The American Revolution forced the development of new perspectives of women AP Seminar 2021 In “Women and the American Revolution in Georgia” by Ben Marsh the author presents the idea that during the American Revolution, women played an important role in how the Revolution played out. Since women weren’t allowed to fight alongside the men, they contributed to the revolution by supplying the troops, working in military camps, and helping wounded soldiers; some women even acted as spies, and there is at least one documented case of a woman disguising herself as a man to fight in the war. While women have been barred from participating in the army or in the militias, they have supported the cause in vital ways. For instance in “Writing Women's History Through the Revolution: Family Finances, Letter Writing, and Conceptions of Marriage” it .Wives, girlfriends, daughters, and sisters of soldiers and officers entered their camps to carry out vital duties. Martha Washington has been with her husband, George Washington, for most of the fighting. These camp followers, as they were called, cooked, cleaned, sewed, mended their clothes, helped the wounded, and even herded farm animals, milked cows, and forged for food. Some women showed their dedication to the cause by putting their own lives in danger; women who would act as spies would enter British camps to get as much information as possible, but if they were caught they could have been kept captive and maybe even killed. What did the American Revolution mean to women? The American Revolution gave an opportunity for women to prove that they have the same abilities as men. In “Women in the American Revolution: Gender, Politics, and the Domestic World” it goes more in depth of how and why the American Revolution was important for women. It describes the challenges that women had to go through like boycotting British goods and risking their lives to get information from their enemies. Before the Revolution, women were seen as just someone whose purpose was to take care of their families by cleaning and cooking. After the Revolution, women were now starting to get more rights and the idea that women can only clean and cook was starting to fade away. There was a point of view on women on how they need their husband in order to be taken care of , but people were now realizing that women are capable of taking care of themselves. For instance, while men were at war women had to grab a gun and shoot at the natives which created this new perspective that viewed women as strong independent women who could take care of themselves. Politicians were acknowledging the intelligence of women when they advocated for political matters. Mercy Ottis Warren is a woman who advocated for the adoption of the Bill of Rights which demonstrated how women were orchestrating new abilities. A new perspective was created that women could perhaps be involved with politics since they showed the ability to stand up for themselves.
