The Turning Points and Figures of the Women Rights History

Throughout the years women are considered weak and only good for one thing. Women are viewed to take care of the children and be a housewife. Women in many eras fought for their desire to be equal. Equal rights weren’t just handed to women, that is a reason of why some women believed being dependent to men was the key. Being dependent to men gave women at the time a resource of stability. Giving resources such as a house hold that was based off the women cleaning, children to which men expected the women to nurture, expecting that the women had to feed both the children and their selves.

In reality novels such as “The Scarlett Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, were based off an era of the 1850’s. A young woman named Hester had been impregnated by a man who wasn’t her husband. Hester was shamed for not being married to the man she had sexual interactions with. Hester was independent and faced the sin that she had “awfully” committed.

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Hester was made to wear a letter “A” (standing for adultery) in her clothing to show her sin to everyone in her village. Hester became strong and independently started to raise a small child on her own. “She had not known the weight until she felt the freedom.” -Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlett Letter, chapter 18 page 182. This quote gave women in this era hope to not depend on any man who made it seem as if they needed someone to nourish them.

In the 1850’s male dominance was the superior role.

Major turning points for women that felt the need to be set free from men were women such as Susan B. Anthony who was arrested in 1872 for attempting to vote even after the fourteenth amendment was fairly new in 1868 stating that voters are defined as male. Soon after Susan B. Anthony’s arrest women wanted the right to make a decision on who shall become our next president or even the right to make any decision. This movement gave hope to women to finally take a stand and made the women’s suffrage amendment to give women the right to vote which was ratified in 1919. Soon women began to get equal opportunities that men had.

Women are finally open to vote, get equal job opportunities as men and not have to play the housewife role. In a famous novel by Scott Fitzgerald “The Great Gatsby” foreplays a role of how some women are still dependent on men because they don’t have a realization of the power they now do have. Men believed they were superior from this case. Explaining a quote from “The Great Gatsby” by Scott Fitzgerald “I hope she’ll be a fool—that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.” Chapter 1, page2, showing how even mothers believed that men should be dominant, so their daughters can have a good future. But yet one character played a slight role with a big meaning. Jordan is an underrated character, but yet she plays a big meaning showing how you don’t necessarily need a man. Jordan was in a relationship with one of the main characters who was also the narrator who is named Nick. Jordan made sure Nick followed her schedule not the other way around. Jordan was a professional golf player and she made not only enough for herself but to travel when she pleased. This gave a hidden meaning to women, showing that men should not be something that is a priority. Men are only an object we have by choice not a necessity.

Women being unaware of the power they now have, they took it for granted from how they are shown as objects. During this era which is considered the Roaring 20’s or even the Jazz Age women take full coverage of what rights they finally had for example voting. Women did use voting rights, but job opportunities were a subject not taken to full coverage. Seeming to how characters like Jordan, they weren’t considered a main character by the fact of how women in this era weren’t brought out to having a higher social status or even high level of business then man. Women focusing on themselves instead of men was rare.

Women such as Rosa Parks made a strong statement in 1955. Rosa Parks is one of many women who took a stand in equal rights. Rosa Parks refused to give a white male her seat on a bus. Throughout this era there was segregation including the Jim Crow Laws. Giving this movement women finally decided that the fighting wasn’t over. Women such as Susan B. Anthony, who was mentioned earlier was not only a supporter for equal rights for women but equal rights racially. Strong advocated women gave the fight that was needed to present the power we do have. A small step that was taken by just refusing to stand up to not only dominance to a male but dominance by being white skinned showed every woman that we have power.

Throughout the years women continue to fight to be heard. Women such as Chimamanda Adichie introducing us with “The Danger in A Single Story” showing how knowing one side of a story isn’t always the truth. “The consequence of the single story is that it robs people of dignity. It makes our recognition of our equal humanity difficult and it emphasizes that we are different rather than how we are similar.” As Chimamanda Adichie says. Meaning everything that is presented can be manipulated in ways that with another person saying the exact same story can reword it. Changing circumstances and the effects that would be presented.

Throughout many years in history we experience this message that Chimamanda Adichie reached out to talk not only about herself, but how racial differences and ethnic differences changes peoples perspectives of a person from what they may have heard. People criticize Honduras saying the people are savages. Coming from experience, not only is the land beautiful but so are the people. Those experience can be misled by what your surroundings bring to you even if you are clueless about the land.

Therefore, women have always been independent. Great novelist’s such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Scott Fitzgerald and Chimamanda Adichie present small glimpse of women’s independence. The incredible movements women did throughout the different time periods, rising up as one showed women have equal rights and equal opportunities just like men. All in all, the three different stories and instances have all worked together to create a sense of hope and a light in many peoples’ eyes for something to happen that they may not be used to. These actions are bound to be carried on for years and years, carrying on the legacy and the messages that they all carried within them.