Blog # 9

Textbook: Chapter 6

1. How were women’s experiences of immigration in the United States distinct from those of men? How were they similar?

The women’s experiences of immigration in the United States were different and at the same time similar from men’s. The men came to the United States for the opportunities to make money and support their families. Then, many of these men immigrants returned back to their countries. On the other hand, women immigrated to the US for more opportunities for independence, to be able to work and choose their spouses. However, these women immigrants experienced a lot of difficulties, rape and so on. Many of these women became prostitutes. The similarity that the immigrant men and women experienced was that both men and women had difficulties to be accepted by the native born whites and anti-immigrants.

2. How would you characterize the differences among women involved in industrial protest, the populist movement, and the settlement house movement? Do you see any similarities?

There were differences among women involved in industrial protest, the populist movement, and the settlement house movement. Women involved in industrial protest were protesting for higher wages and better work place conditions. The women involved in populist movement were mostly middle class and elite women who were trying to have political power and have the right to vote. Finally, women involved in the settlement house movement were again women from elite and middle class. They were volunteering to help the immigrant women and their children in the stage of Americanization. In spite of these differences, I see some similarities. The obvious similarity is that these women were all fighting in different ways for women’s right.

Textbook document ( Chapter 6 pp. 381-385) – “The Subtle Problems of Charity”

1. What is the “diversity of experience” that Addams witnessed in her work with immigrants in the neighborhood around Hull House, and how did it contribute to the ethical complexities about which she wrote?

Adams eyewitnessed variety of experiences while working with immigrants in the neighborhood around Hull House. She was a volunteer college graduate and was working with poor immigrant families. She writes about the moral conflicts of different classes. Describes the life of the poor and the help they needed from the charity. All the difficulties that these poor families were going through contributed to their ethics. These poor people’s ethics were based on their social values and families. They cared a lot about their families and children. However, they also cared about and shared with their neighbors. They all supported each other because they were all going through the same difficulties. She also says that the ethical differences of these families come from their financial situations and their supportiveness.

2. How did Addams’s experience as a member of the pathbreaking generation of women college graduates affect her perspective as a settlement house volunteer?

Adam’s experience as a member of the pathbreaking generation of women college graduates had excessive affects on her perspective as a settlement house volunteer. It helped her to have a better understanding about the people around her. She valued these poor families’ social values and their helpfulness to each other. This experience also helped her to become a stronger person and try to do something positive to help these people who needed help. She was an activist who became a leader to fight till the end to make some changes.

Blog # 8

Textbook: Chapter 5 (pp. 283-305)

1. What were the most significant developments in women’s wage labor in the late nineteenth century? How did they affect working-class, middle-class, and elite women.

The most significant developments in women’s wage labor in the late nineteenth century were the shift out of women workers from domestic services to manufacturing and office work. These developments in women’s wage labor affected the different class of women differently. The working-class worked in textile industries garment sweatshops. Other women who had education started working in offices. These were mostly the middle-class women. The technological development allowed them to start using typewriters. The office job paid them more than the industrial manufacture. The elite women did not have to work. Their job was mostly to take care of themselves, their beauty, and elegance.

Textbook: Chapter 6

2. What is the importance of the images on page 345 for understanding Native American women’s experience during the era of western consolidation?

I think that the importance of the following images is that it shows the lifestyle differences of Native American girls before and after Americanization. By looking at the picture on the left, I see three sad girls covered in blanket and sitting on the floor. When I look at the picture on the left, I see a totally different lifestyle. In the after picture I see the same girls but who are dressed properly, their hair looks better, they are sitting on chairs instead of on the floor, and most importantly one of them has a book (education symbol). However, what is important is that everything in these two pictures is different but the sadness in the faces of these Native American girls is the same in both of the pictures.

Textbook document ( Chapter 5 pp. 311-316) – “The Woman Who Toils,” and “The Woman Who Toils: Being the Experiences of Two Ladies as Factory Girls”

1. What different sorts of women does Bessie Van Vorst meet in the factory, and how and why do their responses to their work vary?

Bessie Van Vorst meets three different sorts of women in the factory: the bread winner, the semi-bread-winner, the women who work for luxuries. The responses of these women to their work vary because they are women of different classes. The first class of women are the girls who work in order to support their families. The second class are self-supporting women who are in competition with other women. Their response is that they work for their own pleasure. Finally, the third class of women worked for luxuries. These are the women who get support but still work in order to be able to spend more money on them and their clothes.

2. Why does Van Vorst conclude that working women are passive in accepting their working conditions and unwilling to stand up for themselves in the way of working men? Do you think she is right?

