With the end of hostilities with Britain and the abandonment of things "European," Americans began to experience the realization of democracy and independence in their relationships amongst themselves. Families were no longer strictly patriarchal and hierarchical in nature; because of the democratic revolution, all members of the American family were important and more equal than in previous decades. Children were no longer considered "little adults," but human beings who needed affection, guidance, and cultivation in order to become mature people. Likewise, the status of American women began to undergo a significant change. While the early 1800s can not be characterized as a period of radical feminism comparable to the 1960s and 70s, it could be defined as an age in which the traditional role of women in American society was questioned and often challenged.

Perceptions of Women in the 19th Century
During the early 1800s, Americans generally believed that there was a definite difference in character between the sexes -- man was active, dominant, assertive, and materialistic, while woman was religious, modest, passive, submissive, and domestic. As a result, there developed an ideal of American womanhood, or a "cult of true womanhood" as denoted by historian Barbara Welter. This cult, evident in women's magazines and religious literature of the day, espoused four basic attributes of female character: piety, purity, submissiveness,domesticity.

1) Religion/Piety was the "core of woman's virtue, the source of her strength" (Welter, 21). Religion was a gift of God, given so that the "Universe might be Enlightened, Improved, and Harmonized by WOMAN!! (Philadelphia, 1840, quoted in Welter, 22). Women were expected to be the "handmaids of the Gospel," serving as a purifying force in the lives of erring men. Women naturally possessed virtues of faith, simplicity, goodness, self-sacrifice, tenderness, affection, sentimentality, and modesty.

2) Purity was an essential characteristic to maintain one's virtue against the continuous "assault" of the more aggressive male. To protect one's self, Mrs. Eliza Farrar recommended in The Young Lady's Friend (1837): Sit not with another in a place that is too narrow; read not out of the same book; let not your eagerness to see anything induce you to place your head close to another person's."

Eliza Farnham stressed the importance of preserving one's innocence and demonstrating female moral superiority, concluding that "the purity of women is the everlasting barrier against which the tides of man's sensual nature surge" (Welter, 24-25).

3) Submissiveness required women to accept their positions in life willingly and obediently, thereby affirming God had appointed them to that special position. Godey's Lady's Book of 1831 emphasized this attribute: The lesson of submission is forced upon woman...To suffer and to be silent under suffering seems the great command she has to obey. (Welter, 30)

Likewise, Samuel Jennings advocated complete submission in The Married Lady's Companion (New York, 1808): [Marriage rests on a] condition of a loving and cheerful submission on the part of the wife. Here again you object and say, "Why not the husband, first show a little condescension as well as the wife?" I answer for these plain reasons. It is not his disposition; it is not the custom but with the henpecked; it is not his duty; it is not implied in the marriage contract; it is not required by law or gospel;...when you became a wife, he became your head, and your supposed superiority was buried in that voluntary act.

Much of this reasoning was founded upon Ephesians 5:22-23, which commanded "Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husband, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the family, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body."

4) Domesticity, or the cheerful performance of social, household, and family duties, was highly prized by women's magazines of the day. Women were expected to comfort and cheer, to nurse and support, to manage and oversee. Housework was to be viewed as a morally uplifting mental and physical exercise. Marriage was the proper sphere for women where, according to Rev. Samuel Miller (1808), she could fulfill her divinely ordained mission: How interesting and important are the duties devolved on females as WIVES....the counsellor and friend of the husband; who makes it her daily study to lighten his cares, to soothe his sorrows, and augment his joys; who, like a guardian angel, watches over his interests, warns him against dangers, comforts him under trials; and by her pious, assiduous, and attractive deportment, constantly endeavors to render him more virtuous, more useful, more honorable, and more happy.(Welter, 37-38)

Thus, popular women's literature perpetuated an image of the "perfect woman" -- the loving wife, the caring mother, the responsible housekeeper. While social reform movements, industrialization, migration, and other social forces instilled changes which eventually affected the status of women in American society, the "true" woman was that female at home, "the Valiant Woman of the Bible, in whom the heart of her husband rejoiced and whose price was above rubies" (Welter, 41).

