It seems like nowadays the concept of feminism gained a negative connotation equating its followers as fanatics and usually mocking their intentions. This movement, which managed to bring freedom and rights to women, is considered today as obsolete and irrelevant, as society believed that females were fully liberated. However, it is far from being true. Female professionals are still paid less than their male counterparts, women are stilled viewed through the prism of patriarchal values, and the dissemination of power between men and women remains unequal to these days. In order to revive the memories of the achievements gained by feminism, it is essential to analyze the movement in a retrospective and review the very first steps of the Women Rights Movement. It is considered that the Seneca Falls Convention has become the first important step in the long fight for the liberation of a female. While some experts claim that the Convention was only partially effective and it did not accomplish all initial goal of the project, yet still this meeting established a foundation of the movement and strengthen the spirit of its activists inspiring for the further development of their goals.
Back to the beginning of the 19th-century women were deprived of their basic human rights. They did not have the right for inheritance, they did not sign contracts, their entire life, and every move was controlled by men in their life, where in childhood it was her father and later in life these functions were fulfilled by her husband. Females could not have any professional occupation, they could not vote or being the members of the jury. Overall, women were deprived not only of rights to execute power in the country but also not being able to control any aspect of their life. While today, it sounds crazy and inappropriate, it was a life of a female back to the 19th century. However, it was also the time when women began to realize that they have to make a stand and change their position in the society. Therefore, on July 19–20, 1848, around three hundred people held a meeting in Seneca Falls, New York, which became the first women’s rights congregation that ever been organized in the U.S. (Wellman). The convention was not included only females, as overall, it was organized by 68 women and 32 men (Wellman). It has been generally considered that the Convention pursued the goal of enabling women to vote. However, the meeting aimed at liberating women and providing them equality in the fields of labor, education, religion, politics, morals, and family life.
Overall, Seneca Falls Convention disfranchisement has the goal to fight against disfranchisement of women in the Western society through the improvement of laws and bringing them back their natural rights to be in control in their life. The result of the meeting was the establishment of Seneca Falls Declaration of Sentiments that incorporated the natural rights and freedoms of women into the framework of the American way of life (Stanton). Also, it is considered that the fight for women rights went hand in hand with the movement of abolitionism, which aimed to eliminate slavery in the U.S., as several male activists of feminist movement tried to involve women into the abolitionist conventions (Wellman). However, this attempt was not successful, as the majority of the abolitionists declined the proposition of including women into their movement on the equal rights. At the same time, the feminism gained experience and allies for the future battles.
Prior to the Seneca Falls Convention, several female activists began their educational activity among women by providing support, giving public speeches, and organizing the meetings similar to the framework of the French salons. Elizabeth Candy Stanton, Lucretia Mott, Grimke sisters, Lucy Stone, Abby Kelly, and many other women were involved in the first attempts of liberating women. Stanton wrote in the Declaration of Sentiments, “ all men and women are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” (Stanton). It has to be noted that during those days, the activists including Stanton did not go against religion in general, but wanted to change a place of women in the church. In general, not all women present at the meeting were advocating for the voting rights, where it is possible only to speculate why this aspect was not important for all of them. It is possible that some of them did not believe that it was realistic or maybe a lot of females aimed to liberate females from the oppression in their daily life, which could be considered more urgent.
Gerda Lerner emphasized even though the meeting in Seneca Falls did not generate any revolutionary movement, it still managed to ignite a sparkle of feminism among those who attended the Convention and those who inspired by its objectives (Lerner). The meeting produced great leaders, like Stanton and Mott, who could embody their ideas in action. Both activists met in the meeting of the abolitionist movement, where women were denied the right to hold a public talk or to express their opinion (Lerner). Thus, they decided to separate their ideas from abolitionism and create their own convention, where Seneca Falls meeting became its fruit. The main aim of Mott and Stanton was to attract radical thinkers and separatist Quakers in order to bring about changes into the 19th century America (Lerner). While the Convention itself was surrounded by myths depicting the members as the full-fledged radical activists, it was only partially true. In general, the meeting gathered both, the women with considerable experience in the public talk and organization, like Amy Post, as well as housewives who had no prior experience.
