The Feminization of Republicanism
The Feminization of Republicanism
Beginning at the threshold of the nineteenth century, a small but growing number of privileged women such as Graham used their charities to recast the parameters of republicanism, collectively reclaiming the rights denied them by custom and common law. Historians have tended to emphasize “republican motherhood” as the Revolution's primary legacy for women. Two kinds of female-controlled charities were created for women and children in the 1790s: asylums and charities providing employment and outdoor relief. For many impoverished women, incarceration in the public almshouse must have been a terrifying prospect. White women's charities also gave new meaning to the rhetoric of republicanism and widened political roles. Historians have been quick to point out that discussions about the role of republicanism in the new nation were “primarily a male discourse,” emphasizing the subordination of self-interest for the public weal. A second way in which women's charities legitimized their authority by building on republican rhetoric was their use of what one would now term the nonprofit form.
Keywords: women, republicanism, primary legacy, charities, common law
Chicago Scholarship Online requires a subscription or purchase to access the full text of books within the service. Public users can however freely search the site and view the abstracts and keywords for each book and chapter.
Please, subscribe or login to access full text content.
If you think you should have access to this title, please contact your librarian.
To troubleshoot, please check our FAQs, and if you can't find the answer there, please contact us.
