Women's Roles In The Early Colonial Times

Will men and women ever truly be equal? What would our founding fathers think of women’s role in today’s society? Can women be elevated to prestigious roles including President of the United States of America? Women’s roles today have evolved but will they ever truly be equal to men? The dictionary defines gender as “The state of being male or female, typically used with reference to social and cultural differences, rather than biological ones,” (Merriam-Webster Learner’s Dictionary.) In today’s society, women hold high-paying jobs such as CEO’s of major corporations, doctors, scientist, lawyers, politicians and many more. Women contribute so much to the world today, but it wasn’t always that way. In Colonial America, a woman's role was governed by men; it was not acceptable for women to have any interests outside of the home. Their life was focussed on the traditional roles of running the home and raising the children. Men not only
Life in the early Colonial times was very difficult for women because they provided for everyone’s needs by cleaning, cooking, making clothes, and teaching their children the Puritan way of life. The early women colonists didn’t have a voice and they were not permitted to express their ideas or interests. Colonial women were expected to be married by the age of twenty and were expected to have large numbers of children--eight children was the norm but the child mortality rate was extremely high. Approximately 5-6 children borne would die, prematurely, before they reached their teens. Women lived by the motto, “Let your Dress, your Conversation and the whole Business of your life be to please your husband and make him happy,” (1712 Spectator Magazine.) In addition, it was a male-dominated world where women were controlled and expected to follow the norm. But for some women, this expected lifestyle wasn’t