u s women s history

It must be 6-7 page paper in apa format. You will have to write a thesis/intro, argument and conclusion. Don’t forget about the references/bibliography.

Answer one of the following questions, basing your argument on THREE readings from the semester’s list.

1. Gerda Lerner’s article, one of the readings for Week One, presents several ways or “paradigms” of approaching the study of women in America. The idea of developing the historical narrative from a “feminist perspective” is key. The questions are: “Where are the women? What were the women doing when all this history happened in America? How do women understand their own stories?”

As we have discussed, these are potential ways to present the Social History of Women in America:

1. “Contribution History.” The underlying assumption is that received history is universal; the patriarchal narrative is the norm. No distinction is made between what the men were achieving and how the women fit into the narrative—the assumption is that men’s story is women’s story. The “New Social History” which focuses on women ADDS their contribution to the patriarchal narrative. The “universal male perspective” defines what “counts” as history, can be applauded as a contribution to the story of America. The categories of achievement in public life that women have performed is defined by what the normative historical, that is, patriarchal view, deems a contribution.
2. History from the grass roots up. Social History from this perspective begins with the first hand report of what has happened to women, how they felt about it, and why THEY see it as an essential element of history; in other words, why “her-stories” are important to a comprehensive narrative of the American experience. Historical essays from this perspective are based on individual reporting from more private or personal sources: letters, journals/diaries, minutes of the meetings of informal groups, volunteer associations, or organizations that have sprung up to be called NGOs. Much of the material is, thus, individual “Primary Sources.” Individual narratives become “Secondary Sources” as their authors base their interpretations utilizing evidence from the primary ones to draw broader conclusions for the historical record.
3. The distinctions in analysis by race/ethnicity, gender, class, education, religion, immigration status, among others—esp. urban/rural and region/section of the nation are now becoming essential as well.
4. All of these are ways of doing “Social History.” As a separate field within HISTORY, it is still fairly new, but as you have discovered in the readings of HISTORY 377, much research has now been accomplished. It is our “case studies” of the three weeks thus far that give us the basis for this exam, one that asks you to discover patterns or an overview in the American Story.

CHOOSE ONE OF THE FOLLOWING ISSUES TO WRITE ABOUT IN THE FORMAT THAT THE DETAILED“RUBRIC” DEFINES, BASING YOUR WORK ON ONE OF THE APPROACHES OUTLINED ABOVE.

1: The tension between “individualism” and “the quest for community” has characterized the American experience. Taking three of the essays in the readings thus far as the basis for your analysis, how would you characterize the experience from 1870-1929 from the perspective of women?

2: WHO or WHAT comprises “an American woman?” Tell “her-story” from 1870-1929. How would you develop the narrative for a general introduction, say in a high school textbook?

3: “American Exceptionalism” has long been the standard paradigm for the “American Way” as a unique story. Argue that the narrative of American Women’s History between 1870-1929 supports the “exceptional” argument OR argue that the status and experiences of women are parallel and intertwined with developments elsewhere in the world, that is, are part of the “historical moment globally.”

I will provide the links.