As an aristocratic woman never intended to inherit her father’s duchy and living in the socially constricted confines of the Middle Ages, Eleanor of Aquitaine led a surprisingly long and influential life. She was the queen consort to two kings of two different, yet both powerful, European countries; conspired with her sons to lead a revolt against her husband; and even after being imprisoned for over ten years, she persevered and exerted herself to protect her rights, her ancestral lands, and her children.…
Abigail Adams married John Adams on October 25, 1764. John Adams was a lawyer at the time and was away most of the time. Soon after, John Adams worked his way up serving time in Congress to becoming vice president and then to be president of the United State. They had six children, but one died after a year and one that was stillborn. Abigail Adams had the responsibility of raising and teaching her children, plus working on the farm.…
Sensory details emphasize that Eleanor Roosevelt had a troubled childhood, filled with loneliness and discomfort. In the later years of her life she referred to her younger self as a “blue eyed rather ugly little girl.” This statement accentuates Eleanor’s lack of confidence in herself as a child. However, this uncertainty about herself as a kid likely contributed to her success as an adult. Second, Eleanor wrote that during “mother’s hour,” time Anna would spend with her kids in an attempt to reconnect their broken family. She wrote that she “felt a curious barrier between (herself) and (those) three.” Even within Eleanor’s own family, she felt disconnected and unlike them. Not only was there an emotional detachment from the rest of her family,…
In her time, not many women were educated, but she differed from these women. The time period did not allow for women to choose their husband, most marriages being set up and political, and women were also restricted from requesting a divorce. Women were not allowed the freedom to rule as Queen without the male heir, or King, with them. In Eleanor’s era, Queens were considered useless if they failed to produce a male heir. Women were not respected and “unintelligent”. Eleanor was an extraordinary queen who landed herself a spot in the history books by influencing society beyond the world of politics, changing the way the world viewed love, romance, and chivalry, and by displaying to all of mankind that women were accomplished…
Born Sarah Breedlove on December 23, 1867 on a Louisiana plantation,Walker transformed herself from an uneducated farm worker of the twentieth century's most successful, self-made women entrepreneurs. Orphaned at age seven, she often said, "I got my start by giving myself a start." She and her older sister, Louvenia, survived by working in the cotton fields of Vicksburg, Mississippi. At 14, she married Moses McWilliams to escape abuse from her cruel brother-in-law, Jesse Powell.…
Eleanor Roosevelt was born to Elliott Bulloch Roosevelt and Anna Hall Roosevelt in 1884. Eleanor believed she was the ugly duckling out of the three children and doubted if she would ever amount to much. However with encouragement from her Uncle Theodore Roosevelt and her Aunt Anna “Bamie” Roosevelt, she decided to attend a private finishing school. At the finishing school, she not only received a superb education but gained self-confidence from her teachers and classmates. At the age of twenty-one, she married her fifth cousin, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Her husband became President of the United States in 1933, which helped Eleanor become a well-known political figure for the rest of her life. Despite her liberal views, she helped the country…
“Just put place a little trust in him, Delta. There has to be an adequate reason that we’re bringing her along,” Walker responds, slamming the trunk shut. Delta shakes her head, ready to retort a response, when Eleanor walks out of the house. She looks much more put together than before, her blond hair in a neat braid and not a trace of the tear that were there before. But there’s still a haunting looking behind her eyes, one of fear and, under that, frustration. She strides down the stairs, towards the car.…
Madam C.J. Walker was born Sarah Breedlove, on December 23, 1867 in Delta, Louisiana to Owen and Minerva Breedlove. She was one of six children. Madam C. J. Walker moved in with her older sister, and brother-in-law, Willie Powell. She married Moses McWilliams when she was 14 years old to get a home of her own to escape Powell's abuse. Three years later her daughter, Lelia McWilliams was born.…
My favorite person from American history is Eleanor Roosevelt. She was born in New York City on October 11th, 1884 and died on November 7th, 1962 at the age of 78. In 1905, Eleanor married her distant cousin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, who would later become president. While he was president, he suffered from a polio attack and Roosevelt stepped in and helped him with his political career as the First Lady.…
Eleanor Roosevelt once said, "In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our own responsibility." Roosevelt lived this phrase vividly in her own life, as she actively worked for major causes until the day she died. Working constantly to further the women's movement and foreign relations, along with sharing information via the media to the public, Eleanor campaigned throughout her whole life to impact the modern world. She helped to create the world she wanted to live in, something she firmly believed in. Eleanor Roosevelt was an inspiring figure who benefitted society by aiding the women's rights…
Theodore Roosevelt was born on October 27, 1858, and grew up in New York City, the second of four children. His father, Theodore, Sr., was a well-to-do businessman and philanthropist. His mother, Martha "Mittie" Roosevelt, was a Southerner, raised on a plantation in Georgia. "Teedie" grew up surrounded by the love of his parents and siblings. But he was always a sickly child afflicted with asthma. As a teenager, he decided that he would "make his body," and he undertook a program of gymnastics and weight-lifting, which helped him develop a rugged physique. Thereafter, Roosevelt became a lifelong advocate of exercise and the "strenuous life." He always found time for physical exertions including hiking, riding horses, and swimming. As a young…
In this chapter, Dorothy Lee’s reading gave us a good view of different types of cultures and the personal autonomy of the people .Lee believes that “the principle of personal autonomy is supported by the cultural framework" (lee,5) She explores this by comparing our Western society to several north American aboriginal societies. When we think of our society we are only free to do things to a limit. Whether that limit may be good or bad, otherwise our individual autonomy is restricted in this society. The key problem that Dorothy Lee is addressing in this reading is the conflict between individual autonomy and social structure. Lee presents different material from a number of different societies to show “how the principle of personal autonomy is supported by the cultural framework” (lee, 1). She shows that this conflict has been resolved in the aboriginal society. In this essay I will talk about the respect the Natives have for each other’s individual integrity. Lee says “In every society we find some organized social unit; but not everywhere does the social unit provide freedom to the individual or the opportunity for spontaneous functioning; nor do we find a value for sheer personal being” (Lee, 7). In particular I will show how this situation has been resolved, when she talks about child bearing in the Wintu Indian society.…
The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a play that takes place in 1692 in the small Massachusetts village of Salem. Salem is a Puritan community; they are a very restrictive society with strong beliefs. They believe in hard work and prayer, therefore they consider material and sexual desires unnatural and evil. Abigail Williams, the main character is the reason for the witch trials that begin in Salem. She is dishonest, manipulative and her seductive ways is what makes her the antagonist of this play.…
Sojourner Truth, a well known Women’s Rights Activist and Civil Rights Activist, was born in 1797 to James and Elizabeth Baumfree. Born in the town of Swartekill, New York, her birth name was Isabella (Belle) Baumfree and she was one of twelve children. Due to her mother and father both being the property of Colonel Hardenbergh, Sojourner Truth was also considered the property of Hardenburgh. Though when Hardenbergh died in 1806, Sojourner Truth was nine years old and had been sold to John Neely. Two years later, after being sold to John Neely with a flock of sheep for one-hundred dollars, she was sold to Martins Schryver for one-hundred and five dollars. Martins Schryver then sold her in 1810, two years after he bought her, to John Dumont, who was her last…
The bonds of slavery and inequality are deeper than any other. Almost 10 million African Americans were affected by slavery and slave trade. Sojourner Truth, a former slave, fought for the abolition of enslavement and fairness to the women of America to have equal rights with men.…