The Moral Reform Societies: The Power Of Women

The Power of Women Reform movements are an essential part of society in order to highlight the troubles that plaque a society, causes of hardships for the community, and what individuals should do. The Moral Reform Societies in the northern states from 1835 to 1841, examined the problem of licentiousness that was overtaking their communities. These societies looked at ways in which they could stop these acts and redefine how women were perceived when these acts happened. Wright and Sklar compiled a series of firsthand documents to analyze the ways in which the Moral Reform Societies appealed to antebellum northern women. Through these documents, these societies appealed to women that they need to focus on prevention, exert their power over
Women in these societies began to attack the reclamation efforts that have been into place in the Northern societies. The “First Annual Report of the Female Moral Reform Society of the City of New York” in 1835 described how the efforts to stop the tide of licentiousness by trying to reclaim the “fallen women”, although important, will not be enough to halt the rapidly growing problem of sexual deviancy (Wright and Sklar). This report asserted that “there is quite little hope reforming “strange women” as in reforming drunkards” and that these women “seem to not have the power to break the chains that bind them to their sins” (Wright and Sklar). This establishes that in order to stop more women from turning to the life of sin, they need to focus on the people who have not yet been touched by the sins and temptations. A component of prevention came from the idea of self-work. The “Essay Read at a monthly prayer meeting of an auxiliary Female Moral Reform Society” in 1839 proposed that it is the women’s job to safe guard her own thoughts and feelings when it came to the opposite sex (Wright and Sklar). Protecting and being consciousness of one’s own mind, was an essential step in prevention because it stopped the impurities and sin from entering the mind in the first place. Mothers and other women were not only a central figure in
This appealed to women because it placed their role outside of the domestic sphere and gave them a sense of control. A letter written in response to men claiming they should be at heart of the reform societies because men work better in a public sphere, stated that women’s “influence is all powerful” (Wright and Sklar). This pointed out that women had a collective responsibility to stop the sins such as licentiousness and this letter again highlighted the maternal influence that women have over the future generation. The “Essay Read at a monthly prayer meeting of an auxiliary Female Moral Reform Society” also highlighted the maternal power women had to protect and influence the next generation to make sound decisions, in order to live a life of virtue (wright and Sklar). In response to the men’s arguments against women being involved, women explained that they were not trying to leave their domestic sphere, but were exerting the “influence of which they are the acknowledged possessors, on the side of truth and virtue” (Wright and Sklar). Women were often the victims of sins, such a licentiousness, so they believed they were the proper ones to deal with the issue. Although women felt that they had a responsibility and power, when it came to sin they believed both sexes were