Question

ee tS assesSment. Question 1 Assess attitudes toward women in New Jersey from 1787 to 1865 (CSLO 1,2, 3, 4)

Answer 1

Period between the years 1787 to 1865 was the period of marginalization. It is also known as the period of suffrage. Suffrage was a clause in constitution. This constitution was adopted by New Jersey. This completely ignored the gender barrier.

New Jersey allowed women to vote before their state's constitution outlawed this important right in the year 1844. Many northern states of USA had abolished the slavery. New Jersey did not abolish it since 1804. Some slaves were held till the year 1865.

Children of slave mothers were forced to perform apprentice till the age of their adulthood. New Jersey was the last state to finish the tradition of slavery. The term New Jersey came into existence in the year 1664 when England took the control of this area from Dutch governance.

In this region any person either men or women was considered as landholder who was having a worth of 50 pounds. New Jersey also encouraged these landholders to bring more and more slaves to work in their farms.

Laws for women were inspired from the civil rights of England. Any women was under the security of her husband only. If a women had any property ten her husband would be the master. Women were not allowed to make any agreement without the consent of their husband.

Husband was the legal guardian of children in every case. Divorce was almost unavailable option for a woman of unhappy marriage. We see that condition of women was not so good at that time. They were considered unable to make any big decision of their life. Later on various movements took place which helped in overall improvement of situation of women.