Writing Assignment on
Seneca Falls and the Origins of the Women’s Rights Movement
The final writing assignment for HIST 1301 is a paper on the book, Seneca Falls and
the Origins of the Women’s Rights Movement, by Sally G. McMillen. Dr. McMillen’s
book takes a look at the 19th century women’s rights movement and how four
individuals were, according to her, critical to that movement. Historians often refer
to this movement as the “First Women’s Rights Movement.” The second movement
emerged during the late 1960s and into the 1970s.
The women’s rights movement, for a historian, offers insights into legal, religious,
and social restrictions placed on women and how they maneuvered in that world
and often chafed against the restrictions. Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton,
Susan B. Anthony, and Lucy Stone were well-educated women, coming from rather
interesting backgrounds, and they all played significant roles in pushing forward
women’s rights in the 19th century. Although the first suggestion that women secure
voting rights occurred in the 1840s, none of the four women would survive to see
women’s voting rights come to fruition in 1920. But their contributions to the
endeavor formed the foundation of the women’s rights movement throughout the
19th century and into the 20th century.
Paper requirements:
3-4 pages in length
Double-spaced
1-inch margins
No cover sheet is required
Submitted as either a Word document or a PDF
Topics to address:
1) Prior to the Seneca Falls Convention in 1848, how did Dr. McMillen describe
women’s social and legal status within the United States?
2) What skill/area of expertise did each of the four women bring to the struggle
for increased women’s rights?
3) In what way were the four women’s lives similar? In what ways did they
differ?
4) If you had to choose one of the four women as the most crucial to the
expansion of women’s rights, who would you choose and why?
Remember to write an essay – not simply listing out a response to 1, 2, 3, and 4.
Make sure to make a strong argument and support your argument with citations
from the book. There should be a minimum of four (4) citations embedded within
your paper.