Foreign Opinions of American Women
Foreign visitors to America found great fault with the American male's behavior toward women and generally agreed that women were treated as inferiors, subjected to double standards, and equated with black slaves, even though wives were usually treated with outward respect and deference. Harriet Martineau and Francis Trollope were critical of the subordination which compelled women to separate from the men at social gatherings. Trollope went so far as to claim that American women were "guarded by a sevenfold shield of habitual insignificance." Other English women believed American marriages doomed women to "insipid and meaningless lives, devoted to gossip, clothing, and often to no greater ambition than merely getting through the day" (Pessen, Jacksonian America, 50) thus, women were simply appendages to the daily activities of men.

Even foreign males were very perceptive and critical of male-female relationships in America. Frenchman Alexis de Tocqueville saw marriage confining a woman to a narrow circle and restricting her development as a human being, making her "cold and virtuous" instead of "affectionate wives and agreeable companions." Both Capt. Basil Hall and Francis Grund observed poor relationships in American marriages, attributing such to the absence of mutual understanding, little communication, and limited attention from husbands.

Two observations by foreigners of women in American society provided interesting insights into the nature of American civilization. Harriet Martineau believed if the status of civilization were examined on the basis of treatment of women, the United States would fail because treatment "falls below their own democratic principles" (Pessen, 52). On the other hand, de Tocqueville, while acknowledging that women were socially inferior, praised Americans for raising women morally and intellectually to the level of men, thereby fulfilling the principles of a democratic society: As for myself, I do not hesitate to avow that, although the women of the United States are confined within the narrow circle of domestic life, and their situation is in some respects one of extreme dependence, I have nowhere seen woman occupying a loftier position; and if I were asked as to what the singular prosperity and growing strength of the people might mainly to be attributed, I should reply -- to the superiority of their women. (Democracy in America, 579)

Legal Status of Women
Despite the moral and religious significance of women, American society was predominantly designed for men. Legally, women were strictly dependent and unequal. Harriet Martineau confirmed this by noting the "political nonexistence of women." Since American law followed the principles established in 1765 by the English barrister Sir William Blackstone, it was asserted and accepted in America that "by marriage, the husband and wife are one person in law; that is, the very being and legal existence of the woman is suspended during marriage." Essentially, the wife "belonged" to her husband. He had a right to the person and property of his wife; he could use "gentle restraint upon her liberty to prevent improper conduct;" he could beat her without fear of prosecution. Thus, it was very clear that "the wife is dead in law" (Pessen, 49).

National and state constitutions included little mention of the rights of women. In most cases, her right to hold property was either denied or restricted, and she had no right to make a will, enter a contract, or sue in court without her husband's consent. Children belonged to the woman's husband, and he could dispense with them as he pleased in his will. Naturally, only white male citizens of the United States, age 21 years or older, and resident of Indiana for at least one full year, could vote.

Women were affected by other aspects of the law. Divorces were possible and usually granted upon grounds of desertion, adultery, or habitual drunkenness. The court divided the estate on the basis of its own conscience and also considered the custody of children. Abortions were against the law and carried a maximum fine of one year imprisonment and $500. Males convicted of adultery were subject to fines of $300; however, women could be sentenced to three months in prison. Indiana law also stated that if a female was convicted of any crime that usually carried a prison sentence for a male, her sentence could be changed to hard labor at her respective county jail.

"It was very obvious that women were in less favorable position legally, economically, and socially than men. For example, it was a common practice for a husband to place advertisements in newspapers, calling on local businesses not to accept his wife's credit purchases if she had deserted her husband: Whereas my wife Catalina has, without any just cause or provocation, left my bed and board, I do hereby forewarn any persons from harboring or trusting her on my account." Wm. Till Harris

To which his wife responded:

"This is to assure the Public that the old hackneyed phrase in the foregoing advertisement is false, as I have borne with the unjust provocations of W.T. Harris, until I could do so no longer. The very kind caution, from `trusting or harboring' me on his credit, he well knew to have been needless, as I never had credit with any merchant on his account, without being first provided with a written order, signed by himself, to that effect, and W.T. Harris is too well known, for me to expect any harboring upon the strength of his liberality; therefore, the only motive which lead him to insert the above, is plainly no other than a desire to wound, more deeply, my already injured feelings." Catalina Harris (Indiana Palladium, 15 August 1829)

