Reformist Motherhood

1
Reformist Motherhood

• Women in Antebellum South

2
A Comparison Separate Spheres of White Women

• Northern Region Empowerment
• New Middle Class
• Home Glorious Temple
• Church Affirmation of Feminine character traits
• Community Associations
• Working Class Women
• Wages Independence
• Teachers and Factory Workers

3
A Comparison Separate Spheres of White Women

• Southern Region Patriarchy
• Womans Sphere Defined by
• Men
• Southern Ideal Defined by Proslavery Argument
• Agrarian Lifestyle
• Impact
• Dominance by Men
• Limited access to community, associations and
  education

4
Three Groups of White Women Social Class

• Small Farms/No Slaves
• Shared work responsibilities in home and field
• Most of white population in south
• Poorly educated
• Small Plantations with Slaves
• No longer needed to work in the fields
• Large Plantations
• Managerial roles for managing labor force
• 5 of the Southern white households
• Not in Charge

5
What Do We Know?

• Personal Diaries, Not Published Writing
• Hostile toward Slavery
• Hostile toward Sexual Relations between White
  Men/Enslaved Women
• Blamed the enslaved woman
• Evils of Slaves
• The Cruel Mistress, Angelina Grimke

6
Enslaved Woman

• End of Slave Trade 1807
• Increased Value of enslaved woman in
  reproductive years
• Producers of Slaves Source of Empowerment
• Harriet Jacobs Linda Brent