HIS 72A Midterm

Sex

a biological construct defined by various anatomical, hormonal, or genetic criteria

gender

the meanings that societies attach to sexual differences

reproduction

the biological process of creating new individuals to perpetuate a species

gendered division of labor

the assignment of different tasks, roles, and responsibilities to individuals based on their gender

intersectionality

a frame work to understand the interconnected nature of social categories like race, class, and gender as they apply to an individual or group

Thomas/ine Hall

a potential intersex person who ran afoul of a small community in colonial Virginia and was subjected to court cases that centered on gender

jury of matrons

an all-female jury that had special knowledge of the female body. They were primarily used to determine if a woman was pregnant. 

“two spirit”

an indigenous north American term to describe someone has embodying both masculine and feminine characteristics.

one-sex body model

historical theory that states there is only one sex, male, and that females were an incomplete or inverted version of males

war women

An indigenous title of great honor for women who made a significant impact within their community or exhibited great heroism on the battlefield.

settler colonialism

a system of oppression based on genocide and colonialism, that aims to displace a population of a nation (oftentimes indigenous people) and replace it with a new settler population.

gender frontier

a space of cultural contact where different groups interact and must negotiate conflicting or “alien” notions of gender, roles, and sexuality

Castas

a hierarchical system of racial and social classification used during the Spanish colonial period, which determined a person’s status, rights, and opportunities based on their perceived racial makeup.

cultural broker

an individual who acts as a bridge, mediator, or interpreter between people or groups from different cultural backgrounds

mourning wars

a practice of many northeastern indigenous peoples, particularly the Iroquois, involving small-scale raids on other tribes to avenge a death and replenish population losses

“White Indian”

white children who were kidnapped into indigenous families but preferred to stay with their indigenes family rather than their white families

“country marriage”

marriages that formed political or economic alliances between ruling families or states

fur trade

the commercial activity of buying and selling animal furs and pelts. often Europeans would make deals to get indigenous people to supply the fur in exchange for goods.

identity of mixed-race children

a lifelong process of self-identification influenced by factor like family, culture, appearance, and social context.

manumission

the act of freeing slaves by their owners

Elizabeth Key

one of the first Black people in the Thirteen colonies to sue for freedom from slavery and win. She based her suit on the fact that her father was an Englishman who had acknowledged her and that she had been baptized.

slave codes

a set of laws enacted in the Americans to control and oppress enslaved people by defining them as property, restricting their basic rights, and denying them freedoms

1643 Virginia tithables law

a statute that clarified the role of parish vestries and imposed taxes on certain individuals, including a new tax on all enslaved African women 16 or older.

“lying-in”

the period of confinement for women after childbirth, involving extended rest to recover and protect the newborn.

indentured servitude

a labor system where and individual signs a contract to work for a master for a set period of time in exchange for passage to a new country, food, and shelter

“hiring out”

a practice where an enslaved person’s labor was temporarily rented to another person or business for a fee, with the earnings going to the owner

wet nursing

the practice of a woman who is not the biological mother of a child breastfeeding the child

paternalism

action that limits a person’s or group’s liberty or autonomy against their will and is intended to promote their own good.

gang system vs task system

gang system involves slaves working in groups under constant supervision for the entire day, while the task system assigns each individual slave a specific task to complete, after which they are free to do as they please

household

a house and its occupants regarded as a unit

feme covert

a woman whose legal rights and obligations were mostly subsumed by those of her husband

polygyny

polygamy in which a man has more than one wife

matrilocal

of or denoting a custom in marriage whereby the husband goes to live with the wife’s community

slave quarters

the designated living spaces for enslaved people on plantations and farms, typically small cabin or houses where they lived separately from their enslavers

mothering

the activity of bringing up a child as a mother

emmenagogue

a substance that stimulates or increases the flow of menstrual blood

intensive vs extensive mothering

Intensive mothering is a child-centered ideology where the mother is expected to be constantly available and directly involved in every aspect of her child's development. In contrast, extensive mothering is a model where mothers see child-rearing as a collective responsibility and delegate some caregiving to others, focusing on being "in charge" and responsible for the overall well-being of the child without being hands-on all the time

puberty ordeals

an intense or painful rite of passage that marks the transition from childhood to adulthood within a community

weaning journey

the process of gradually introducing solid foods to a baby’s diet, typically starting around six months of age, alongside continued breast milk feeding

