Zagarri: Women and Politics

Dr. A. Hunter HST333 12 February 2018 Zagarri: Women and Politics In Revolutionary Backlash, Rosemarie Zagarri explores the evolution of changing perception of women’s involvement in the political realm following the American Revolution and towards Andrew Jackson’s presidency. The American Revolution had an immediate impact and changed the mass thought of the political status of females and developed a widespread debate over the definition of women’s rights.

The essential role of women in securing the American victory had created many new opportunities for women to find ways to participate, largely informally, throughout party and electoral politics. The majority of women took advantage of these developing opportunities and actively sought roles and engaged in American political life and culture. This active hope for engagement cut through the beginning of the Federal period, but backlash from conservative minded folk developed by the 1830s and caused the undermining of any political advancement for women.

Throughout the text, Zagarri uses the works of political women, letters from political women and the wives of men with political power, formal speeches for the fourth of July, fictional writings in newspapers, legislative records, and pamphlets. Zagarri uses the examples to emphasize the perceptions, from those in the elite class, on the involvement of women in political activities. The text takes the audience on an adventure throughout the evolution of ideologies on the rights of women, the political and life roles of women, and the responsibilities that lay on the shoulders of women. Zagarri’s text states, “By studying women of all social classes and races, their works have fruitfully revealed, among other things, a thriving female domestic economy, sophisticated social reform movements, and diverse notions of womanhood in the early republic” (Zagarri 3). Backlash in the 1820s and 1830s began a strong push-back and rejection of women as political equals or even participants as that of men. Zagarri poses the question, “Why had just a few short decades produced such a changed perception of women’s rights, roles and responsibilities?” (Zagarri 1). The first two chapters began the narrative by noting that the American Revolution was the main component in developing the opportunities and creating the rhetoric for the surge that could begin participation for females in politics. Women during this era boycotted imports, spun cloth, encouraged the men in their lives such as neighbors, husbands, and sons, collected donations for efforts, and maintained the Homefront in the absence of a male figure.

Zagarri notes that the efforts of women were often recognized and even rewarded. During the American revolution, American colonists drew on the ideology of God-given natural rights to justify their rebellion, in response to British colonial policies. The rhetoric of the time put a layer of haze over the ideology of what God-given rights pertained to. The cultural aspect of the time placed emphasis on owning property to be able to vote. This can be emphasized by looking specifically at New Jersey in 1776, the political atmosphere allowed property holding women to vote, unlike many other states, but this only lasted for a limited time. With the realm of politics slowly beginning to purge women back out, a sense of activism began to form, and women became political commentators, writers, and supporters.

Mary Wollstonecraft, a widely known “political woman,” opened the debate on women’s rights, which demanded respect and was taken rather seriously. The other influential women, as stated by Zagarri, were Mercy Otis Warren and Judith Sargent Murray, both of which participated in political movements for women. As termed by Zagarri as “Female Politicians,” the increasing number of women participated in politics and also showed genuine interest in political affairs. During this revolution, some welcomed the increase interest of politics in women; however, Zagarri argues that “American women and men feared for the future, a future that might involve a wholesale transformation in women’s rights, roles, and responsibilities. Female politicians were already pushing the boundaries of women’s acceptable forms of political involvement” (Zagarri 78). Women might become independent and be a formidable challenge to white male power. This change in character and stereotype could impact gender relations and pull apart the current fabric of society. This chance in change would cause Americans to decide whether they wanted to uphold the ideals of the Revolution, pertaining to women, or to ignore them in favor of maintain the current social and cultural hierarchy of society. In the third chapter, Zagarri explains the rise in women’s partisan support.

Women could not vote or participate in official movements of party politics. So, Federalists and Republicans alike saw the support from women as a positive sign towards nobility and purity. They believed women contained these traits inherently and their personal support would bring that narrative to light in the realm of party politics. The support of women provided a moral approval for a party’s platform and both parties sought out for favor among women. Zagarri argues that politics had surpassed the conversation of the elite and had entered itself into the domestic threshold. Women began to show support for a party through their presence, dress, domestic actions, and even through marriage. “At least one woman, and likely more, fell in love with a man’s politics as much as his person” (Zagarri 90).

Furthermore, in chapter four, Zagarri brought another piece of the puzzle to the table. Tensions were continuing to rise between some on how and if women deserved to have any recognizable role with politics and political reform. By the 1820s and 18302s, partisanship threatened to divide the nation. This lead to violence within Congress, at home, and even developed some conversations into the idea of secession. Zagarri believes that only one solution was viable and that was the removal of women from partisan politics.

Women forged into a new kind of political activity, one that in many ways barricaded their return to electoral politics, but created an acceptable political sphere for females only. This turned women towards social reform and compassionate societies to express their personal commitments to the common good. Some would argue that this was a step backwards for women; however, Zagarri explains that it allowed women to practically choose their own political life, even if they rejected the political uproars and labeling from the rest of society.

Republicans believed that the American Revolution was a struggle to transform social order, while Federalists saw it as a struggle with Britain over governmental ruling. Post revolution, Republicans gained the elevated moral ground and claimed voting as a natural right for everyone, but this was misinterpreted that the belief was that women should have the right to vote as well. However, the Republicans did not want to extend suffrage to women.

The belief was that universal male suffrage could only be maintained and kept superior if women remained in the nonvoting class. Zagarri argues that this move by the Republicans caused them more pain rather than improving their own cause. By making voting a privilege, a true justification was needed to be made clearly to explain the rationale on why some could not vote. This rationale kept the door open for women to fight for suffrage and keep the debates alive and well. In my opinion, the difference that kept a gap between men and women was because of the stereotypical gender normality’s and lack of thought to actively and collectively fight for women’s rights.

Zagarri uses the argument that rights, for men, were open ended. But, the rights for women were synonymous with their stereotypical duties. This means they had the right to take care of their husbands, teach their children, and promote moral virtues, much like a “good Republican Mother.” Zagarri continues to argue that “rather than accidental, the choice of the duty-bound version of rights for women seems deliberate and self-conscious” (Zagarri 177). This implies that these ideas came out of the thought and process of political activity and its development since the American Revolution. By the 1820s, American women were either pushed or voluntarily placed into “political invisibility” and “a collective amnesia seemed to set in” on their previous political roles (Zagarri 181).

Zagarri’s work has raised new questions on basic ideas for Early American Republic history. Such as self-interested reactions to female actions by white men, parallels between white women and African American Men on the topic of suffrage, and the development of feminism. This new perception on history and development of ideologies has begun to encompass many audiences and has developed many questions to what we believed was the foundation of our history. This text, Revolutionary Backlash, leaves the audience pondering one question. What was better for women, being a part of the mainstream political sphere or the movement to create their own? Works Cited: 1. Zagarri, Rosemarie. Revolutionary Backlash Women and Politics in the Early American Republic. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2011.