Introduction
Kate Stone is a known young southern woman who was involved in warfare during the civil war period. Women during the civil war witnessed a change in cultural and social structures. The civil war is viewed as an important turning point on the role of women in the society and the history of the United States. When women were left behind to take care of children while men went to war, a need emerged for women to quickly join the military. As a result, class lines and attitudes towards the war fell away. Women realized the need to take responsibility and leading a life that had never been experienced before. Women engaged in various duties, jobs undertaken, endured suffering, encountered sorrow and heartbreak. All these challenges transformed women as well as the country. The journal of Kate Stone records the civil war experiences of Kate Stone. At that time, Kate Stone was a widow at 20 years of age. As a widow mother living with five brothers and young sister in Northern Louisiana, Kate Stone was required to work in the large cotton plantation at Brokenburn. This paper explores the experiences of women during the civil war and their roles. A key focus is based on the Journal of Kate Stone in outlining the role of women as well as experiences during the civil war. I argue that women played a vital role in Civil War. However, historians failed to consider the roles of women by focusing on male roles. In particular, gender historians have identified the need to focus on feminine identities in history.
The Journal of Kate Stone
In the beginning, the journal represents Kate Stone as a woman who viewed the civil war as an adventure of young officers in military uniforms going to a battle. However, Kate’s optimism later changed into hatred of the enemy when the civil war struggles became close to her home in Louisiana in 1862. The journal documents Kate’s sufferings. Based on the civil war turmoil, Kate Stone’s family exiled in Texas. While in Texas, Kate Stone documented events and attitudes of a society and people whose determination enabled them to overcome the challenges of the civil war such as shortages, death, defeat, as well as return to a devastated homeland. Another major challenge that had to be endured relates to high levels of poverty after the war.
In the journal, Kate Stone says “we must bear our losses as we can. Nothing is left but to endure.” Such thoughts lead to an assumption that a woman’s role during the war was not to sit back in the house with no hope. Women engaged in employment. The need to work so that families could be sustained became a great responsibility for women. Kate Stone and other women in the civil war sought work for pay. However, based on poor agricultural conditions and poor development in the civil war era, employment opportunities were limited. Not all women could work in the agricultural economy. Other women worked in hospitals and schools as nurses and teachers respectively. Furthermore, women worked as clerks for the government.
In the journal, Kate Stone also says that “we who stay behind may find it harder than they who go.” Women during the civil war were expected to stay back at home so that they could take care of young boys and girls. A woman’s role was viewed in relation to home environment while engaging in household chores. However, the situation changed since women had to provide for the family when men were away in Confederate army. Kate Stone watched while three brothers left home to join the army.
The suffering of women during the civil war was a strain to family members. In particular, women made sacrifices of living without niceties as part of normal life. In the journal, Kate Stone states how prices of basic needs increased. Daily requirements could no longer be afforded since merchants could not offer products on credit. Barter trade became nonexistent. Kate Stone’s family paid $500 for a yard of silk, $50 for riding boots, $15 for a pair of shoes. The most annoying price was $50 for a barrel of flour. Suffering and endurance became part of a woman’s life. Since male counterparts were no longer around to provide basic needs, women had to work so that other family members could afford to life at least a comfortable life.
Women revolted against the oppressive regime. In particular, women joined black men and women who were determined to achieve freedom. Women could no longer sit down and watch while men were tortured by the oppressive regimes and slave owners. Kate Stone writes ‘If I were in their place, I’d do the same,’ referring to increased pressure from salves revolting against their owners. Several southerners could not believe that loyal slaves wanted to leave them. Kate Stone as part of slaves who worked in large plantations also joined black men and women claiming for freedom.
Sorrow and grief were also part of women experiences during the civil war. Death of brothers and husbands was common. Women had to endure tough life of grief and sorrow. As a result, the role of women changed after loss of husbands and bread winners. In the journal, Kate states that she could hardly believe that the very bright and lively little brother Walter had died several weeks before his family was informed. Walter was eighteen years old at the time of his death. Hardships of soldier life became unendurable to young soldiers.
Racial segregation and prejudice are also part of women experiences during the cold war. In the journal, Kate Stone had to escape to Texas while union forces approached. The escape from union forces forced women to leave behind all worldly possessions and homes. Texas was the only favorite destination for displaced women during the civil war. Despite viewing Texas as a favorite destination, Kate Stone documents that Texas became a place full of racial segregation and prejudice. Refugees experienced racial prejudice. Kate Stone says that “Strange the prejudice that exists all through the state against refugees. We think it is envy, just pure envy. The refugees are a nicer and more refined people than most of those we meet, and they see and resent the difference.”
Civil war women could not afford to be weak despite numerous challenges. Kate Stone and other women were self-reliant and lively. High levels of bravery is manifested through the need to take up the role of men who had been taken away to live a soldier’s life. Women during the civil war ensured that they supported families by running farms and businesses. In addition, civil war women engaged in paid employment outside the home environment so that they could afford the high living conditions. Apart from taking the role of women in providing for the family, women also went to battlefields, either directly or indirectly. The need to defend their homes and property against union forces became necessary.
Kate Stone and other women in the south had no option but to work in plantations and farms. Very elderly and young males were left behind to assist women. Women realized that they had a bigger role to assist the society than the elderly and the young ones. While working in plantations, lack of tools and implements made life unbearable. The ability to work with poor tools and implements made women to endure a tough life. As a result, the burdens of the civil war were felt heavily on women than on men who went to the battle field.
