The Great Fight to Win the Vote

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Introduction

Using Elaine Weiss’ narrative, I aim to give the theses argument on the reason why some women advocated for women’s being granted the right to vote while others opposed; the reasons why some men advocated for women’s right to vote whereas others opposed; and the way the 19th Amendment advanced the equality of women in the eyes of their supporters. The Woman’s Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote by Elaine Weiss is The Woman’s Hour by Elaine Weiss is a striking, multifaceted account about the major personalities (women and men) at the focus of the drama during the tense weeks in Nashville. In this narrative, Elaine Weiss gives an account of the nail-biting peak of the highest political battles in America’s history and the sanction of the constitutional amendment that gave women the right to vote. It is an American narrative and, consequently, about the legacy of the Civil War, about power and race, and about the wounds that are not forgotten or healed in the south. The author gives a summary of the struggle to endorse the 19th Amendment, which centers on the ultimate frontier. The narrative narrates the fight battled between the Antis in Tennessee and their counterparts called suffragists. However, the person who reads this narrative might sometimes get impatient with the quantity of time Weiss takes to set the point, her detailed result into the climax that is worth it.  

Reasons Why Some Women Advocated For Their Right to Vote While Others Opposed

Some women advocated for their right to vote, while others were against this constitutional right. Women had an expectation that after the Civil Warfare culmination, they will also be considered to vote just like men. They had the expectation that all the disenfranchised classes: Black women, Black men, and white women, would be allowed to vote. They were miserably disillusioned when they were told after the warfare that the nation-state could not handle two great restructurings at once. It would be another 50 years they would have to wait. Because of disappointments, a lot of early suffragists like Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton opposed the 15th Amendment, which provided only black men the right to vote but excluded women and, in specific white women (Weiss, 233). In 1869, Susan B and Elizabeth established the National Woman Suffrage Association. They alluded to the point that white women were more educated than Black men; thus, they deserved the right to vote more. On the other hand, forces that were powerful were organized against ratification in Nashville, fearing that providing women the permit to vote would dilute their social power, elevate blacks to equality with whites under the South’s social hierarchy, and hurt their business desires. It is a surprise that some of the toughest opponents were women who projected the defilement of their sex and the demise of the family by political activity. 

The suffragist who advocated for the rights of women to vote in reference to Elaine Weiss’ narrative urged that providing them with the right to vote would enable them to be better mothers and wives. According to them, allowing them to vote would bring their domestic expertise and moral superiority issues of public concern. Susan B., a strong and outspoken advocate of women’s rights, demanded that the 14th Amendment be a guarantee of the vote for women and African-Americans men (Weiss, 250). Women wanted to be treated as individuals and not dependents of men. Additionally, they wanted more opportunities and education. They wanted the option to speak in front of Congress, to run for office, and vote. Some women opposed the advocacy of their rights to vote. Not all of them believed in equality for all sexes. Those who supported traditional gender roles argued that voting rights for women were improper for them. Some claimed that voting rights would make them grow beards. The challenge to traditional roles represented by the struggle for social, political, and economic equality was a threat to several women. Anti-suffragists contended that they did not want to vote because they took care of their children and homes. They claimed that they did not have time to stay on political updates or vote. A number of them urged that women did not have the mental capacity or expertise to provide useful viewpoints concerning political issues.  

Reasons Why Some Men Advocated for Women’s Right to Vote While Others Opposed

Those men who advocated for women’s rights to vote believed that women too had the potential to impact politics. They reasoned that giving them the right to vote would better society. These men aided to support the women’s movement by speaking, signing petitions, writing, voting in favor of suffrage, and providing project funds. These men were important to the achievement of the women’s suffrage movement (Weiss, 395). They reasoned that since women were citizens, the citizens of America’s privileges included the right to vote. Those men who opposed women’s rights to vote were cultural, religious, and social conservatives who had a fear that women’s voting would result in an intense and unhealthy shift in gender roles. According to them, this would endanger the American family and lead to the nation’s moral collapse. 

The Ways the 19th Amendment Advanced the Equality of Women in the Eyes of Their Supporters

The 19th Amendment was ratified on August 18, 1920. It gave the right of all citizens of the United States to vote. The amendment granted women the right to vote and represented the climax of the women’s suffrage movement. The 19th Amendment advanced the equality of women in the eyes of their supporters. Through lobbying and public relations campaigns, they won the vote for several states. After being passed in the congress and approved in 35 states, the fate of women’s suffrage rested in Nashville, Tennessee. Through the 19th Amendment, women could freely vote and campaign in front of their supporters freely and fairly.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the women’s suffrage movement gave them more political rights and property rights. According to Weiss’ narrative, the movement helped society perceive women as strong and hardworking individuals. This story by Weiss concerns a suffrage movement split over strategy and tactics, with one party playing within putative confines. Simultaneously, another, which was the more drastic group, was tired of waiting for men to do the right thing. This narrative by Weiss provides the results of Women’s suffrage, eventually attained in 1920, a sense of urgency and uncertainty. From The Woman’s Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote by Elaine Weiss, it is evident that women can now freely vote and give their views in politics.   

Works Cited

Weiss, Elaine. The woman’s hour: The great fight to win the vote. Penguin, 2018. 1-432