Spanish inquisition

a tribunal established by the catholic monarchs to enforce catholic orthodoxy. its primary purpose was to identify and punish heresy

maleficium

latin term meaning “wrongdoing” or “evil doing” that was historically used to describe harmful magic, or sorcery, especially during the 16th and 17th centuries’ witch hunts

Anne Hutchinson

Her strong religious formal declarations were at odds with the established Puritan clergy in the Boston area and her popularity and charisma helped create a theological schism that threatened the Puritan religious community in New England. She was eventually tried and convicted, then banished from the colony with many of her supporters.

monstrous births

a birth in which a defect renders the animal or human child so malformed that it is considered monstrous

premarital pregnancy

a pregnancy that occurs before the parents are married

skimmington

a historical, boisterous procession used to publicly ridicule individuals for moral transgressions, such as a henpecked husband or and unfaithful wife

William and Lucy Byrd

detailed his conquest of women including his wife in a diary making the argument that women do not want sex but men are too lustful to not have it

coerced sex

the practice of persuading someone to engage in unwanted sexual activity by using force, intimidation, or threats

enlightenment worldview

an 18th-century European intellectual movement the emphasized reason, individualism, and skepticism to challenge traditional authority and improve society.

two-sex body

views human sex as a strict binary of male and female, with distinct reproductive systems

“reformed rake”

a trope in romance novels, particularly historical romances, where a man known for his dissolute lifestyle and womanizing eventually finds true love and settles down with one woman

companionate marriage

a marriage centered on emotional bonds, friendship, and companionship rather than on traditional economic and familial obligations

deerskin trade

an important trading relationship between Europeans and native Americans

consumer revolution

a period of significant increase in the consumption of goods, most notably during the 18th century in Europe and colonial America

tea tables

a piece of furniture specifically designed to hold a tea set and snacks for serving tea

camp followers

civilians, primarily women and children, who traveled with an army during a campaign to provide support services

Mary Jemison

a Scots-Irish colonial frontierswoman in Pennsylvania and New York, who became known as the "White Woman of the Genesee." As a young girl, she was captured and adopted into a Seneca family, assimilating to their culture, marrying twice to Native American men and having children with both. In 1824, she published a memoir of her life.

Lord Dunmore’s Proclamation

declared martial law in Virginia and offered freedom to enslaved people who abandoned their Patriot owners and joined the British forces to fight against the colonists

spinning bee

18th century public events where women in the American Colonies produced homespun cloth to help the colonists reduce their dependence on British good

Rachel Well’s petition

a wax sculptor, loaned considerable money to New Jersey during the Revolutionary War. Like many New Jersey women, she was in difficult circumstances after the war and petitioned the New Jersey legislature in 1785 for the repayment of the money.

republican motherhood

19th-century ideology in the early U.S. that defined women's patriotic duty as raising virtuous, educated, and politically aware sons and daughters to support the new republic, granting women increased importance in the domestic sphere but keeping them out of formal politics, ironically leading to calls for better female education to fulfill these roles.

“women’s rights”

fundamental human rights ensuring equality and freedom from discrimination, covering areas like education, equal pay, reproductive health, political participation, property ownership, and freedom from violence

Dolley Madison

the wife of James Madison, the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. She was known for holding Washington social functions in which she invited members of both political parties, essentially spearheading the concept of bipartisan cooperation