Therefore, it was commonly accepted that men held official public power in legal and business affairs, while woman's domain was the hearth and home, thereby affirming the weakness of women. As a Congregational clergyman state, "The power of a woman is in her dependence, flowing from the consciousness of that weakness which God has given her for her protection" (Nye, Cultural Life of the New Nation, 142).

Education of Women
Anti-intellectualism was implicit in the "cult of true womanhood." Women were not expected to use logic or reason, only to exhibit morality and domesticity. Consequently, female education was designed to maintain the dichotomy of spheres -- schools prepared men for careers and trained them to think, whereas women learned to be worthy companions for their husbands, good managers of their households, and virtuous examples for their children. Regarding the place of female education, the Western Patriot of Canton (Ohio) Almanac of 1842 noted: The destiny of women is obviously, to become at some time spouse & mother of a family, & as such her sphere of action is the domestic fire-side. In order therefore to become a good wife & mother of a family, & to act usefully & blessingly within the circle of her family -- she must need possess all those attributes such as knowledge & habits, which are required of a good housewife & mother of a family.

If a woman was displeased and unhappy with her status, it was her fault for failing to strive for her fulfillment which was inherent in her nature and in her domestic environment.

Educational opportunities were available to women. Several female academies and seminaries were opened primarily in the East during the early 1800s, including Emma Willard's Female Academy in Middlebury, Vermont (1807, 1814); Willard's Troy (new York) Female Seminary (1821); Catharine Beecher's Hartford (Connecticut) Female Seminary (1823); and Mary Lyon's Mount Holyoke in South Hadley, Massachusetts (1837). Many of the curricula stressed practical, utilitarian education, rather than purely academic or cultural training. Nevertheless, women could take courses in spelling and reading, moral and natural philosophy, arithmetic, chemistry, astronomy, geography, history, and drawing, among numerous household crafts. Indianapolis had two schools for young ladies. In March 1830, the Indianapolis Female School was opened by Mrs. Tichenor, as was "Miss Hooker's Female School," both of which offered composition, history, natural philosophy, spelling, grammar, sciences, among others. Presbyterians obtained a charter for the Indianapolis Female Institute in 1836, and opened it in June 1837 under the direction of Mary and Harriet Axtell of Courlandville, New York.

Not all people agreed with the intellectual subordination of women; many supported a woman's right to a complete and meaningful education. In an address to the ladies of the Indiana Academy of Indianapolis in June 1836, educator Josephus Worrall called upon women to: "...assert your claims to equality, and endeavor to convince the world that the streams of your soul run as deep, and should be as richly freighted with the pearls of literature, as those of man...Ladies, set your mark high...Having laid a foundation in general science and polite reading, select that one in particular to which your feelings and judgement prompt you. In this you will delight; and if, like all who have become great, you persevere, you will attain an eminence suited, to the short period of woman's life...(Indiana Journal, 9 July 1836)

Education reformer Horace Mann also believed women had a right to a well rounded education because women were "destined to conduct the rising generation" since "the Author of nature pre-adapted her, by constitution and faculty, and temperament, for this noble work"...(i.e. teaching):

By a manifestation of the superiority of moral power, she can triumph over that physical power which has hitherto subjected her to bondage...She can bless those by whom she has been wronged...By inspiring nobler desires for nobler objects, she can break down the ascendancy of those selfish motives that have sought their gratification in her submission and inferiority. All this she can do...by training the young to juster notions of honor and duty, and to a higher appreciation of the true dignity and destiny of the race...There are thousands of females amongst us, who now spend lives of frivolity, of unbroken wearisomeness and worthlessness, who would rejoice to exchange to exchange their days of painful idleness for such ennobling rewards of well-doing, would see...the consolations of a life well-spent, instead of the pangs of remorse for a frivolous and wasted existence. (8th Annual Report of the Massachusetts Board of Education, 1845)

Reforms
Despite the generally accepted status of women in American society, significant changes were forthcoming in certain areas. Women played important roles in religious and social reform movements such as missions and societies, abolition, and temperance. Many began to assert themselves by speaking out publicly before mixed audiences and seeking leadership positions in the movements, thereby violating criticism garnered by overstepping the boundaries of masculinity made these outspoken women ever more conscious of their inferior status and dedicated to the pursuit of their "rights."

