Henry David Thoreau


Personal Information
· I was born the 12th of July in 1817
· I was born in Concord Massachusetts
· I studied and graduated at Harvard University and Concord Academy
· I have written Walden and Civil Disobedience
· I have provided a new way of looking at life, and being able to stand back and decide what I was meant to live for.
Issues
· I was very much against slavery and having to be ruled and governed by an unjust government
· I believe that a person should stand up for what they believe in. A person should live their life the way they want it, and need not be bound by the rules of government, nor be afraid to by judged and just.
· I found my motivation by leaving to a cabin near a pond and experiencing nature firsthand, apart from the pressures of the world
Solutions
· I am able to say that my solution for slavery and an unjust government is to be just. As I once said, “Under a government that prisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also prison.”


Wordle
http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/2717529/Henry_Thoreau

Frederick Douglass

• 
  
  
  Personal Background:
  
  
  ·       I was born in February of 1818 on the Holme Hill Farm in Talbot County, Maryland.
  
  
  ·       My father was an unknown white man, but my mother, Harriet Bailey, worked under the bitter conditions of slavery in nearby plantation fields and would sometimes venture out at night to see me as a child.
  
  
  ·       When I was only a few weeks old, I was separated from my mother and raised by my grandparents.
  
  
  ·       At about the age of six, my grandmother took me to the plantation of my master and left me there, only never being able to recover from betrayal and abandonment.
  
  
  ·       When I was about eight, I was sent to Baltimore to live as a houseboy with Hugh and Sophia Auld, relatives of my master.
  
  
  ·       Even though I did not have a formal education, my master taught me the alphabet.
  
  
  ·       I made the neighborhood boys my teachers, by giving away my food in exchange for lessons in reading and writing.
  
  
  ·       After an aborted escape attempt when I was about eighteen, I was sent back to Baltimore to live with the Auld family, and in early September, 1838, at the age of twenty, I succeeded in escaping from slavery by impersonating a sailor.
  
  
  ·       I was the first slave to stand publicly and declare my fugitive status, became a prolific lecturer, and published many newspapers during my lifetime, which were devoted to causes in the name of "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" for all.
  
  
  ·       I was internationally recognized as an uncompromising abolitionist, indefatigable worker for justice and equal opportunity, and an unyielding defender of women's rights.
  
  
  Issues:
  
  
  ·       Abolition of slavery
  
  
  o   Stance: Found support for the abolition of slavery in my audience with persuasive techniques.
  
  
  ·       Justice and equality for all
  
  
  o   Stance: I am an indefatigable and devote worker moving towards equality and justice for all.
  
  
  ·       Women’s rights
  
  
  o    Stance: Unyielding defender.
  
  
  ·       William Lloyd Garrison gave me the inspiration to challenge the government and country to reform. Because Garrison and I share common interests in reform, he served as a mentor in my life.
  
  
  Solutions:
  
  
  ·       In 1841, at an abolitionist meeting in Massachusetts I delivered a moving speech about my experiences as a slave and was immediately hired as a lecturer by the Massachusetts Anti-slavery Society.
  
  
  ·       My life as a reformer ranged from abolitionist activities in the early 1840s to my attacks on Jim Crow and lynching in the 1890s. For sixteen years I edited an influential black newspaper and achieved international fame as an orator and writer of great persuasive power.
  
  
  ·       The color of my skin created a minor obstacle because it took a great amount of persuasion for an African-American to gain American’s support for the abolition of slavery, justice and equality for all, and women’s rights.
  
  
  ·       In thousands of speeches and editorials I levied an irresistible indictment against slavery and racism, provided an indomitable voice of hope for my people, embraced antislavery politics, and preached my own brand of American ideals. In the 1850s I broke with the strictly moralist brand of abolitionism led by William Lloyd Garrison and supported the early women's rights movement.
  
  
  Relationship to others:
  
  
  ·       Abolition- I, Frederick Douglass, feel Americans should focus on the immediate abolition of slavery. Due to childhood experiences, my fellow African-Americans do not deserve to endure slave cruelty.
  
