Revolutionary Mothers: Women In The Struggle For America's Independence?
Kieu Anh Hoang
Ms. Sheryl Ballard
History 1301
7th Feb, 2015
Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence by Carol Berkin (New York: Knopf Publishing Group, 2005). 194pp. Reviewed by Kieu Anh Hoang, Feb 1st, 2015 Carol Berkin was born in Mobile, Alabama, but educated in New York City. She received her bachelor’s degree from Barnard College. Her M.A and PhD were from Columbia University where she won the Bancroft Award for Outstanding Dissertation, and also she was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize with her subsequent book: Jonathan Sewall: Odyssey of An American Loyalist. Now, at Baruch College, she is Presidential Professor of History, and a member of CUNY Graduate Center’s history faculty. She is a pioneer and …show more content…
expert in early women’s history of colonial American. Also she is the author, and editor, who has written widely on the subject, and published several of readers, textbooks, and teaching guides: Women of America: A History (1980), Brilliant Solution: Inventing the American Constitution (2001), which was one of her most popular works, has been translated into Chinese and Polish, Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for American Independence (2005), and Clio in the Classroom: A guide to teaching Women’s History (2009). She has two secondary school textbooks, American History, and a college Making America textbook. In addition, Professor Berkin has worked for numerous history channel documentaries, including the programs, The “Scottsboro Boys,” which was an Academy Award’ nomination for the best documentary of 2000, some series: “New York: A Documentary Film,” by Ric Burns, “Alexander Hamilton,” “Benjamin Franklin,” and “The Founding Fathers.” Professor Berkin had grown up in Alabama, and her life was fulfilled with the Civil War- or the War of Northern Aggression. Therefore, when she reached college in New York City, she was helped by three of the most astonishing history professors: Sidney Burrell, Norman Cantor, and Annette Baxter. She found the appeals of the 20th century American history, which lacked the mystery and novelty, was more interesting than the rest, especially the 19th one. She was directly attracted by the era’s colony and its dramatic climax, when there was a revolution. At her grad school’s time, in the Stone Age, no one even considered that women would be a field to study in the future, so did she. She worked on a male Loyalist dissertation, but later, when she began teaching, she changed her mind. Her women colleagues and she had started to ask bunches of exhilarating questions about their gender in the past: Where were the women in their account of the past? How would picture change if they looked at events through a gendered lens? Those questions caused her a lot of thinking, but deepened when her daughter was born, Mrs. Berkin commitment to early American women’s history studying. After three decades swirling in her head, the book was finally worked on. Because she wanted her daughter could look into the mirror studying of the past, reflect herself in there, and discover the world. Therefore, she had the inspiration to research, write to insure, and publish it to everybody, especial for her children. In the book, Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America’s Independence, Carol Berkin’s studying shows the life of a woman in the eighteen century was very different from now. During the Revolution era, if people emphasize man as a braver fought for his country’s freedom, the image of a woman is greatly minimized. Even though, both men and women were involving in the military, and playing an active and vital role, women’s contributions for our nation were completely left out. To prove that, Professor Berkin not only focuses on lower but also higher social class such as: Colonial white women, African-Americans, and Native Americans. She looks at the women whom she writes with admired eyes because of their qualities like: physical strength, mental toughness, courage, intelligent, and resourcefulness. Also she describes the war through every kind of people patriot and loyalist, American and British women, and how ordinary or famous women were took part in, and affected by the revolution. Finally, she leaves the readers wondering why the right of these women did not rise up. Mrs. Berkin verified her thesis little by little in each chapter of her book. The first one focused on the role of women in colonial society in two different period of time. From 1600s to 1700s, women had almost no right, and were seen as helpmates to their husband to make successful family. However, since the mid-1700s, they took on the role of a “pretty gentlewoman”, pleased their men, and had their servants completed all household tasks. On chapter two, she discusses about the rise of women’s political action, and it was positively received. Then women started to see their daily actions as political acts, and became more concerned about their future civic duties. The challenges of a home-front war were focused on in chapter three: shortages of food and goods, soldiers needed, and women’s sacrifice. When war came, women had to leave their home to run farms, or business, or to keep their children safe, and even destroyed their property, then became the subject to being killed. After that, she compared the contrast of attitudes between the lower class, camp followers, and the upper class, the wives of generals in chapter four and five. Ones served other as a servant: they cooked and did the laundry in the military, also as a nurse to help injured soldiers. With different reasons but same job: serving for the armies would be able to function, however, they were seen as disgusting by who did not know what they had done. The other ones just appeared when there were parties, and disappeared when fighting occurred. With their high-esteem and their noble actions, other people would have mistaken to recognize who they really were.