Politics was one sphere in which women failed to gain any influence for several decades to come. It was commonly accepted that women should not be "deserting her allotted privacy and volunteering to encounter gladiators in the political arena" (New York Mirror, 25 September 1830). James Fenimore Cooper claimed in The American Democrat (1836) that women should be protected "from the strife of parties, and the fierce struggle of political controversies." The Ladies Companion (New York, 1838) scolded women, "Let the men take care of politics, we will take care of our children." Americans generally believed that equal political rights would lead to the disorganization of the family institution and destruction of the woman as the moral helpmate of the man. Obviously, this was an attitude that prevailed well into the twentieth century, at least until the adoption of the 19th Amendment in 1920.

Conclusions
The nineteenth-century American woman was expected to find her strength and meaning of self in her submissive state and in her dedication to home and family. However, as a result of modernization, industrialization, and the accompanying changes in society, women became increasingly, though gradually, more independent--they asserted themselves in the expanding industrial sector; they were drawn into social, political, religious, and literary activities, speaking out on relevant issues of the day. Most beneficial to the cause of women's rights was the involvement by women in the antislavery movement, which readily convinced them of their similarities with blacks in sharing a status of "bondage" and subordination. Consequently, American women became a more visible segment of society, no longer considered merely as an adornment for males or solely relegated to kitchens and parlors of their homes. While it would be decades before women's "liberation" and suffrage were attained, women were rallying the forces in defense of their search for freedom and self-identity, winning the support of sensitive contemporaries like John Quincy Adams who asked, "Why does it follow that women are fitted for nothing but the cares of domestic life?" (Pessen, 52)

Suggested Readings

Berg, Barbara. The Remembered Gate: Origins of American Feminism. New York: Oxford University Press, 1978.

Cott, Nancy. The Bonds of Womanhood: "Woman's Sphere" in New England, 1780-1835. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1977.

Cott, Nancy, ed. Root of Bitterness: Documents of the Social History of American Women. New York: E. P. Dutton, 1972.

Davis, David Brion, ed. Antebellum American Culture. Lexington, Mass.: D.D. Heath, 1979.

Degler, Carl N. At Odds: Women and the Family in America from the Revolution to the Present. New York: Oxford University Press, 1980.

DePauw, Linda Grant. Remember the Ladies: Women in America, 1750-1815. New York: Viking Press, 1976.

Eckhardt, Celia M. Fanny Wright, Rebel in America. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1984.

Kerber, Linda K. Women of the Republic: Intellect and Ideology in Revolutionary America. Chapel Hill, N.C.: Univ. of North Carolina Press, 1980.

Kraditor, Aileen, ed. Up From the Pedestal. Chicago: Quadrangle Books, 1968.

Melder, Keith. Beginnings of Sisterhood: The American Woman's Rights Movement. New York: Schocken Books, 1977.

Norton, Mary Beth. Liberty's Daughters: The Revolutionary Experience of American Women, 1750-1800. Boston: Little-Brown, 1980.

Pessen, Edward. Jacksonian America: Society, Personality, and Politics. Homewood, Illinois: Dorsey Press, 1969, 1978.

Ryan, Mary P. Womanhood in America: From Colonial Times to the Present. New York: New Viewpoints, 1979.

Sklar, Kathryn K. Catharine Beecher: A Study in American Domesticity. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1973.

Welter, Barbara. Dimity Convictions: The American Woman in the Nineteenth Century. Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Press, 1976.

Wyatt-Brown, Bertram. Southern Honor: Ethics and Behavior in the Old South. New York: Oxford University Press, 1982.