Elizabeth Cady Stanton The Man Marriage 1869

00:07:13
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zq0TumyV_0E

Summary

TLDRElizabeth Katie Stanton's article "The Man Marriage" challenges the patriarchal foundations of marriage in the 1800s. Published in the feminist periodical "The Revolution," which she edited with Susan B. Anthony, Stanton argues vehemently against the cultural and religious norms that position women as subservient to men. She critiques the church's teachings that encourage women's obedience and likens marriage laws to those of slavery, underscoring the lack of consent women had in these arrangements. Stanton emphasizes the need for social and legal reforms to view marriage as an equal partnership, not a man-dominated institution. Economic independence and access to education are positioned as vital to empowering women and transforming marriage. She argues that if women were not economically dependent, they would make wiser marriage decisions, and societal issues like prostitution and divorce would decrease. Overall, Stanton's work highlights the need for gender equality to enhance personal relationships and benefit society.

Takeaways

  • ✊ Elizabeth Katie Stanton critiques patriarchal marriage.
  • 📜 The article appears in "The Revolution," a feminist periodical.
  • ⛪ Stanton objects to the church's patriarchal teachings.
  • 📚 She advocates for legal and social reform in marriage.
  • 🤝 Marriage should be an equal partnership, not male-dominated.
  • 💼 Economic independence is key to women's empowerment.
  • 🔗 Marriage laws resembled slave codes in some states.
  • 💡 Women's equality could reduce social issues like divorce.
  • 🔄 Empowered women would choose partners more wisely.
  • 🏛 Feminist activism in 1800s addressed diverse women's rights issues.

Timeline

  • 00:00:00 - 00:07:13

    Elizabeth Katie Stanton, an early feminist, addressed the issue of marriage in her article "The Man Marriage" published in 1869 in "The Revolution." Alongside Susan B. Anthony, she worked on changing laws and suffrage but also focused on marriage and women's roles at home. She criticized the patriarchal system, religious teachings, and laws viewed as oppressive to women, drawing comparisons between women's roles and slavery. Stanton emphasized the need for women to have equal partnerships in marriage, warning that the prevailing customs were degrading and akin to slavery.

Mind Map

Video Q&A

  • What is "The Man Marriage" about?

    It's Elizabeth Katie Stanton's critique of patriarchal marriage as limiting women's rights.

  • Who edited the feminist periodical "The Revolution"?

    Elizabeth Katie Stanton and Susan B. Anthony.

  • What did Stanton think about the church's role in marriage?

    She objected to its teachings that made men the heads of women and treated women like property.

  • How does Stanton compare women's situation in marriage?

    She compares it to the condition of enslaved people.

  • What parallels does Stanton draw with slavery?

    She notes how laws for married women are similar to slave codes.

  • What does Stanton suggest would improve marriages?

    Giving women economic independence and equality in education and employment.

  • What did Stanton believe about women's participation in marriage?

    She thought women degraded marriage by viewing it as economically necessary due to lack of other options.

  • What social issues did Stanton believe would improve with women's equality?

    Issues like infanticide, prostitution, and divorce would diminish if women were seen as equals.

  • How does Stanton view the impact of women's equality on society?

    She believes society as a whole would benefit from women having economic autonomy.

  • What was Stanton advocating for?

    Stanton was advocating for women's rights, equal education, employment opportunities, and autonomy.