1776 New Jersey Constitution

New Jersey's first state constitution, adopted in a rush during the Revolutionary War (July 2, 1776) to establish a government and prevent anarchy, remaining in effect for 68 years before being replaced by the 1844 Constitution. It created a government with a legislature (Council and Assembly) and a weak executive (Governor elected by legislature), and notably granted voting rights to property-owning women and Black residents, though this was later rescinded. Key features included religious freedom guarantees but also property qualifications for voting, and it served as the state's foundational document during its turbulent early years

reproductive labor

the essential, often invisible, work of creating and sustaining human life, encompassing everything from childbirth, childcare, and elder care to cooking, cleaning, and providing emotional support

putting-out system

a pre-industrial method where merchants distributed raw materials (like wool) to rural families who processed them at home (spinning, weaving) and returned finished goods for payment, bypassing guilds and enabling early capitalism by using decentralized labor for textiles and other goods before factories took over

waltham-lowell system

America's first integrated textile manufacturing model, pioneered by the Boston Manufacturing Company in Waltham, MA, and later expanded to Lowell, MA. It revolutionized production by combining spinning, weaving, and dyeing under one roof (vertical integration) and famously employed young, rural women (Mill Girls) living in company boarding houses, offering them independence but under strict moral supervision and long hours, marking a crucial, yet exploitative, phase in the American Industrial Revolution. 

wages

payments for labor, typically hourly, daily, or by piece, including salaries, bonuses, and tips, forming an essential income source

turnout

labor organizations refers to their efforts and effectiveness in mobilizing their members and the broader working-class public to participate in elections and political action. 

domesticity

home or family life

Godey’s Lady Book

America's first major women's magazine, published from 1830 to 1898, becoming the most popular periodical in Victorian America by featuring fashion plates, fiction, poetry, and household tips, all while shaping cultural norms and fostering American literature under editors like Louis A. Godey and Sarah J. Hale.  

Catherine Beecher

American educator and writer known for her forthright opinions on female education as well as her vehement support of the many benefits of the incorporation of kindergarten into children's education.

civilizing mission

a pervasive 19th/20th-century ideology used by European colonial powers (and the U.S.) to justify imperialism, claiming a moral duty to "uplift" supposedly "backward" non-Western societies by imposing Western culture, Christianity, education, law, and governance, often masking economic exploitation and cultural destruction with claims of benevolence, leading to forced assimilation, loss of Indigenous identity, and resistance

free black women

Black women not enslaved before the Civil War

gradual emancipation

a legislative strategy in Northern U.S. states after the American Revolution to phase out slavery slowly, often freeing children born to enslaved mothers after a lengthy period of indentured servitude (e.g., until age 25), rather than granting immediate freedom, allowing slaveholders time to adjust and compromising ideals of liberty with economic interests.

fugitive slave act of 1793

authorized the arrest or seizure of fugitives and empowered "any magistrate of a county, city or town" to rule on the matter.

Maria Stewart

American writer, lecturer, teacher, and activist from Hartford, Connecticut. She is widely recognized as one of the first women in the United States to speak publicy about abolition and women's rights, breaking barriers for both Black and female voices in the early 19th century

rival geographies

alternative ways of mapping and using space, often created by marginalized groups (like enslaved people or colonized subjects) to resist dominant power structures, turning controlled spaces into sites of freedom, culture, and agency through everyday acts like truancy, covert gatherings, or creating their own cultural meanings within imposed landscapes

paternalism

the policy or practice on the part of people in positions of authority of restricting the freedom and responsibilities of those subordinate to them in the subordinates' supposed best interest.

abroad marriages

deeply intertwined with paternalism, where families, social elites, and states used marriage as a tool for political, economic, and social control. This control was often exercised to maintain class, race, and national hierarchies, limiting individual choice, particularly for women and racial or ethnic minorities. 

fancy girl

horrific historical practice within the context of the domestic slave trade in the United States, specifically the forced prostitution and sexual exploitation of enslaved young women

soul value

refers to the profound inner worth enslaved people asserted for themselves, a spiritual resistance to being treated as mere property, contrasting sharply with the brutal commodification of their bodies by enslavers, who assigned monetary prices

Celia

a slave women who was repeatedly raped by her owner even after she asked him to stop when she turned 18. She gave birth to two children from her repeated assaults,

second great awakening

a religious revival during the late 18th to early 19th century in the United States. It spread religion through revivals and emotional preaching and sparked a number of schismatic movements. Revivals were key to the movement and attracted hundreds of converts to new denominations.

camp meetings

multi-day religious gatherings, originating during America's Second Great Awakening (early 1800s) as large, outdoor revival events for spiritual renewal, fellowship, and evangelism, especially for frontier Methodists, Presbyterians, and Baptists, evolving into modern spiritual retreats, Bible conferences, and Adventist youth camps focused on faith, education, and community

African Methodist Episcopal (AME) church

America's first independent Black-led Protestant denomination, founded in 1816 by Richard Allen in Philadelphia to escape racism within Methodism, focusing on spiritual and community uplift, adhering to Methodist doctrine but with an Episcopal structure (bishops), and playing a major role in American social justice movements like abolition and civil rights, serving millions globally. 

