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Women's role during civil war
Women's role during civil war
What role did women have during the civil war
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In Dixie’s Daughters Karen Cox describes the role the elite women in the UDC played in saving the “Old South” and vindicating the Confederacy. The Daughters, as they are better known, had to decide what their rightful role in society and the organization were, what type of non-traditional actions they were willing to take, and how they were able to reconcile the two opposing styles to achieve their goals. Cox describes throughout Dixie’s Daughters how the Daughters were extremely backward looking but also progressive in their actions, and how by embracing both sides the Daughters were able to be extremely successful in all of their endeavors. Southern women’s goal after the Civil War was a simple one: preserve the Old South.
The Civil War, fought mostly by men, is often referred to as the war of brother against brother. Although there were a few women who engaged in the battles alongside the men, the number was very small and their direct contribution to battle was probably not very significant. This is not to say that women were not important to the Civil War. Women were very influential in the national crisis and their contributions were arguably just as important as the male soldier’s on the battlefield. On both sides of the war, women employed their strength, intelligence, and compassion in the critical roles of abolitionists, civil right’s advocates, nurses and spies.
In conclusion, the author, Kathleen Ernst, talks about how women’s lives changed from before the civil war, and after the civil war. In the beginning of the passage, before the civil war, the author states that women were only good for tending the wounded and taking care of the babies and children. However towards the end of the passage, after the civil war, she tells that women were given new opportunities because of the independence that the war
Between 1861 and 1865 men were obligated to leave their homes and fight either on the union or confederate side of the United States. As a result women were forced to maintain the households while the primary breadwinners were gone. The Civil War challenged the ideology of the roles of women in the antebellum era. The roles of women in the north and south transformed tremendously and became a pivotal aspect to the war. One duty women took during the Civil War was become supporters of their male loved ones, which proved to be influential since it raised the morals of the men and gave them something to survive for.
Kirsten E. Woods wrote Masterful Women. This book was published by The University of North Carolina Press in 2003, and is a nonfiction historical book that is 198 pages long, without the notes and focuses on the struggles and accomplishments of slaveholding widows during the American Revolution through the Civil War (1765-1865). Women didn’t have any major rights until they were widowed, due to women being viewed as vulnerable and fully dependent on men. In this book, Kirsten Woods argues that women were viewed as dependent on men and they could not do anything for themselves. As a reader goes on through this book women prove that this statement is incorrect and women can therefore do most everything that a man can do.
In the book Revolutionary Mothers, author Carol Berkin discusses women’s roles in the American Revolution. She separates out the chapters so that she can discuss the different experiences and roles of women during the period. She utilizes primary and secondary sources to talk about how women stepped into their husband’s shoes and maintained their livelihoods and how they furthered the war effort on both sides, as well as how classes and race effected each woman’s experience. Berkin’s main goal was for the reader to understand that although women’s roles aren’t traditionally discussed when talking about the American Revolution, nevertheless, they played a major part in it.
The civil war was a time in history that was tragic to all. Women’s rights were very limited to none. Women had no right to approach men. Women had no rights to vote. Women had no rights to own land.
Traditionally women were limited from political participation and primarily performed the women’s role in the home (Nelson, 2008). However, during and after the war of 1812, the women supported the men emotionally, politically and physically by running the family business and performing other duties typically performed by men. Duties entailed shipping supplies, planting and harvesting crops, and even manufacturing. The social and cultural views of women during the war of 1812 began to shift, in part credited to the political skills of Dolley Madison. Dolley’s political power and involvement changed the minds of American politicians from abandoning the charred remains Washington DC, for “higher ground”, instead the decision was made to rebuild
As the author emphasizes, women were known as the eyes and ears of military leaders taking their secrets with them to the grave (“Women Spies of the Revolution” np). The role of a women spy was to help defend their country by providing their knowledge in situations that could be used to aid the leader and commander cause. This was a somewhat major role in countless wars due to the useful information that came out of it. Spies during times of war were known for their heroism. Essentially, world wars, along with any wars or battles in general, was simply military action of combat between areas (countries, nations, etc.)
Important Women and their Role in the Civil War The American Civil war lasted for four years from 1861-1865. The war occurred because of a controversy on differences of beliefs, with the primary reason being slavery and state’s rights. The war resulted in the killing of over 600,000 soldiers. The war had a lot of advances in American culture.
From the early years of America till the time of the Civil War, women were commonly considered to be weak and meek. Before the American Civil War, women were also considered to be very dependent on men. Men were the ones who made the money and worked for a living. Women were often in the home and taking care of their family and their house. It was very surprising when a woman would try to become more independent such as Harriet Tubman, who left her husband in order to help free the slaves.
When most people think of the Revolutionary War, they envision heroic battles fought by men such as George Washington and Paul Revere. But equally important in America’s victory were the heroic deeds of the women of the time, both on the front lines and behind the scenes.. One of the first ways women got involved in the revolutionary movement was by boycotting British items. Men believed that it was going to be hard to get the women to boycott, however it was not (Slavicek 17). Since the Patriots would not buy supplies from the British, women now needed to step up and take the job of making their own cloth and turning it into clothes (Slavicek).
Justin Lau (Wingkit) Professor Rogers History 100AC 29 September 2015 Response Paper: “The Women Is as Bad as the Men- Women 's Participation in the Inner Civil War.” , “General Benjamin Butler and the threat of Sexual Violence during the American Civil War”, “General Butler and the Women” and “The Other Side of the Freedom” A lot of North Carolina women showed uncooperative actions on the disorderliness by participating the protest in order to maintain their communities and social orders. These women would prefer to join the conflict that separated state and community rather than being its victims. Thus, their loyalties to husbands and sons, and strong determination of protecting their own property prompted them to disregard the female’s conventional behaviors.
During the Civil War the whole country was changing. Many able men were being sent off to fight a war that no one knew would last as long as it did, and fighting in neighboring states against fellow U.S. citizens, friends, and even relatives. Relations between the North and the South were as hostile as ever and divided, but the lives of the men and soldiers were not the only thing changing. The Civil War greatly affected the roles and duties of women and children. Women and children in the North and South had to take on the roles, responsibilities, and jobs of the men who were away fighting.
Going through hard times can make people appreciate life more because they cherish the good moments they have. During the Civil War, our nation was divided. An abundance of men, from the north and south, were leaving their families behind to fight. Wives being left alone to support the family.