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  • 00:00:03
    this is an article
  • 00:00:06
    written by elizabeth katie stanton
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    called the man marriage
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    it's from a feminist periodical called
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    the revolution
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    that is edited by
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    stanton and susan me anthony
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    now you may know these women
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    were
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    early feminists in the 1800s and they
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    were interested in changing laws and
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    suffrage women's voting
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    but you might not know that they spoke a
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    lot about marriage and women's place
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    in the home
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    and they thought they really spoke about
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    it as an important part of women gaining
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    gaining rights so let's go through this
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    short excerpt
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    from the man marriage from 1869
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    and i'll highlight some of the important
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    parts
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    so to begin in reply to many letters
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    asking if the revolution is opposed to
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    marriage
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    i desire to state my objections as
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    briefly as possible to our present
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    system
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    which i call the man marriage
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    because of the creeds and codes and
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    customs which govern the present
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    institution
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    women has never given her consent
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    so in man by man marriage she's
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    basically speaking about patriarchal
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    marriage the curvature laws and the
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    various religious ideas
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    that were important to marriage
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    to many people in the united states at
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    this time
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    so i object to the teachings of the
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    church on this question its
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    interpretation of the bible making man
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    the head of woman
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    and its forms of marriage by which she
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    is given away
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    as an article of merchandise
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    and mates about obedience as a slave to
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    a master
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    are all alike degrading to my sex
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    so she's basically talking about man
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    being given control of women of his wife
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    and marriage
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    here she begins to compare women's
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    situation to that of enslaved people
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    she she uses that a lot um comparing
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    women
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    to
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    enslaved people
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    let me just scroll up a little
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    hitherto we have had the white male
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    interpretation of the bible
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    making it wise and just a good to
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    enslave black man for his avarice or
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    greed
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    and woman to his lust
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    so here i'd like to make a note that
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    those who had supported slavery in the
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    u.s
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    often said the bible had sanctioned it
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    so that's like some important background
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    on that they would use the bible to say
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    that slavery
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    was fair and just in the time before the
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    civil war
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    the laws of married women
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    in some states are exactly parallel with
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    those of the slave code on the southern
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    plantations
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    husbands as well as slaveholders have
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    availed themselves this absolute power
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    of the common law
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    today hundreds of wives in their right
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    mind are shut up in insane asylums or
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    dragging out miserable dependent lives
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    in those living sepulchers or tombs
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    called home
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    where the light of love has all gone out
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    the social customs that are outgrowths
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    of false creeds and codes are like
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    degrading to women demoralizing to the
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    race and dangerous to the state
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    marriage today
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    is in no way viewed as an equal
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    partnership intended for the equal
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    advantage and happiness of both parties
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    nearly every man feels that his wife is
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    his property
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    whose first duty under all circumstances
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    is to gratify his passions
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    without the least reference to her own
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    health and happiness or the welfare of
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    their offspring
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    and so enfeebled or weakened is women's
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    judgment and moral sense from this long
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    abuse that she believes so too
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    and quotes from the bible to prove her
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    own degradation so women are going along
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    with this after years of having
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    men be in control
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    and um men asserting their power in
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    marriages that women have come to go
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    along with it
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    and um
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    men feel the wife must gratify his
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    passion stanton believes this could hurt
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    future offspring a woman having numerous
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    continuous births will be less happy her
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    children might be less happy she is
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    overworked
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    has less attention for her children
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    so moving on there's only two more
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    paragraphs i um i shorten this article a
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    lot
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    but how say you can relations of the
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    sexes be improved exalt woman make her
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    the sovereign and not the slave of the
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    fireside blot out all your infamous
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    creeds and codes or laws and that
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    degrade her in her own eyes as well as
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    in the estimation of man by her side
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    help her to be an independent virtuous
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    self-supporting being by giving her a
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    free pass in the world of work and
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    thought wherever she has the power to
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    stand
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    then she will no longer degrade marriage
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    by accepting it as a pecuniary necessity
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    but in freedom we'll choose the father
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    of her children more widely than than
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    she does today
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    okay so my no women have no power and
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    cannot get equal education or access to
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    jobs they work but it is less pay they
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    degrade marriage
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    by accepting it as economically
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    necessary so that's kind of what she's
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    talking about she's saying if they had
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    equality
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    they would not rush to be married
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    because they needed for
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    just to live
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    so she was all about women having
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    economic power
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    and independence and not being dependent
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    on men for everything
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    when women demand health virtue and
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    brains and men instead of a long purse
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    or wealth
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    the supply will equal the demand until
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    men and women view each other as equals
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    and are wise enough to apply the same
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    laws of science to themselves that they
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    already so greatly improved the lower
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    animals we shall have infanticide
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    prostitution divorce celibacy and
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    marriage will be in most cases a long
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    hard struggle to make the best of a bad
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    bargain
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    so
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    if women had equality and laws and
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    access to jobs they will not be
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    desperate to marry for money and be
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    dependent on men
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    they would have economic autonomy and
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    control of their lives and all of
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    society would benefit
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    so that is some of the main ideas
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    that elizabeth katie stanton was talking
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    about
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    throughout the 1850s 1860s
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    and even moving forward into the
  • 00:07:08
    late 1800s and early 1900s
Tags
  • Feminism
  • Marriage
  • Patriarchy
  • Women's rights
  • Equality
  • Economic independence
  • Education
  • Social reform
  • 19th century
  • The Revolution