Readings due for tomorrow's class discussion were quite short and direct to the point. First wave feminism sought and fought for women's suffrage, to be included in political decision making and thus included in society where they have been excluded.
In some ways I was surprised to read that Lucretia Mott was refused permission to speak at the world anti-slavery convention in London, even though she had been an official delegate. Did they not invite her to speak? Then again times then were much different than they are today for most women in the world, and we have only Mott and women like her to thank for that. If not for her and her colleagues women's rights may still look very much like they did in the 19th century. However, things are different yet two waves have not answered all of our questions or needs. In an ever changing society and world so will our needs and wants need to be changed. People regardless of creed are excluded for one reason or another. We, as women, will always have to fight to be included and accepted. That may be pessimistic but that is what I believe.
Out of all three readings I truly enjoyed reading Sojourner Truth "Ain't I a Women?" It was powerful and moving. Here she is a women, a black women, a slave who sees and acknowledge her differences than Mott and women like Mott but still hopes for Motts success. "Then that little man in black there, he says women can't have as much rights as men, 'cause Christ wasn't a woman! Where did your Christ come from? Where did your Christ come from? From God and a woman! Man had nothing to do with Him." is my favorite part of this speech. If you are a Christian and believe in Jesus than Sojourner is absolutely right!!! I love her spunk and attitude.
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Hi all,
ReplyDeleteThis is a nice set of posts about today's readings, or more specifically, Sojourner Truth's speech. I'm glad to hear that this speech had an impact both on your understanding of first wave feminism, and your ways of thinking about women's situation in the world today. Alex, the connection you draw between Truth's ideas and our current political situation are right on the money. Let's bring this up in class today.
As a general guideline, your main post would be stronger if it explored the readings in a bit more depth. Though these are rather short essays, it would be helpful to think about the ways in which these authors might respond to one another, and how their ideas relate to one another -- and our class discussions, as well.