Van Vorst concludes that working women are passive in accepting their working conditions and unwilling to stand up for themselves in the way of working men because of the division of the work attitude of women competitors of different classes. The issue of wages is not fundamental. For instance, some women work to have money to survive, others work to earn money for luxuries. In contrast to women, men have one class of competitors. That is the class of bread-winner to make money to support and feed their families. She also adds about the women, “There will be no strikes among them so long as the question of wages is not equally vital to them all” (pg 315). I think that she is right. The division of the work purposes of different class of women pushes them to accept their work conditions and not to stand up for themselves. I think that this also becomes the reason of women’s low wages. Because women working for leisure don’t care about the low wages as much as the ones working to support and feed their families, so there is not unity among women to stand up and change their work conditions.

Blog # 7

Textbook: Chapter 5

1. What divided the women of the North and South in the years immediately before and during the Civil War?

The movement for freedom from slavery divided the women of the North and South in the years immediately before and during the Civil War. There were different classed in the South. The white slave-owner women wanted to keep owning slaves and the black women wanted to find their freedom. This created conflict and violence among the black slaves and their owners. On the other hand, in the North the wealthy women had better prospective. They wanted to give freedom to slaves. Moreover, they were fighting for equal rights for men and women.

2. What impact did the emergence of the “New South” have on women?

The “New South” had a great impact on black and white women. The black women were finally given the chance to have freedom. They were able to have jobs. Their lives changed to good. They were no longer the properties of their owners and could choose their lifestyle. Black slave women also were able to fall in love and they got the right to marry. When it comes to the white women, a lot of them lost their husbands on Civil War. The widows had a really hard time surviving without their husbands, and working hard to raise their children.

Textbook document ( Chapter 5 pp. 306-310) – “Race Woman,” and “Crusade for Justice: The Autobiography of Ida B. Wells”

1. What were the underlying tensions and larger conflicts that led to the lynching of Thomas Moss?

According to Ida Wells, the underlying tensions and larger conflicts that led to the lynching of Thomas Moss were “…to get rid of Negroes who were acquiring wealth and property and thus keep the race terrorized and “keep the nigger down.””(pg 308) Thomas Moss along with Henry Stewart, and Calvin McDowell owned a grocery store. This grocery store was owned by “colored” people and it had negative influences on white man’s grocery’s business. This was a big problem, and was the reason that Thomas Moss and his two friends were horribly shot to death. Ida Wells says, “Thus, with the aid of city and country authorities and daily papers, that white grocer had indeed put an end to his rival Negro grocer as well as to his business...” (pg 308)

2. What was the prevailing opinion about lynching that Wells was determined to challenge?

At first, Ida Wells had accepted that even though lynching was against law, it was the way to punish the people who did terrible crime of rape and who deserved to be punished. However, after she found out how Thomas Moss and his friends had been lynched without committing any crime against white women, she changed her mind. This opened her eyes and helped her to understand that black people’s being lynched for rape was just an excuse. This was a way for white people “to get rid of Negroes who were acquiring wealth and property and thus keep the race terrorized and “keep the nigger down.” ” (pg 308). Thomas Mosse’s and his friends’ death became the challenge for Wells to begin an investigation of every lynching that she read and heard about. Through her investigation into the practice of lynching, she found out about many other black people’s death who were innocent.

3. What did Wells see as the relationship between the long history of white men raping black women and the charges against black men of raping white women?

Ida Wells says that relationships between white men and colored women were common. The rape of the helpless Negro girls started from the slavery days and still continued. They were allowed to fall in love with the beautiful colored girls. However, relationships between colored men and white women were impossible. The colored men and white women weren’t allowed to fall in love with each other. If they did so, the colored men were punished for “rape”. Wells says, “Here came lynch law to stifle Negro manhood which defended itself, and the burning alive of Negroes who were weak enough to accept favors from white women” (pg 309).

Blog #6

Textbook: Chapter 4

1. What were the different kinds of experiences that particular groups of women had as the United States expanded west to the Pacific Coast??

The main experiences that all the groups of women had as the United States expanded west to the Pacific Coast was their household duties to wash, cook, raise their children and so much more. The Mexican women had more control in their relationships over their properties. However, after American men passed a legislature, the Mexican women became poor without their lands. The native American women had a very bad experience by being thrown out of their own land by Andrew Jackson's “Indian Removal Act.” The California Indians were kidnapped, raped and killed as the settlers came from the east. The women on the Oregon Trail had a very tough experience, too. They took care of their children and cooking and their husbands drove the wagons. Most of the work and pressure was on women even when they were pregnant.

