The Destructive Male
In
1868, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a key figure of the nineteenth century women’s
rights movement, gave a speech titled The
Destructive Male at the Women’s Suffrage Convention. Her present audience
was mostly women with a few male supporters, but Stanton was addressing the
entire nation. In her address, Stanton successfully argues for the need for female
suffrage in a society dominated by male influence because it has yet to be
successful in maintaining equality and order.
Right
in her opening, Stanton commands the attention of her audience with a firm request
for an additional amendment that would grant women the right to vote and a
critical attitude towards the corruption within society that has existed for
many years. Her claim is that this corruption is a result of male-based government
decisions, with absolutely no female influence. She asserts her argument by
recalling a history of a disorganized male dominated society characterized by
war, violence, and cruelty towards other humans. To emphasize her point, she
uses a forceful tone and alliteration in phrases such as, “discord, disorder,
disease, and death” and “slavery, slaughter, and sacrifice” to describe the
ongoing struggle. Stanton’s opening argument is an appeal to women and begs the
question as to how the problem of this disorganized government can be resolved.
Stanton
takes into account the current societal hierarchy by stating that many male influences
are seen in all aspects of society, from church to government to households. Society
only knows the power of men because their role has always outshone that of
women. Stanton is aware that there are people who do not want women to gain
suffrage rights because it would “make the women look masculine”. The
distinction between men and women would begin to lessen, which would be the
beginning to radical change in social norms. However, she argues that the idea
of masculinity among women already exists because women are forced to cooperate
with the ideas, values, and wishes of their husbands. Stanton has firsthand
experience as a woman in this society and has the authority to address this
particular concept. She continues to empathize with her female audience by
appealing to their struggle of being subservient to their husbands and their desires
to act according to their free will and independence.
Stanton
then addresses why it is important that women achieve influence in government
matters. She argues that men and women have equal but complementary roles, and
it is women who have the ability to keep men in control and away from brutality.
Women possess qualities that men do not, particularly an outward display of love,
morality, and virtue. Stanton reasons that it is because men lack these
qualities that they are inept make just government decisions without the
assistance of women. She states that through the right of enfranchisement, women
will not seek to outdo men, but assist them in leading the nation to prosperity.
Stanton is now not only appealing to women, but has shifted towards the desires
of everyone who seeks purity and peace within the nation.
As
a final piece of evidence, Stanton compares the natural complimentary roles of
men and women to the equilibrium of elements within nature that work together
for the sake of beauty and peace. By prohibiting women the right to vote,
society has removed an internal force that maintains balance, and thus the violence
and disorganization brought upon by men cannot be restrained. Her closing
remark, which states that “a government of the most virtuous educated men and
women would better represent the whole” challenges the overall effectiveness of
current law, which does not do an adequate job of representing the “interests
of all”. This is her final appeal to the widely held desire for a successful nation.
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