Women had a role of protecting property and family members from union forces. However, they were too weak to defend themselves. In most cases, soldiers on both sides of the conflict took away property held by women. Property that could not be taken away by soldiers was destroyed. As a result, women had to be at the centre of the war in a way that was never witnessed in history. Some women derived satisfaction from the need to endure the experiences of war. The need to build a home, care for livestock, farm land, and raise children became a satisfying encounter to some women. Furthermore, hard work became part of women. Cultivation of large farms entailed working for long hours for poor pay. Since women were also expected to engage in usual household duties, the civil war experiences led to immense suffering to women. The ability to endure was necessary so that the society becomes sustainable.
While adjusting to new life, Kate Stone had to demonstrate high levels of bravery and forgiveness. The need to enjoy life instead of being angry at past events made Kate Stone to adjust to new life after civil war. Kate Stone says “I try now to enjoy instead of repine, to be thankful instead of fault-finding. I will try always and see the silver lining of the cloud.” Women in civil war era acquired self-knowledge based on the experiences of the war so that they could cope and live a happy life. Watching war destroy families and homes was the most difficult experience for Kate Stone and other women during the civil war. Disruption of family life meant that a woman had to take responsibility towards the survival of the family, property, and children.
How history viewed women during Civil War
In the book, “The houses of history” by Anna Green and Kathleen Troup, studies on feminism and gender history is based on the inability to outline women’s history. In particular, there is need to reconsider the history content of the masculine history. Women in civil war cannot be studied when gender history does not receive necessary consideration. As a result, the 1960s women liberation movement enabled several historians to investigate the history of women in early stages. The role of women in civil war era was part of historical investigations. A key point is that gender historians focused on feminine identities in history. In addition, gender historians also discussed issues concerning women and men.
Two types of feminist analysis are evident from gender historians. The first analysis focuses on the merge of feminist movement in the United States. Historians have also focused on experiences of women in the medieval society in Western Europe in the 12th and 15th centuries. In the analysis of gender history, the first approach of analysis relates the ‘cultural definition of behavior defined as appropriate to the sexes in a given society at a given time.’ The second analysis approach relates to ‘the constitutive element of social relationships based on perceived differences between the sexes, and a primary way of signifying the relationships of power.”
According to John Kelly, there is need to reconsider the historical process in relation to feminist movements. Kelly looks at the change and removal of social and ideological constraints that affected women. The status of women in history as well as women historians is a key focus for Kelly. Another approach to analyzing gender history is relating the existed class with the gender aspect as the Marxist women historian in Britain did such as Sally Alexariderand Shella Rowbothman. Further, fundamental feminists focus on oppression of women by men based on sexuality as an approach of looking at gender history.
In the civil war era, the approach by John Kelly applies. Analysis is based on the need to analyze change and removal of social or ideological constraints that affected women. War as a change affected women in various ways. In the case of civil war women, the war as part of societal changes led to changes in gender roles. Historians focusing on women during the war outline gender roles assumed by women while male counterparts were taken to battlefields. The civil war era forced women to take direct and indirect roles in relation to the war. An indirect role involved maintaining the family home. The need to take care of the family home is based on the assumption that men were in charge of taking care of families before the civil war affected the family set-up.
The Civil War as a change also forced women to be courageous and show high levels of determination. The civil war as part of changes that led to women being courageous and determined is based on patriarchal assumptions that men were the only gender capable of demonstrating high levels of courage and determination. Women serving as soldiers during the civil war meant that a society was geared rewards change. The change brought by civil war is evident in the current society whereby women have sought employment and career growth in all professions.
The civil war also taught women that sexuality cannot make a person immune to punishment. The need to view a woman as a weaker sex changed as the civil war. After accepting roles outside traditional roles, women were shocked and outraged that the society no longer had respect for ladies. In particular, there was no need to treat women as ladies during the civil war era. In most cases, women actions led to arrest and confinement by union forces as well as Confederate government.
Despite the cruel experiences during civil war, women still had expectations that the society would accord some level of respect and gentle treatment that was part of societal culture before the civil war. Women had to be outraged about the behavior of confederate troops that bombarded cities despite the presence of the fairer sex. The society lost the culture of being gentle to the feminine sex when staging attacks. While the union troops were pushing people away from their homes, some women refused to move. The decision not to move was based on past cultural aspects of the society whereby women could not be tortured during the war. In the end, women and children experienced the war in all its horror. The society lost its ideals of being gentle to fairer sex as well as children. Some women failed to understand that the society had changed by developing cruel behavior and treatment towards women.
Conclusion
In my opinion, women played a vital role in Civil War era. Gender historians focus on feminine identities in history by demonstrating the influence of women in the society. The journal of Kate Stone documents experiences of women during the civil war. The society experienced changes in relation to gender roles. Before the civil war, men engaged in payable labor so that they could provide for family members while women engaged in domestic duties. The civil war took away all men to the battlefield. As a result, women had to assume new responsibilities of seeking for employment and working in slave plantations so that they could provide for children and protect property. Kate Stone and other women had to revolt against oppression inflicted on black men and women. I believe that a woman’s role in the society was based on the need to offer help when men were at the war.
Bibliography
PRIMARY SOURCE
Kate, Stone. “Brokenburn: The journal of Kate Stone, 1861-1868.” (Library of Southern Civilization, 1995)
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