Next chapter explained why the loyalist women chose to be on the British side, and lost their change to live in their homeland. Similarity, Native American women felt the British presented them the best opportunity than ever, and they supported them. So that, their plays did not have any influence, because the American said that way of life was meeting the end point in chapter seven. The plight of African-American was told in chapter eight. It was very hard to live for free blacks and slaves women before the revolution, but it was still better than after the war. The travelers believed in the British army, however their plight did not progress. About the spies and couriers in the revolution, they also served adeptly in their roles to help the British with no doubt and received the worthy reward. In final chapter, Berkin focused on the American Revolution’s legacy. Everything seemed to be similar no matter prior or after the war happened for women, although their capacities were very huge in the military.
Besides that, there are numerous extensive footnotes, which means there are several sources were used. For example, more than two hundreds footnotes were counted in the book, made it rich and lively, and come from different kinds: memoirs, letter of correspondence, or personal dairies, especially Elizabeth Ellet, the author of Women of the American Revolution, because her work and memories were fresh, even though, had some bias. They were also from legal opinions, law books, and articles from newspaper of that time about social history. Her quotations in the book were taken from another ones published in the 1600s-1700s such as: The Book of Negroes, or Edenton Resolves, and the Philipsburg Proclamation. Reading from The Book of Negroes, “…The Peggy also carried a young woman named Mary, listed as the property of her husband Joe, who ‘owned himself,’”(128) the readers can see the human side for a loyalist’s particular group. Also showing the answer of the question why both patriots and loyalists act like that. Some sources were historical books, which concentrated on only women and their roles, their legal right in the colonies. Those sources give readers a lot of evidences to look at the book Revolution Mothers as a scholarly, effective, and accurate argument. Carol Berkin was doing a really good job. Her used of letters also raised her up to new level. They showed the reader where the characters were distressed by poverty, or were fighting, begging each other. “…the children will starve, or if they do not, they must freeze, we have no wood, and neither can we get any.”(33) Some letters can let readers know who the sender and the receiver was like: spouses to spouses, women to women. In the book, Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence, the most arresting thread is that women were active take part in the social without asking for the equal right at that time, 1775-1783, except some in chapter five. They did not just stay at home, do nothing and wait for their husband to rescue them in the war time. First, playing as a wife, actually a helpmate, women spent their life doing housework: take care of, house to clean, mouths to feed, wound to heal, or farm work. At home, they had to obey, agree, believe their husband, acted like their property. Next, being in an organization of pre-war boycotts, then “camp followers”, they did laundry, cooked, and sewed for troops on both sides of the fight, and being as couriers, or spies, saboteurs convert operatives. The second thing that grasp my mind is that after women recognized their value, they started to rise their right, kept requesting, even though nobody answered them. Their efforts seemed worthless because both before and after the war their roles were not move anywhere.
Though, Carl Berkin has managed the skilled historian and thoughtfulness of a master storyteller, she wrote the Revolutionary Mothers book at very basic level with jaunty style including a bunch of anecdotes. It is compact and informative, and fit in with who want a brief but enough history events and information. It also suitable for readers of all descriptions: novice, secondary school, undergrads, grad students, teachers, labors, old-school people, who love discovering how history happened, flowed. The reader looking for docudrama book, in which huge events are reflected through the lens of personal experiences, will enjoy and learn new things from this book. Especially, this book is written for women’s lover, who always fight for women’s right, they will know more and have worthy information for their studying. There will be no regret to take a first step to decide Revolutionary Mothers is the bed-book to read tonight. It is worth the time.
Bibliography
Harrigan, Diane. "Carol Berkin: History’s Advocate." Carol Berkin: Historys Advocate. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
"Biography." IMDb. IMDb.com. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
Pela, Robrt. "The Salon: Writing History 's Heroines." The Salon: Writing History 's Heroines. 3 Oct. 2014. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
Hattem, Michael. "Interviews with Historians: Carol Berkin." The Junto. 17 Dec. 2013. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
Berkin, Carol. "The Easy Tak of Obeying." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 1. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 3-11. Print.
Berkin, Carol.
"They Say It Is Tea That Caused It." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 2. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 12-25. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "You Can Form No Idea of the Horrors." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 3. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 27-49. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "Such A Sordid Set of Creatures in Human Figure." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 4. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 50-66. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "How Unhappy Is War to Domestic Happiness." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 5. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 67-91. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "A Hourney Across Ye Wilderness." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 6. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 92-106. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "The Women Must Hear Our Words." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 7. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 107-120. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "The Day of Jubilee Is Come." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol.8 . New York: Knopf :, 2005. 135-147.
Print.
Berkin, Carol. "It Was I Who Did It." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 9. New York: Knopf :, 2005.148 -162. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "Ther Is No Sex In Soul." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 10. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 163-174. Print.