2. What kinds of historical developments brought American women into reform activities in the antebellum years?

I think that Republican Motherhood was very remarkable in expanding the educational opportunities American Women. It helped the American women to start attending schools and become educated people. Education helped them to achieve a lot more in their lives than before. Some of these educated women became writers, teachers, missionaries, and other professional people. Women also began to form groups and religious organizations for their. However, I think that the fight for women’s rights was the most significant historical development that brought American women into reform activities in the antebellum years. They fought for their rights, and this movement led to many accomplishments. In 1860 women got the permission of having economic right. They were able to buy and sell their properties, have the custody of their children when they divorced and so on.

Textbook document ( Chapter 4 pp. 242-243) – “Maria Angustias De La Guerra Ord”

1. Maria responds to the strangers she encounters with both fear and curiosity. About what is she curious? What is the source of her fear and how does Maria exhibit or conceal her reaction?

Maria was curious about whether or not the American soldiers would find Jose Antonio Chavez. She was also scared of having so many armed soldiers in her home, especially at that very late time. The other source of her fear was that American soldiers would find Chavez and she did not know what the consequences of her actions would be. However, she did not show her fear and curiosity to the Lieutenant. She told him that she was not frightened by anything and added that no one could have a rest in her home if she or he was not a member of her family. After soldiers left, her reaction to Chavez’s thankfulness was “What I have done for you today, I would do tomorrow for an American if you unjustly attempted to do him wrong," (243). I think that her respond to Chavez is very remarkable and shows what kind of a good person she was.

2. What is the source of strength that Maria draws? How does the absence of men affect the way she acts?

I think the source of strength that Maria draws is her maternal strength. Mothers are very good at helping their children or other people that are in need. The absence of men affected the way she acted a lot. Because her husband was not around, Maria felt like she was the head of the house. She took charge of everything, and was able to succeed. Maria acted very independently. The absence of her husband helped her to become stronger at making good decisions. I think that Maria De La Guerra Ord was a very smart, strong, independent, and responsible woman.

Blog # 5

1. What were the implication of the system of slavery for southern white and black women?

There were some similarities differences of the system of slavery for southern white and black women. The white women were allowed to get married and move out from their parent’s houses. Even though the white women were treated a little better and had more freedom than the black slaves, they did not have a distinguished life. They were jealous of the young black slaves who were having forced relationship with their men. When it comes to black slave women, they were considered their masters’ properties. They were not allowed to get married. The black slave women were sexually abused by their masters and have children from them. They had to deal with working hard as labors and being raped at the same time by their masters.

2. What is the significance of the story of Harriet Jacobs for our understanding of slave women’s experiences? (pp. 166-167 “Trials of Girlhood”)

The significance of Harriet Jacobs’ story is that her life story helps us to picture what many other slaves experienced in their lifetime. Her extraordinary story helps us to have a better understanding of slave women’s experience. This devastating story helped me to realize what kind of difficulties, violence, and insult the slave women had gone through. Harriet Jacobs was sexually harassed by her master at the age of twelve. She says, “He was a crafty man, a resorted to many means to accomplish his purpose” (p. 166). Harriet was not the only one in this horrible condition. Many other slave women were victims of these kinds of physical and emotional violence, which lead them to hate and be disgusted by their owners. However, Harriet Jacobs was brave enough to escape from her master and fly to the South with her daughter to find a better life.

Textbook document ( Chapter 3 pp. 175-181)

1. How did characters in these two accounts reject and resist the assumptions about black people fundamental to the slave system? On what personal resources did they draw to make their challenges?

The characters in these two accounts had very difficult experiences. I the first story we can see what Ellen and her husband went through by escaping from slavery in order to have freedom. Because Ellen was white (she was a child of black slave woman and her white master) and she was able to turn herself into a men, they were able to escape. She had to act like a white men who was the master of her husband that was black. So, the color of her skin made it easier for them to be able to escape. Their biggest challenge was their belief in God and belief in Success.

The second story is about the Love story of slaves. The idea of this story is that the slave owners were able to control the love lives of their slaves. The strength of their mind and love were the resources that drew these black slave lovers to make their challenges.

2. Both of these stories were written after the fact: the Crafts’ ten years following the emancipation and Polly Shine’s after about seven decades. Evaluate the role memory plays in these accounts, and consider the ways in which it distorts or possibly authenticates the narrator’s experiences.

Both of these stories are very remarkable because these stories were written several years after the fact. The experiences that the characters in both of these stories had were unforgettable. I think Crafts’ story is accurate even though it was written ten years following their experience. I don’t think that William and Ellen would ever forget all the terrible difficulties they had gone through in order to have freedom. When it comes to Polly Shine’s, I think that time is a significant element. It is very significant that Polly at the age of ninety, was able to remember what happened seven decades before. I think that her story is quite accurate. However, there might be some small details that she is missing because of such a long time passed.