Republicanism In 1800

Republican spirit and intellectual movements present in the early 1800’s had an impact on women and slaves in America, both positively and negatively.

Women were affected by both republican spirit and intellectual movements that took place in the early 1800’s. The general trend of the early 1800’s was a push for women’s rights and suffrage, overall wanting to make women equal to men. Around 1800, the Romantic movement in Europe spread to America, giving rise to the idea of sentimentalism. Pushing for decisions based on feeling instead of solely rationale, marriages shifted from being arranged to companionate marriages. This, in turn, was thought to make men more caring of their wives and promoted the idea of a more equal, republican-style

Proponents of this role for women, such as Reverend Thomas Bernard, dismissed public roles for women, like voting. Alternatively, he argued, women should only focus on raising their sons in the republican philosophy. Overall, republicanism had little effect on women’s rights, with some opposing the idea that its philosophy of equality extended to women, and those who didn’t had little success promoting equality for women. Conversely, intellectual movements of the early 19th century greatly increased the push for women’s rights. The Industrial Revolution, for example, caused women to begin to work in mills, causing a greater feeling of independence among women as they slowly but surely entered the working world. An even bigger intellectual movement, abolitionism, helped women’s rights. As women were very prominent in the abolitionist movement, they began to enter public life. Through this, they began to become activists for their own rights as their influence as individuals grew. Overall, intellectual movements in

To synthesize, such a general increase in rights for groups but a strong backlash that increases tension could be compared to the fight for women’s rights in some Middle Eastern countries today. Take, for example, Malala Yousafzai, who is an advocate for women’s education and rights in Pakistan. Thrusting a figure into the public eye like this could be compared to the women who began to put themselves in the public eye in 19th-century America, such as Mary Walker Ostram. The backlash caused by this could also be compared to the tension that came with bringing the problem of slavery to the public’s attention, eventually leading to the Civil War, as the backlash from Malala’s story getting out has increased tension that may lead to a large-scale war between Pakistan and other countries. Whenever reform occurs, it is clear to see that there are often general trends toward good causes and the general betterment of society, but sometimes adverse tension occurs that may lead to future problems, and America is no