Speech On Women's Suffrage

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women's suffrage The industrial age of America changed the work force and family life of Americans from an agrarian society based on farming and small towns to a industry driven society which saw Americans move from rural farms into over crowded cities as the improved efficiency of farming technology required less labour and increased output. The majority of the population found employment in factories creating machines, appliances, and household goods. The urbanization of the industrial age created a new working class, where employees were at the mercy of factory owners working for meager wages. Urbanization also created the influx of children and women into the the factory work place to bring extra income to families so they could survive.…show more content…
she demonstrates the absurdity of the men of the industrial era’s repeatedly and calls attention to the erroneous and backwards thinking of the times through comedic satire. A powerful example of such satire from Howe's speech is in her introduction. she sarcastically proclaims “woman suffrage is the reform against nature” and continues to point out the ladies present in the crowd and their physical, mental and “general debility”. she sarcastically demonstrates the “debilities” of women to a point which they couldn’t possibly mark a ballot or drop it in a box and continues to lay on the sarcasm as the possibility of a woman completing such a simple and menial task is impossible because “all nature is against it. the laws of man cry out against it. the voice of God cries out against it- and so do I.”(284) This humorous approach of satire to pointing out society's general misconception of females is again present when Howe discusses a woman's viable options to get what they want and how to achieve there desires. She goes on to say “Women, we don't need vote in order to get our own way”(288), but rather cry ,“crying always brings them around. get what you want.”288) “Make a scene.”(288) “That is so much more dignified and refined than walking up to a ballot and dropping in a piece of paper.”(288)…show more content…
It successfully speaks to the audience because she does not harp or preach but rather speaks the thoughts of those in the audience in an open manner that clearly and rationally lets people confront their own beliefs on the issue and understand the laughable stereotypes of the delicacy, dependency, irrationality and inability of women. Howe’s speech points out that contrary to the disillusioned beliefs of anti-suffragist dishes will still be washed and the housework and the woman's role in society will still be preformed if they are allowed to vote. Suffrage will give an audible voice to “the working women in the sweated industries, the underpaid, the underfed women reaching out their arms”(287) crying for help, “it might even alter the conditions under which they live”(287). Howe’s satire demonstrates to the audience that if the ballots were opened to women there would not be pandemonium and women will not “come out of the voting booths and be led away by policemen, and put into ambulances while they are fainting and weeping, half laughing, half crying and having fits”(289).The Voting booths would provide opportunity for women to voice there concerns and women’s issues. The ability to vote would not be a departure from there societal role as the head of the household but be part of their duty so they could voice the concerns of family life and domestic issues strengthening the
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