Chapter 16 Part 2

Chapter 16 Part 2

Ideas of a constitution found advocates in other countries following the Atlantic Revolutions.

They reflected ideas of republicanism, greater social equality, and national liberation from

foreign rule. Three major movements arose that challenged oppression: abolitionism,

nationalism, and feminism

Enlightenment thinkers increasingly thought of slavery as something that violated a human

being’s natural rights. It was also unfavorable in the eyes of the religious and not needed to

succeed economically. As a result, slavery lost a lot of fans. Britain was forced to close down

slave trade and ban slavery. This happened in other countries as well. It was only in the

southern U.S. that abolition of slavery was so violent. Even when slavery was abolished,

economic lives of freed slaves were not ideal; they had no economic autonomy over their own

land and were poor. Eventually, these freedmen became highly dependent on sharecropping

and low-paying jobs, which was almost as bad as their slave status

At first, nations did not coincide with cultures of particular people because citizens often

identified more with their local culture, rather than the whole country. Eventually, science

diminished closeness to a religious community and migration allowed people to separate

from their local community. This led to a greater focus on the national identity. Nationalism led

to competitiveness, imperialism, and eventually resulted in World War I. Governments also

started to claim that they did things on behalf of the nation.

The European Enlightenment thinkers challenged ancient traditions; and some called for

“destruction of those prejudices that have established an inequality of rights between the

sexes” (723). As cities industrialized, women gained more education and opportunities to

work. The Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, New York, argued that men and

women were created equal. In the 1870s, women started to focus on gaining suffrage. In the

1900s, they started attending universities. Discussion about the role of women in societies

was very divided. Women themselves disagreed in the basis of human rights; some believed

in it for the sake of equality, but others believed that women’s roles as mothers gave them the

right to participate in political life. The movement faced opposition because others argued that

education and life outside the household led to serious reproductive damage and put the

community in danger.

Sometimes I forget how recent these movements are in the scale of world history. You’d think

a century or two would be a long time, but women’s rights and the abolition of slavery was

not too long ago. I’m very grateful for the rights I have now: mainly education and suffrage.

Looking at these parts of history motivates me to do better since it reminds me that I have

opportunities that others did/do not have.

I wanted to address the feminist movement and how it has evolved. I don’t remember if it was

mentioned in the book, but there are true strains that were made in society when women

chose to leave the house and work. Today, there are many families with two working parents,

and none stay at home to take care of the kids. The kids eventually have to get babysitters, or

are taken care of by their grandparents. The children can still be properly taken care of, but

sometimes not with as much tender loving care as when the real parents are there. There

comes a sense of detachment, which worries me. This issue always troubles me because I

don’t believe women to be at home all the time, but both parents being away could be

detrimental to the child. Parents could always alternate, but sometimes you need both

salaries. Reading the book just reminded me of this because I have a five year-old brother.

And when he was younger, my mom always wanted to take care of him, but she couldn’t

because she had to work.

Thank you for reading and have a wonderful day! :)