Mother Ann Lee

he founding leader of the Shakers, later changed to United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing following her death

polygamy/plural marriages

being married to multiple people simultaneously, most commonly one man with several wives

temperance

movement advocating for abstinence from alcohol to promote a healthier society and stronger workforce

Martha Washington societies

women's auxiliary groups supporting the burgeoning, working-class Washingtonian Temperance Movement, which reformed drunkards through mutual aid, storytelling, and pledges of total abstinence, distinguishing themselves by focusing on reformed drinkers rather than just prevention

“fathers and rulers of our country” petitions

appeals made by early Americans, like the Olive Branch Petition (1775) to King George III for reconciliation before the Revolution, or later, petitions by citizens (including free Black men and women) to Congress for rights, abolition, and justice, demonstrating the fundamental right to petition leaders for redress, a cornerstone of U.S. governance. These petitions, from formal documents to public demonstrations, show citizens asking leaders to correct injustices, reflecting a continuing demand for fair governance. 

Angelina Grimke

American abolitionist, political activist, women's rights advocate, and supporter of the women's suffrage movement. At one point she was the best known, or "most notorious," woman in the country.

Charity and Sylvia

recognized as a married couple in Weybridge and eventually celebrated as models of lifelong companionship.

Marital Cruelty

evolving from legally sanctioned male control (like Roman pater familias or "rule of thumb" laws) to a social problem that was gradually criminalized, with women historically seen as property, leading to abuse often ignored or even encouraged by church/state until modern movements fought for legal protection, with laws like the US Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) only emerging in the 20th century

conciliation court

special court, often called a small claims court, designed for resolving disputes informally, especially family conflicts (like divorce/custody) or minor financial disagreements (under a set limit, e.g., $20,000), using mediation, counseling, and neutral third-party help to avoid complex legal battles and preserve family units or save costs, with a focus on reconciliation rather than adversarial rulings

suspicious infant deaths

sudden, unexplained fatalities, often with repeated incidents in a family, triggering investigations into potential abuse (like Munchausen by Proxy), neglect, or underlying natural causes. 63% of women accused of killing infants were women of color.

Seneca Falls Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions

a foundational document for the women's rights movement, modeled after the Declaration of Independence, asserting that "all men and women are created equal" and demanding equal rights, including suffrage (the right to vote), education, property rights, and equal access to professions, challenging unjust laws and societal norms that subjugated women

Elizabeth Cady Stanton

prominent American writer and activist who fought for women's rights in the mid- to late-19th century. She co-authored the Declaration of Sentiments, which replaced references to King George's tyranny with "a history of repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman". Stanton's speech at the convention led to 1860 legislation granting married women rights to their wages and equal guardianship of their children. 

sameness vs difference strategies

involves shifts across philosophy, law, social movements, and diversity management. The core tension revolves around whether to emphasize shared human identity to achieve equal treatment or to acknowledge and accommodate specific differences to achieve equitable outcomes. 

married women’s property acts

a series of laws, primarily from the 19th and early 20th centuries in the United States and the United Kingdom, that granted married women the legal right to own property, control their own wages, and enter into contracts. These acts were a significant shift from the previous common law system of coverture, which gave a husband authority over his wife's property and earnings. The acts empowered women with greater financial and legal independence, although they were often passed in stages and had varying provisions across different jurisdictions

“all bound up together”

a call for universal rights and intersectional equality, arguing that Black rights and women's rights were inseparable and that freedom for one group depended on freedom for all, demanding white suffragists recognize racial injustice and fight for Black Americans' full citizenship alongside their own. It challenged the emerging women's movement to move beyond just the vote, emphasizing that true justice required dismantling all forms of oppression for Black people, lest society's moral fabric remain corrupted.