The main product of the Convention was the Declaration of Sentiments prepared by Stanton, who based this text on the Declaration of Independence and vouched for the equal rights, change of social contract, and alteration of a female’s place in religion as well as in social life (Stanton). The Declaration criticized men and patriarchal values overwhelming the society and usurping the rights of women through centuries (Stanton). The evaluation of the Sentiments leads to an assumption that the entire work was not quite precise in terms of requests and solutions of how to improve the situation for women. It was more of a statement, rather than a list of demand. Stanton emphasized the inequalities and inability of women enjoy their life as members of society, yet it was only the demand for voting rights that can serve as the full-fledged request to change the oppression. That was the major reason why a lot of scholars considered Seneca Falls Convention as only partially successful attempt to liberate women. However, it is essential to note that the meeting managed to generate the first sense of self-determination and autonomy among women of that era, which was one of the most crucial achievements of the Convention.
It is important to remember that females in the 19th century and in times prior to this period had no autonomy whatsoever, as it is always thought that a woman needs guidance and support due to her flaws in nature. In general, a female is considered to be flawed comparing to a man since the beginning of time, when women were deprived of their foundational and natural rights. Only in the 19th century and few activists functioning earlier, for example like Mary Wollstonecraft, who is considered to be one of the pioneers of feminism, women gained self-determination to end the long period of slavery. In the very beginning, the entire feminist movement was considered to be utopian, as there were no social institutions to support women rights. Only in 72 years after the Convention, women managed to win their right to vote and some of the issues raised in Seneca Falls were addressed or at least dealt with (Lerner).
It was admitted that the importance of Seneca Falls was overshadowed by 1853 National Women’s Right Convention that proclaimed the women rights once again (Tetrault). Seneca Falls Convention has become a myth comparing with the declaration generated in 1853. It is possible that the main reason for this was the quantity of people it involved, which was quite small; or the movement was overshadowed by abolitionism. Overall, the Seneca Falls Convention did not generate reverence or serious practical changes in political or social life. After the Convention, Stanton and Mott proceeded with their quiet family life and their activity has ended (Tetrault). It is possible why the Convention did not produce visible results in a social and political life of women. First alterations were initiated by the U.S. government that in 1869 passed the first woman suffrage law and only in 1920 women received the right to vote (Timeline of Legal History of Women in the United States). It is considered that after this milestone, females began to gain the other rights and liberties, like the ability to be equally represented in court and to occupy an equal position in the job market.
With the time, Seneca Falls Convention was forgotten and became a myth overshadowed by suffragette movement and abolitionism. However, it is essential to remember that women’s emancipation was initiated in that Convention, not in the later gatherings of suffragettes. It was the first attempt to create reform movement and change the way a female was treated at many levels, from social to political. Seneca Falls meeting managed to create a foundation for the feminism, even though its goals were not fulfilled right after the Convention. Its main accomplishment was the change in thinking among women, in the way females saw themselves. The concepts of autonomy and self-determination were the central elements that later on generated a full-fledged feminist movement that attained a lot throughout the years. Courage and innovational thinking of the activists like Stanton and Mott inspired many of those who came to the convention, both housewives, and experienced feminists. Therefore, it is so important to remember the roots of the feminist movement and take lessons from those who were not afraid to go against the societal norms, which is vital for the modern females.
Works Cited
Lerner, Gerda. “The Meaning of Seneca Falls.” Living with History/Making Social Change. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press. 2009. Web. 5 Jun. 2016.
Stanton, Elizabeth C. "The Seneca Falls Declaration of Rights and Sentiments." from History of Women Suffrage Vol. 1, ed. Elizabeth Cady Stanton et al. New York: Fowler and Wells, 1881. Web. 5 Jun. 2016.
Tetrault, Lisa. “Prologue: Getting Acquainted with History.” The Myth of Seneca Falls: Memory and the Women's Suffrage Movement, 1848-1898. University of North Carolina Press. Web. 5 Jun. 2016.
Timeline of Legal History of Women in the United States. National Women’s History Project. Web. 5 Jun. 2016.
Wellman, Judith. “The Seneca Falls Convention: Setting the National Stage for Women’s Suffrage.” History Now: The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. 28 Mar. 2014. Web. 5 Jun. 2016.
