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1、slackSlave,to,WorkingClass,Women:Black,Women,in,the,Civil,War,Era 【Abstract】It seems the civil war brought some improvement and new opportunity to black women. Their social identity changes from slave to working-class women. However it is difficult for them to lead a really equal and free life. 【Key
2、 words】slave； working-class； civil war； racism； equalityOne of the most remarkable events in American history is the Civil War. After years of emphasizing only the military and political implications of the Civil War， historians are broadening their research and examining the social and cultural ele
3、ments， such as the role of gender， the impact of war on various classes and races of women.The European tradition embraces Male Chauvinism which is strongly opposed and criticized by the feminists. Unconsciously adopting this stereotype， America bears one more innate bloodiest conflict - racism. Dis
4、criminated by the whites and subordinated to the male， the black women are of no significance. After the Civil War， their lives have experienced some changes and they became bolder. However， they still have had a humble voice in the Civil War era.Unnamed former slave recalls her life on a plantation
5、： “My young mistress name Catherine. When her marry， I was give to them for a housemaid.she give old mistress a hug and a kiss and thank her for the present. That present was me.” 1In the eyes of men and even white women， the black women are nobody. They are just a kind of tool or present， the belon
6、gings of the whites.It was in 1865， with the Souths defeat in the Civil war， that the black American entered history， in the sense of being able to control his own experience and at least potentially， deflect the course of the social and political system which was now required to take cognizance of
7、his freedom， even to the extent of legislating against its too effective utilization. After Civil War， Some institutions had systematically denied literacy， freedom of movement， and any sense of racial pride or personal autonomy to blacks； they were pitched unprepared into the world of freedom.Black
8、 involvement seemingly allowed slaves and free blacks to see how the conflict was “altering authority.” As a result， blacks became bolder in challenging the racial status quo. Inspired by this， black women began to own courage to fight for their rights as working-class women.“women from the plantati
9、ons found that they had marketable skills. Washerwomen were so indispensable to city life that they ventured to get together to ask for higher wages. In June， 1866， the Daily Clarion of Jackson， Mississippi， published a politely worded ultimatum.” 2 However， it is difficult for those black women， fr
10、om slave to working-class， to lead a really free and equal life.“As Union armies rampaged across the South， the reconstruction - was complicated by the fact that the South， where most blacks lived， was ravaged. Its immense investment in slavery had been liquidated， its cotton-based economy dislocate
11、d.”3 The underdeveloped section of ante-bellum America had become a post-bellum disaster area. But some Southern institutions survived. One was the belief in white supremacy； the most degraded “poor white trash” knew himself superior to the most elevated nigger. The immediate Southern answer to eman
12、cipation - symptomatic of what the black could expect in the South for a century - was the Black Code， which continued the restrictions of slavery and reduced Negro constitutional rights to a mockery.The Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 might have signaled the end of slavery， but the beginning of f
13、reedom remained far out of sight for most of the four million enslaved African Americans living in the South. Even after the Civil War， when thousands of former slaves flocked to southern cities in search of work， they found the demands placed on them as wage-earners disturbingly similar to those th
14、ey had faced as slaves： seven-day workweeks， endless labor， and poor treatment.In most Connecticut towns， while a lucky or talented few might achieve respectable social rank， most Blacks population until this time would have been employed in domestic labor， which to some extent must not have been cl
15、early distinct from slavery to either master or servant， while their wives usually worked in town as domestic servants. The Blacks might benefit from the prosperity resulting from the War， but their jobs did not represent the first rung of a career ladder， for growing racism tended to force everyone
16、 of color to remain at the bottom rung without hope of an eventual rise.Compared with the male， women suffered more. Women were source of cheap labor and would stop working once they married. To make matters worse for female laborers， workingmen often saw them as threats to their status， especially as new machines permitted less skilled operatives to perform tasks formerly assigned to craftsmen. Thus， it is not surprisi
