Blog #2

Source Interpretation and Research

1. What is Patriarchy?

Patriarchy is when the power of a group or society is completely controlled by the male figure. An example of this is when a family is mostly powered by the father.

2. What is the document about?

The document talks about the differences between man and woman. It states how women are treated differently and also talks about the expectations that women have throughout their lives such as the care they are to give to the family in order to keep the family strong and united as one. Rousseau tries to point out the distinct roles that men and women play and also mentions that they should not “violate his faith.”

3. How does Rousseau justify gender inequality?

Rousseau justifies gender by stating that it is important that men and women do not carry out the same roles in society; since he believes that the division of men and women is caused by “nature” and not by “human institutions.” An example of this is when women are the ones who give birth to children and therefore responsible to the opposite sex.

4. Are his arguments valid? Why or why not?

I believe that Rousseau sets out interesting valid points. Yes, a women is able to bear children and has many roles to play as a woman in raising her children. However, I do not believe that the unfaithful women is able to destroy the family more so than the male, because the unfaithful male is able to break the marriage just as much as the woman can. When an unfaithful man leaves his family he has just destroyed not only the foundation of the house financially but emotionally for his children as well.

Textbook: Chapter 1
1. Given the enormous variety among Native American women, are there any generalizations we can draw about their experiences in the era of conquest?

The experiences of the various Native American women during the era of conquest were similar in that changes were brought upon to every tribe that existed among the indigenous people. All the native women had been disrupted by a new way of life in which they would eventually have to adapt. All natives had their own duties depending on which region they were settled. The Native Americans were affected in many ways such as the spread of smallpox which was brought in my the Europeans (5). This caused a huge “wipe out” of the Native American people. The European countries tried to influence the native Americans by preaching Catholicism throughout the tribes. The European men that had colonized allowed the native Americans to go into their colonies and work as slaves. While working as slaves in the colonies, many of these Native American women slaves had made children with the European men creating mixed-races of European and Native Americans (6). Many of the Native American women eventually began marrying European traders and were able to introduce them to the Native American culture. Many saw these women as being the “mediators” between cultures (14).

2. What insights does a gendered history of slavery bring to our understanding of the origins of slavery in North America?

Slavery has always been a large part of American history. Gender played a large role as well. The white women that lived in the colonies were sometimes seen as laborers even though the work they did was not done in the fields, but as chores in the household. Many of them were indentured as they first went into the colonies. Then, Africans were introduced as the new laborers. The lives of white women had changed when more African slaves were available. Africans were always the servants but had now become the slaves that were owned and could not leave their masters. Laws that were passed made everything even worse for the slaves because the law showed the basic differences between the blacks and white women’s roles. This also allowed for another law which allowed enslavement to be passed to the children of the enslaved women. This caused many of the white male slave-owners to rape their slaves.

3. What were the most significant differences among European women colonists?

The European women colonists had differences in that the women in Chesapeake and the Carolinas were lower and subordinate to the men and had a less freedoms than that of those in other colonies. The women in Chesapeake who were married usually had all their possession owned by their husbands. The women did not have too many legal rights. The New England colonies favored the women more than the other colonies. The Puritan New Englanders “encouraged love and respect between husbands and wives“(25). Also, unlike the Chesapeake, the New Englanders traveled as family groups while those in Chesapeake only had the males migrate. Since the New Englanders were Puritans, they were also more religious than those in Chesapeake and the Carolinas which is why family was more important.