Feminism 19th and Early 20th Century America

Writing and woman suffrage were inextricably intertwined in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Suffrage gave them a voice, and they used that voice to challenge the early American patriarchal status quo. By examining those works, new light can be brought to bear on suffrage activists, who at the time were thought to be an unimportant fringe group. Through a study of their work, we can learn more about their day-to-day lives.

According to Sandra Harding in McClish and Bacon (p. 28), one's own knowledge depends on one's position in society. When one is a subordinate in the social hierarchy, one understands life differently than someone at the top of the social hierarchy. However, as the most powerful write history, it tends to be rather one-sided. Since that is the case, Harding argues that these different viewpoints are equally valid. By looking at...
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