Life was difficult in the early colonization of North America by the Europeans. The Native people were being forced off the land they had lived on for thousands of years, and forced to adopt they ways of the colonizers. The African people were being captured and brought to the Americas for a life of slavery. The Europeans were the dominant group of this new country, but they were also struggling to establish themselves apart from England. All three of these cultures believed in different religions, held different values, and allocated different responsibilities among the sexes. Therefore, the women in these cultures had their gender constructed differently, yet in each it was the woman who played the domestic role.

The creation stories in each of these societies reflect how little or much women were valued. In most of the Native American cultures, women were valued beings. Their stories of creation differed from those of Christianity. In the Iroquois story of creation, a woman came from heaven and fluttered above the sea. A tortoise then offered her his back, which represented land, and there she made her home. A spirit that noticed she was lonely gave her three chi

Divorce for English women was not common, most likely because it was hard to accomplish, unlike most Native societies where it was easy to achieve (Evans 11). In early Connecticut a petition had be sent to the court, and divorce was only granted on certain terms. This Act from 1667 describes those terms:

for three years with total neglect of duty; or in case of seven years absence of one

party not heard of: after due enquiry is made, and the matter certified to the

superior court, in which case the other party may be deemed and accounted single

A typical New England woman had a very busy day. Wives were did the early morning milking, so breakfast was usually whatever was left over from the night before. The main meal of the day was dinner, which was not as easy to prepare as it is today when we use electric and gas stoves. The most basic skill of a housewife was tending the fire, which is where most of the cooking was done unless a fortunate family happened to have a stove. (Kerber and De Hart 41)

divorce may be granted by the superior court...(Kerber and De Hart 50-1)

Many of the first European settlers to come to America in the early 1600’s came to escape religious persecution and the corruption of the established church. These Protestants wanted the religious freedom to purify the church. Although they were here to escape persecution, they still “insisted on women’s proper subordination within the family” (Evans 22). John Calvin, who was a major Protestant reformer said, “Let woman be satisfied with her state of subjection, and not take it amiss that she is made inferior to the more distinguished sex.” (Evan’s 22)

Some topics in this essay:
De Hart, Women Indian, West African, Divorce English, Europeans Native, North South, South Northern, John Calvin, America European, Governor Winthrop, de hart, kerber de, kerber de hart, slave women, north america, women valued, divorce granted, african societies women, societies women, women native, african societies, gender constructed, contact white society, bill divorce granted, de hart 74,