Ms. Sheryl Ballard
History 1301
7th Feb, 2015
Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence by Carol Berkin (New York: Knopf Publishing Group, 2005). 194pp. Reviewed by Kieu Anh Hoang, Feb 1st, 2015 Carol Berkin was born in Mobile, Alabama, but educated in New York City. She received her bachelor’s degree from Barnard College. Her M.A and PhD were from Columbia University where she won the Bancroft Award for Outstanding Dissertation, and also she was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize with her subsequent book: Jonathan Sewall: Odyssey of An American Loyalist. Now, at Baruch College, she is Presidential Professor of History, and a member of CUNY Graduate Center’s history faculty. She is a pioneer and …show more content…
expert in early women’s history of colonial American. Also she is the author, and editor, who has written widely on the subject, and published several of readers, textbooks, and teaching guides: Women of America: A History (1980), Brilliant Solution: Inventing the American Constitution (2001), which was one of her most popular works, has been translated into Chinese and Polish, Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for American Independence (2005), and Clio in the Classroom: A guide to teaching Women’s History (2009). She has two secondary school textbooks, American History, and a college Making America textbook. In addition, Professor Berkin has worked for numerous history channel documentaries, including the programs, The “Scottsboro Boys,” which was an Academy Award’ nomination for the best documentary of 2000, some series: “New York: A Documentary Film,” by Ric Burns, “Alexander Hamilton,” “Benjamin Franklin,” and “The Founding Fathers.” Professor Berkin had grown up in Alabama, and her life was fulfilled with the Civil War- or the War of Northern Aggression. Therefore, when she reached college in New York City, she was helped by three of the most astonishing history professors: Sidney Burrell, Norman Cantor, and Annette Baxter. She found the appeals of the 20th century American history, which lacked the mystery and novelty, was more interesting than the rest, especially the 19th one. She was directly attracted by the era’s colony and its dramatic climax, when there was a revolution. At her grad school’s time, in the Stone Age, no one even considered that women would be a field to study in the future, so did she. She worked on a male Loyalist dissertation, but later, when she began teaching, she changed her mind. Her women colleagues and she had started to ask bunches of exhilarating questions about their gender in the past: Where were the women in their account of the past? How would picture change if they looked at events through a gendered lens? Those questions caused her a lot of thinking, but deepened when her daughter was born, Mrs. Berkin commitment to early American women’s history studying. After three decades swirling in her head, the book was finally worked on. Because she wanted her daughter could look into the mirror studying of the past, reflect herself in there, and discover the world. Therefore, she had the inspiration to research, write to insure, and publish it to everybody, especial for her children. In the book, Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America’s Independence, Carol Berkin’s studying shows the life of a woman in the eighteen century was very different from now. During the Revolution era, if people emphasize man as a braver fought for his country’s freedom, the image of a woman is greatly minimized. Even though, both men and women were involving in the military, and playing an active and vital role, women’s contributions for our nation were completely left out. To prove that, Professor Berkin not only focuses on lower but also higher social class such as: Colonial white women, African-Americans, and Native Americans. She looks at the women whom she writes with admired eyes because of their qualities like: physical strength, mental toughness, courage, intelligent, and resourcefulness. Also she describes the war through every kind of people patriot and loyalist, American and British women, and how ordinary or famous women were took part in, and affected by the revolution. Finally, she leaves the readers wondering why the right of these women did not rise up. Mrs. Berkin verified her thesis little by little in each chapter of her book. The first one focused on the role of women in colonial society in two different period of time. From 1600s to 1700s, women had almost no right, and were seen as helpmates to their husband to make successful family. However, since the mid-1700s, they took on the role of a “pretty gentlewoman”, pleased their men, and had their servants completed all household tasks. On chapter two, she discusses about the rise of women’s political action, and it was positively received. Then women started to see their daily actions as political acts, and became more concerned about their future civic duties. The challenges of a home-front war were focused on in chapter three: shortages of food and goods, soldiers needed, and women’s sacrifice. When war came, women had to leave their home to run farms, or business, or to keep their children safe, and even destroyed their property, then became the subject to being killed. After that, she compared the contrast of attitudes between the lower class, camp followers, and the upper class, the wives of generals in chapter four and five. Ones served other as a servant: they cooked and did the laundry in the military, also as a nurse to help injured soldiers. With different reasons but same job: serving for the armies would be able to function, however, they were seen as disgusting by who did not know what they had done. The other ones just appeared when there were parties, and disappeared when fighting occurred. With their high-esteem and their noble actions, other people would have mistaken to recognize who they really were.
