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Elizabeth Cady Stanton

by Jack Howell from San Diego, California in United States

133530https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Elizabeth_Stanton.jpgSee page for author [Public domain]For many centuries, women have been thought of by males as people who should do what they are told, and whose only purpose is to serve or nurture men. Even though the gender stereotypes have reluctantly been changing over the past years, there is a high possibility that they never would have, and women would have stayed as slave-like individuals. However, thanks to one of the first American women’s rights activists, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the first ever women’s rights convention was created, which not only opened the eyes of men and women all around America, but motivated hundreds of others to stand up for their rights, and even have their own protests for causes that they believed in. Born in 1815 and raised by her moderately wealthy father, Stanton was able to live a fairly exceptional childhood, being able to go to any school of her choosing. However, later on in her life, she came across dozens of women that had been treated poorly by their husbands, fathers, and other male figures in their lives, which opened her eyes to an issue that she herself had not come across yet. After seeing the brutal conditions these women were in, she took a stand and decided that changes needed to be made, and she was the one who was going to make them. Throughout the course of her life, she became partners with many other activists and abolitionists, trying to bring women the rights they deserve, as well as an end to slavery. Because of her immense determination and bravery, she became the stepping stone that all other activists needed at the time, and a guide for women who couldn't find their place or value in life, due to how poorly they had been treated before. An individual must possess both bravery and determination to be considered a hero. Bravery is important when somebody is trying to make a real difference, because it means that they're able to stay strong and continue working hard no matter what others think. Determination is also a key detail because if an individual isn't determined enough to reach their goals, then there’s no chance of them completing the mission they set out to finish. The abolitionist and women’s rights activist Elizabeth Cady Stanton is a hero because of of her bravery in the fight to obtain the rights that all women deserve, and her determination to make her voice heard during a time where many people weren't willing to listen.

Stanton could have been the least likely to become what she is best known for, an activist for women’s rights. As a young girl, she was raised in a proper household, and never experienced any actual abuse by her father, or anyone else for that matter. However, when she saw how other women had been treated, she knew that someone had to be brave enough to take a stand and decided that it would be her. Her main goal was to prove to everyone that men and women, black and white, were all born as equals. But just thinking this is much easier than actually getting it done, which is why she decided to set up the first convention for women’s rights, even knowing that there would be many opposed to her ideas: "On July 19-20, 1848, in Seneca Falls, New York, the two women organized the first public political meeting in the United States that focused on women's rights. The meeting was attended by 240 people, 40 of them men" ("Elizabeth Cady Stanton." Encyclopedia). Stanton expresses her fearlessness here because she was willing to set up the first ever convention for women's rights, knowing that there would be a lot of people who disagreed with her ideas, specifically the 40 men in the crowd that day. The main topic, and main reason for the convention being established, was to discuss both women’s rights and The Declaration of Sentiments, a document written in a similar style as the Declaration of Independence that went over the basic rights that women deserved. This was a very bold move, because the document also talks about how women are being oppressed by the government, an example being how men earn more money than they do, which obviously caused a lot of controversy, but ultimately was beneficial for all females, and it also acted as the framework for women’s suffrage movement. While making the daunting choice to arrange the first convention to claim her rights, as well as writing the 13th amendment, was very courageous of Stanton, her next piece required much more bravery, because she was fully aware that it would not likely lead to a positive reaction from the community: "In 1898 Stanton published her most controversial work, the best-selling The Woman's Bible, a feminist study of the sexism found in the Judeo-Christian bible" ("Elizabeth Cady Stanton." Feminist). Having the courage to publish something as brave as this is not very common, simply do to other people’s opinions. The Bible is already a touchy subject when spoken of among large crowds of diverse people, and when the other sensitive topic of sexism is added on top of it, the chances of people agreeing with what it says are very slim. This is why Stanton, having the guts to follow through and publish the book, makes her brave and shows her true passion for the causes that she believes in. All in all, the many risky opportunities that Stanton made the choice to take truly show her bravery and courageousness, mainly because no one else at the time was willing to risk everything they had in order to get their rights. While Stanton did live a fairly privileged life, she still knew, along with all of the other activists, that there was a decent likelihood that people wouldn't want to hear what they had to say, and that the few rights they already had could have been stripped from them. And not only did she speak up for the issue, but she even documented her thoughts, multiple times, which makes her far more brave than anyone else at the time who was in a similar situation as her.

