Introduction
Mary is a 33-years-old, middle-class woman from the mid-18th century U.S. Her husband works for a local government organization. Her life is not easy; she has to take care of her five children and do all the housework, which never seems to end. Her husband drinks much alcohol, and often subjects her to sexual abuse. However, her beliefs are compliant with the mainstream beliefs about women of her times.
Louise is a 26-years-old, lower-class woman from the mid-19th century U.S. She is divorced; her husband abandoned her when she had a miscarriage after he beat her, and she had to return to her family, where she was unwelcome. She works for a textile factory in terrible conditions. However, she is literate; she is also a more radical adherent of the movement for the women’s rights. She supports the Declaration of Sentiments and believes that women deserve not only the right to vote but also many other rights.
The Dialogue
Mary. I don’t understand what you’re saying. How should it be possible for women to vote in elections? Politics is the sphere of men; we know nothing about it! Females’ brains are made for simpler things; it has been so for centuries. We must look after the house and raise children! If we don’t, who will? My husband is always busy at work, and he also has to visit public events like meetings! Even if I could read about politics, where would I get time for my chores?
Louise. Of course women should be able to vote in elections! Men and women were created equal (Halsall, 1998); why can’t we take part in politics? Men usurped this sphere of life and hold it tightly, which does not allow us to protect our rights! I think that our half of the humanity must also be represented in politics. It also should be recognized that we play a crucial role in the future of humanity; we parent our children (Peltzman, 2006)! As for the time – well, some men could pay more attention to their kids, especially boys. Children need fathers, too!
Mary. What you are also saying is that women should have the rights to own property, too, as well as the wages they earn at work. While I can agree with the second claim, the first one is very doubtful. How can a woman own property when she cannot run it properly? I can’t imagine myself deciding what to do with my house, or choosing a different place to live. My husband, however, works for the government; like the rest of men, he knows this issue much better than I. Doesn’t it mean that men should always run property?
Louise. No, not really. Of course, most men can run property better than most women, because they are better educated and have much more experience in such matters. But that does not mean women cannot own and run property if they have some experience and training. Besides, being deprived of such rights means that men virtually own us, and we cannot live without them, cannot make decisions about anything substantial in our lives without them telling us what to do!
Mary. And how can we do that? How can we decide what to do in our lives, apart from being a housewife? The women’s place is in the house, has always been! We can only do the simplest work; we cannot have a good job because that is the men’s domain, and they have the necessary training to do it. We women do not have the education that a good job would require. We cannot go to college, and many of us do not even know how to write!
Louise. Exactly! Now you have outlined some more problems that prevent us from becoming our own mistresses. We cannot even study! That is why we can’t do work that is intellectually harder. What you are saying is that women are made for simpler things. Does that mean we are more stupid than men just because of our gender? How can you even know that if women were never given the chance to go to college or university? I say, let women do so, and we will prove ourselves! We will show that we can do well even in law and medicine, the most prestigious professions that are forbidden to us (Lerner, 2005, pp. 38-39)!
Mary. And the final issue that you mentioned, our intimate life. I cannot even imagine how a decent woman can talk about such things in public!… However, I must admit that there are problems. My husband is always beating me and does whatever he wants and whenever he wants to me. Although it is my duty to help him, or else he will sink into masturbation, which is, they say, worse for men than alcohol and tobacco – I don’t want him to become a cripple (Barker-Benfield, 2014, p. 128)! But he could certainly do everything in ways that are less painful to me. I am so tired after the full day of housework, and he just comes and rapes me. And, on the contrary, when I want something, he is almost never willing.
Louise. Masturbation is certainly a bad habit, but why must we let our husbands use and abuse us? We are people, not merely toys! So you are right when you say men shouldn’t abuse us. In fact, I think they shouldn’t be permitted to! But it they are allowed to do so by the law (Halsall, 1998) – isn’t that unjust? Isn’t that unfair towards women?
Mary. Yes… yes, I think it is.
Louise. See? I think we have much more in common than you might initially believe.
References
Barker-Benfield, G. J. (2014). The Horrors of the half-known life: Male attitudes toward women and sexuality in nineteenth-century America. New York, NY: Routledge.
Halsall. P. (Ed.). (1998). Modern history sourcebook: The Declaration of Sentiments, Seneca Falls Conference, 1848.Web.
Lerner, G. (2005). The majority finds its past: Placing women in history. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press.
Peltzman, B. R. (2006). Managing literacy, mothering America: Women’s narratives on reading and writing in the nineteenth century. History of Education Quarterly, 46(4), 663-665. Web.