Next chapter explained why the loyalist women chose to be on the British side, and lost their change to live in their homeland. Similarity, Native American women felt the British presented them the best opportunity than ever, and they supported them. So that, their plays did not have any influence, because the American said that way of life was meeting the end point in chapter seven. The plight of African-American was told in chapter eight. It was very hard to live for free blacks and slaves women before the revolution, but it was still better than after the war. The travelers believed in the British army, however their plight did not progress. About the spies and couriers in the revolution, they also served adeptly in their roles to help the British with no doubt and received the worthy reward. In final chapter, Berkin focused on the American Revolution’s legacy. Everything seemed to be similar no matter prior or after the war happened for women, although their capacities were very huge in the military.
Besides that, there are numerous extensive footnotes, which means there are several sources were used. For example, more than two hundreds footnotes were counted in the book, made it rich and lively, and come from different kinds: memoirs, letter of correspondence, or personal dairies, especially Elizabeth Ellet, the author of Women of the American Revolution, because her work and memories were fresh, even though, had some bias. They were also from legal opinions, law books, and articles from newspaper of that time about social history. Her quotations in the book were taken from another ones published in the 1600s-1700s such as: The Book of Negroes, or Edenton Resolves, and the Philipsburg Proclamation. Reading from The Book of Negroes, “…The Peggy also carried a young woman named Mary, listed as the property of her husband Joe, who ‘owned himself,’”(128) the readers can see the human side for a loyalist’s particular group. Also showing the answer of the question why both patriots and loyalists act like that. Some sources were historical books, which concentrated on only women and their roles, their legal right in the colonies. Those sources give readers a lot of evidences to look at the book Revolution Mothers as a scholarly, effective, and accurate argument. Carol Berkin was doing a really good job. Her used of letters also raised her up to new level. They showed the reader where the characters were distressed by poverty, or were fighting, begging each other. “…the children will starve, or if they do not, they must freeze, we have no wood, and neither can we get any.”(33) Some letters can let readers know who the sender and the receiver was like: spouses to spouses, women to women. In the book, Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence, the most arresting thread is that women were active take part in the social without asking for the equal right at that time, 1775-1783, except some in chapter five. They did not just stay at home, do nothing and wait for their husband to rescue them in the war time. First, playing as a wife, actually a helpmate, women spent their life doing housework: take care of, house to clean, mouths to feed, wound to heal, or farm work. At home, they had to obey, agree, believe their husband, acted like their property. Next, being in an organization of pre-war boycotts, then “camp followers”, they did laundry, cooked, and sewed for troops on both sides of the fight, and being as couriers, or spies, saboteurs convert operatives. The second thing that grasp my mind is that after women recognized their value, they started to rise their right, kept requesting, even though nobody answered them. Their efforts seemed worthless because both before and after the war their roles were not move anywhere.
Though, Carl Berkin has managed the skilled historian and thoughtfulness of a master storyteller, she wrote the Revolutionary Mothers book at very basic level with jaunty style including a bunch of anecdotes. It is compact and informative, and fit in with who want a brief but enough history events and information. It also suitable for readers of all descriptions: novice, secondary school, undergrads, grad students, teachers, labors, old-school people, who love discovering how history happened, flowed. The reader looking for docudrama book, in which huge events are reflected through the lens of personal experiences, will enjoy and learn new things from this book. Especially, this book is written for women’s lover, who always fight for women’s right, they will know more and have worthy information for their studying. There will be no regret to take a first step to decide Revolutionary Mothers is the bed-book to read tonight. It is worth the time.
Bibliography
Harrigan, Diane. "Carol Berkin: History’s Advocate." Carol Berkin: Historys Advocate. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
"Biography." IMDb. IMDb.com. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
Pela, Robrt. "The Salon: Writing History 's Heroines." The Salon: Writing History 's Heroines. 3 Oct. 2014. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
Hattem, Michael. "Interviews with Historians: Carol Berkin." The Junto. 17 Dec. 2013. Web. 12 Feb. 2015.
Berkin, Carol. "The Easy Tak of Obeying." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 1. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 3-11. Print.
Berkin, Carol.
"They Say It Is Tea That Caused It." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 2. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 12-25. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "You Can Form No Idea of the Horrors." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 3. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 27-49. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "Such A Sordid Set of Creatures in Human Figure." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 4. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 50-66. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "How Unhappy Is War to Domestic Happiness." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 5. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 67-91. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "A Hourney Across Ye Wilderness." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 6. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 92-106. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "The Women Must Hear Our Words." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 7. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 107-120. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "The Day of Jubilee Is Come." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol.8 . New York: Knopf :, 2005. 135-147.
Print.
Berkin, Carol. "It Was I Who Did It." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 9. New York: Knopf :, 2005.148 -162. Print.
Berkin, Carol. "Ther Is No Sex In Soul." Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America 's Independence. 1st ed. Vol. 10. New York: Knopf :, 2005. 163-174. Print.