133533https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Apotheosis_of_suffrage.jpgGeorge Yost Coffin [Public domain]While being brave is a necessity for becoming a hero, without determination, there is no way of proving that a person is even capable of following through with what their true goal in life is, because they could easily just give up with what they were doing at any time and never be successful in life. This is another reason why Stanton was the perfect individual to be the one who would lead other activists to triumph, because once she set her goal to bring women the rights they should have been given their whole life, she didn't plan on stopping until her demands were met. While her main focus was to achieve all women the same rights as men, she also focused on the issue of slavery at the time, working with other abolitionists to combine forces to make it harder for the government to resist their messages. Joining the other association helped both groups significantly, by making their problems much more obvious to the public and government, making it easier for them to get what they deserved, both abolitionists and activists alike: "During the Civil War, Stanton and her friend and ally Susan B. Anthony created the National Woman's Loyal League to build support for what became the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. Once the slaves were free, the two worked to ensure that women would be enfranchised along with the freedmen" ("Elizabeth Cady Stanton." Encyclopedia). The sheer determination of Elizabeth Cady Stanton is shown here because she had taken the initiative to help the abolitionists in their fight to end slavery, while still leading her own group of women’s rights activists, and even after slavery was ended, she still kept fighting alongside the group she had originally organized in order to make sure women were given the right to vote along with former slaves. While joining another group seems like it would make it easier to accomplish their goals, even after the activists had completed one of their main tasks, they still remained hardworking and continued striving to reach the goals they had originally set out to do, not resting until true equality for everyone had been achieved. However, even after Stanton had joined forces with the abolitionists to help them bring an end to slavery, others in that crowd were not willing to return the favor and help bring equality to women, not just including African Americans: “Supporters of suffrage for African Americans and women had previously worked together for their separate causes, but … many individuals working for the black cause, such as Frederick Douglass, feared that the controversy surrounding the women's movement would jeopardize their chances for success, so they withdrew their assistance” (McGill). Although this seems as if it would make Stanton want to quit in her seemingly neverending fight for equality, she didn't quit. After she had just lost an opportunity of a lifetime, having one of the largest protesting groups partnering with her and other activists, likely making it seemingly impossible for the government to resist their outcry, she still stood strong and continued to try to make the world a better place. As she was faced with one of the most challenging moments in her entire career, she didn't back down. Had she not had the passion and determination for this cause that she did, there is no possible way that she, or any others working alongside her, would have been able to keep on fighting with the same devotion and spirit. Overall, Stanton has gone through many hardships throughout her life, many of which came about during her career as an activist. However, she knew that someone had to be willing to keep on moving through these times, otherwise failure to accomplish equality then, and likely now, would have been inevitable. This is why Stanton has proven to be very determined throughout her life, and if it weren't for her, then the chances of the rest of the activists being successful would have been slim.

Therefore, the abolitionist and women’s rights activist Elizabeth Cady Stanton is a hero because of of her bravery in the fight to obtain the rights that all women deserve, having been one of the first people to do this, and her determination to make her voice heard during a time when many people weren't willing to listen. Stanton saw firsthand how men had been treating their wives and daughters, and decided that someone had to make a change, even if it took a lot of courage to try to change an entire nation’s common beliefs. Even after she had greatly contributed to the abolitionist movement, and their demands had been met, she continued to work for women’s rights protests. And even after the majority of the abolitionists had abandoned her and her allies in their fight for equality, she still kept going on with her mission, despite the much higher level of difficulty that she would have to face without them. Overall, Elizabeth Cady Stanton is an inspiring hero because, even though she was the first in America, she was still able to be one of the best women’s rights activists, and also helped others with their own causes at the same time. She was able to make white men realize that both women and African Americans were born equal to them, with the help of others like Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass. Her convention held at Seneca Falls brought women and men together to realize that females deserve the same respect, and, it being the first woman's rights convention in the US, led other activists to do the same as her in the future. She saw firsthand how women had been abused by their husbands and fathers, and knew that it had to change. Therefore, because of her astounding amount of bravery and determination to bring women and African Americans the rights they deserve, and still doing so while being one of the very first to, Elizabeth Cady Stanton is my hero.

Works Cited

"Elizabeth Cady Stanton." Encyclopedia of World Biography Online, Gale, 1998. Biography In

Context, https://    

link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/K1631006214/BIC?u=powa9245&sid=BIC&xid=7ee95ca

.Accessed 29 Apr. 2019.

"Elizabeth Cady Stanton." Feminist Writers, edited by Pamela Kester-Shelton, St. James Press,

1996. Biography In Context,

https://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/K2410000249/BIC?u=powa9245&sid=BIC&xid=9e0cec52. Accessed 29 Apr. 2019.

"Women's Movement." Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. Economic History, edited by Thomas Carson

and Mary Bonk, Gale, 1999. Biography In Context,

https://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/EJ1667500765/BIC?u=powa9245&sid=BIC&xid=

7851280. Accessed 29 Apr. 2019.

McGill, Sara Ann. “Elizabeth Cady Stanton.” Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Aug. 2017, p. 1.

EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=b6h&AN=18011443&site=brc-live.

Rogers, Dorothy. “Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815-1902).” Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy,

2009, www.iep.utm.edu/stanton/.

 

Page created on 5/10/2019 9:02:32 PM

Last edited 5/17/2019 6:37:45 AM

The beliefs, viewpoints and opinions expressed in this hero submission on the website are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs, viewpoints and opinions of The MY HERO Project and its staff.

Related Links

Elizabeth Cady Stanton - This site provides a detailed description of Stanton's entire life, from before she decided to become an activist for women's rights to up until she passed away in 1902.
The National American Woman Suffrage Association - This provides details about the National American Women Suffrage Association, including pictures and background about the group, which was created by Stanton and many other activists.

Extra Info

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Elizabeth_Stanton.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Apotheosis_of_suffrage.jpg