which escalated to the war that began April 19, 1775, as the tensions between the American colonies and the British Government advanced towards breaking point.

Read More
613 Words | 3 Pages

The American Revolution was a political upheaval that brought many changes to America by greatly altering the popular understanding of women’s partisan status and creating a widespread debate over the meaning of women’s rights. White women had large, essential roles in America’s victory in the American Revolution creating new opportunities for women to participate in politics and support different parties. Women were able to take advantage of these opportunities until a conservative backlash developed by 1830 that stopped any political advancement of women. In Rosemarie Zagarri’s book, Revolutionary Backlash, the author talks about the many things that played a part in causing a backlash against women in the early republic starting when women’s

Read More
344 Words | 2 Pages

After reading Chapter 5 in “The American Yawp”, it is clear that there were many social, economic, and political consequences of the American Revolution. This is evident because of the changes in societal beliefs, the end of mercantilism, and the increased participation in politics and governance. To begin with, the American Revolution changed the people’s societal beliefs. Prior to the Revolution, society was deferential and aristocratic.

Read More
1063 Words | 5 Pages

You can tell these are different social classes because of some people wearing fancy wigs and others wearing no shoes. This proves that the American Revolution was revolutionary because after the revolution people are starting to disregard social classes and are starting to treat everyone equally. In modern day American people no longer care about the social class of one another, they just treat each other as equals. The War of Independence was indeed revolutionary because it’s ideas helped bring equality to women and African Americans, it paved the way for many great political changes and because it influenced many social changes.

Read More
1135 Words | 5 Pages

The American Revolution is arguably the turning point of American history as it resulted in somewhat of a significant, positive change in politics, economics, and society as a whole. However, from 1775 to 1800, the effects of the revolution on the American society were subtle as most principles glorified by revolutionists contradicted the examples set forth by colonial reality. Perhaps most alike to revolutionary beliefs was the American economy and how it participated in free trade or encouraged the independence of hard labor. Politically, the states did apply Enlightenment and republican ideas as promised, but more often than not, the benefits of such ideas were limited to rich, land-owning, protestant, white men. This glorification of

Read More
1384 Words | 6 Pages

However, with the outbreak of war and men being drafted into the military, women were called upon to fill the void in the workforce. Women took up jobs that were traditionally seen as "male" jobs, such as factory work and construction. This newfound sense of independence and self-sufficiency fundamentally changed the social landscape in America. Women felt empowered and capable of contributing to society in a meaningful way. As a result, after the war, women continued to work and contribute to the workforce, paving the way for advances in women's rights and the feminist movement.

Read More
325 Words | 2 Pages

The term “Revolutionary” is an instantaneous change or shift that promotes equal rights, liberty, and freedom. So, while some may argue that the revolution was a turning point for America, The American revolution in this case is not revolutionary since slavery was still present, minority groups did not gain rights, and British ideals and tactics were still being used in the new government. One of the crucial pieces of evidence that this “revolution” could not be considered revolutionary is because of the slavery still taking place even after the war ended. Throughout the revolt against British rule in the 16th century, the American people fought under the banner of truth, justice, and liberty for all people, However, the only people that indeed

Read More
832 Words | 4 Pages

Socially, women were given more opportunities and roles in society as they took over jobs that were unoccupied due to men heading overseas to fight in the war. For women, there was an increased participation in the workforce, especially in industries previously dominated. This was due to the labour gap created from men leaving the workforce to fight on the front lines. People were initially hesitant to assign these jobs to women, but as the war progressed and

Read More
612 Words | 3 Pages

The Daughters of Liberty The Daughters of Liberty was a group of women activists who fought for the freedom of the colonists from the British Parliament. They were a major factor in protesting against taxes and boycotting British goods. The Daughters of Liberty did whatever it took to free the Patriots from British rule. They accepted women from all ages and all backgrounds.

Read More
992 Words | 4 Pages

The Effect of Women on the Outcome of World War Two World War II effected women tremendously by taking them out of their comfort zones and chucking them into the work force and pushing them to do most of the work men normally would have been doing. The war also effected women by providing opportunities for them to serve in non-traditional roles; in fact, some of them enlisted into the military to serve the United States. The way the war effected women is that they had to take care of family in addition to performing work normally done by men. It was difficult to find people to watch after kids which made life during this time very difficult. After the end of World War II society in general was effected considering the baby boom.

Read More
1053 Words | 5 Pages

Women in Wars Whether in the American Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War I, or World War II, women played an important role. In areas of fighting, nursing, or taking care of the home, without women, winning past wars would have been much harder. American Revolutionary War Women played critical roles throughout the American Revolution. Some followed their husbands into battle in the Continental Army.

Read More
1545 Words | 7 Pages

Men were always the workers within the family, the ones that were expected to provide for their families. When they went to war, their role within community life needed to be filled. That is when their wives, daughters, and sisters stepped up and took over. “In addition to caring for their families, [women] were left to supervise businesses and farms while the men were away fighting” (Senker). Women were already cooking, cleaning, and caring for their children, but still made time to work and provide as a father figure every single day.

Read More
282 Words | 2 Pages

Historians may argue that the inclusion of only white males in this brand-new society makes the American Revolution a failure, but the American Revolution changed the social aspect of the colonies for the better. The change of social status of minorities is not immediate, but the revolution allows for necessary changes to happen in the future. For example, a majority of the north abolished slavery less ten years or even before the end of the revolution. The rest of the north and the slave-dependent south abolish slavery within the next eighty years (Document 5). After the Revolution, women feel they have a voice.

Read More
1960 Words | 8 Pages

Impact of American Revolution through time Almost all aspects of the lives of Americans were somehow affected by the spirit of the American Revolution. The attitudes of American people towards religious life, women’s rights, voting and slavery were changed forever because of it. There was a drastic change in social and political life after independence.

Read More

More about Gender Roles In The American Revolutionary War

Related Topics

Open Document