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Abigail Bailey Escapes an Abusive Relationship, 1815 Cite: http://www.americanyawp.com/reader/the-early-republic/abigail-bailey-escapes-an-abusive- relationship-1815/  Explain the nature of the life and escape of Abigail Bailey.  Abigail Bailey was a woman in the 18 th /19 th century who was married to a Major Asa Bailey. She discovered through her children that her husband had done unspeakably dreadful things to harm her family. She asked herself if she should prosecute her husband or if just having him leave their lives altogether would be enough. She settled on allowing him to leave and reform himself, but made it very clear that she never wanted to live with him again.  Was she typical for women in the era?  This is very atypical for the period. Women were essentially legally dead after marriage, where they became a single unit with their husbands who represented them, and divorce was very rare. During this period, many attempted to shield the women from work and to allow them to live in the so-called domestic sphere. The fact she was able to free herself of her husband is remarkable.  Does any of this surprise you?  I’m surprised mostly that a woman of the period was able to escape her abusive husband. I was pretty well aware of the reality of women during this time, but I was surprised (and quite relieved!) that she was able to get away with her children. Rebecca Burlend Recalls Her Emigration from England to Illinois, 1848 Cite: http://www.americanyawp.com/reader/the-market-revolution/rebecca-burlend-recalls-her- emigration-from-england-to-illinois-1848/  Who is Rebecca Burlend?  Rebecca Burlend is an English woman who emigrated to the United States in the 19 th century.  What does she see on her journey?  She is amazed by many of the things she sees. The magnitude of the river, the thousands of sailing vessels, how busy the shops and stalls were on the Sabbath day, and the

diversity of people in the city itself. As they sail up the river on the steamboat, she initially sees large plantations manned by slaves. The land gradually turns into grand forests.  How does reading her firsthand experience change or enhance your understanding of the immigrant experience in this or any other era?  The things that were most striking to me were her description of slavery and particularly the ending of her account. She repeatedly talks about slavery in a very harsh way and is very clearly disapproving of it. This just exemplifies the differences in opinion on slavery from the different areas at the time. The ending of her account was emotionally crushing, as they find themselves alone as night and cold approaches. They came to America presumably for a better life and are met with loneliness and not a building around to seek help. Comparative Assessment  Assess what these two women have in common.  These two women are both mothers and wives, and they ultimately find themselves somewhat alone in the early era of the United States. Abigail Bailey is essentially without a husband after having sent him away, and Rebecca Burlend and her family are essentially alone after emigrating to a completely different country.  What are their immediate needs?  Both women are attending to their most immediate need, to create a better life for their families. Abigail sends her husband away to protect herself and her children, and Rebecca spends a long time emigrating with her family to a new country in search of prosperity.  Can you see a relation between these women and other people left out of the New Republic?  Women during this era had a very difficult time creating something better for themselves their families. They were largely tied to their husbands, and many during the period tried to usher them into a private sphere of domestication. This inability to be mobile socially and make a better world for themselves and those they care for is very common among the groups, such as African American slaves, that were largely ignored in the creation of the new Republic.  What was the reality of the lives of women in this era?  Women in this era who belonged to middle or upper-class families were largely sheltered from the public sphere of politics and wage work and ushered into a life of

domestication and education. Lower class families were often unable to survive without the additional wages that the wives would bring in, so many lower class women at the time worked. Other Works Cited The American Yawp, Chapter 8: The Market Revolution: http://www.americanyawp.com/text/08-the- market-revolution/

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