  
  ·        Women’s Rights- Although I fought for equality and liberty for all, women’s rights were a high priority
  
  
  ·        Lydia Marie Child and William Lloyd Garrison would be among my top supporters in abolishing slavery in the United States.
  
  
  ·       I am in direct opposition to Lyman Beecher and his gradual process in the abolishment of slavery in the United States. This is an institution that must be removed in order to achieve an ideal society for all.
  
  
  ~Muñoz

Ann Lee Stanley

background: 

- I was born on February 29th, 1736 in Manchester, England

- I died on September 8th, 1784 in Watervliet, New York

- I had no formal education

- I was the founder (Mother Ann) of the United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing (the Shakers)

issues: 

- pacifism: I advocate complete neutrality during the American and British war, though would feel most comfortable in supporting the American side for their religious freedom
- celibacy: I strongly disagree with the institution of marriage and sex

- racial and gender equality: All men and women are equal regardless of race

solutions: 

- As part of the Shakers, my followers and I believe that I am the second coming of Christ in the female form as I embody the perfect, sinless, holy being in my complete dedication to equality and celibacy.

- We are called Shakers because I believe that shaking and trembling are signs that the Holy Spirit is purifying us by purging the body of sin and evil

- I believe the second coming of Christ is imminent and we must prepare by attacking sin at its roots in society boldly

- My visions and correspondences with God tell me that celibacy and confession are the only ways to true salvation in Christ. 

- "A complete cross against the lusts of generation, added to a full and explicit confession, before witnesses, of all the sins committed under its influence, was the only possible remedy and means of salvation." 

- The Church of England sought to arrest me multiple times, but I escaped persecution in England by coming to America in 1774, settling the Shakers into a strict communal life.

relationships to others: 

- My views on the Temperance movement, transcendentalism, and prison reform are limited due to my time period.

- I support abolition and women's rights.

~ Cando

Susan B. Anthony

Hi, my name is Susan B. Anthony. I was born on February 15, 1820 in Adams, Massachusetts and died in 1906. I did have a formal education and became a school teacher at a young age. I have dedicated my life to fighting for women's suffrage. My hard work and led to the Married Women's Property Act in 1860. Eight years later, I challenged the 14th amendment by trying to vote, and though I was not completely successful, I will continue fighting for women's rights. My motivation comes from my beliefs and the way I was raised. I was brought up as a Quaker by my loving parents who believed in abolition, temperance, and equality among men and women. Growing up this way I experienced more freedom than most American women and I felt determined to take a stand for women's rights. The day fifteen women and myself voted in the presidential election we were arrested, but only I was brought to court. I was not allowed to testify, and was ordered to pay a $100 fine, but I refused and was later let go. This is only one example of the many obstacles I have faced, but it was all worth it as I feel I have created a movement and I will continue doing everything possible to expand women's rights.

Mata

Fuller,Margaret

Margaret Fuller

Bio

· Sarah Margaret Fuller Ossoli, commonly known as Margaret Fuller

· was an American journalist, critic, and women's rights advocate associated with the American transcendentalism movement

· born May 23, 1810 in Cambridgeport, Massachusetts

· She was the first full-time American female book reviewer in journalism

· Her book Woman in the Nineteenth Century is considered the first major feminist work in the United States.

· She was given a substantial early education by her father, Timothy Fuller. She later had more formal schooling and became a teacher

· first American theorist of women's equality

· edited a magazine, called The Dial, the biggest achievement of Brook Farm

Issues

· Transcendentalism, women's rights, critical theory, gender roles, profession of authorship

· Transcendentalism emphasizes feeling over reason, seeks spiritual communion with nature, and denies the existence of evil.

Solutions

· Fuller contributed significantly to the American Renaissance in literature and to mid-nineteenth century reform movements.

· Women who attended her "conversations" and many prominent men of her time found Fuller's influence life-changing

· When Emerson took over as editor of the Dial, Fuller contributed her groundbreaking essay, "The Great Lawsuit: Man vs. Men and Woman vs. Women," for the July, 1843 issue.

Relationship to Others

· Friends- The Transcendentalism circle included Unitarians Lidian Emerson, Sarah Bradford Ripley, Abigail Allyn Francis, Lydia Maria Child, Elizabeth Hoar, Eliza Farrar, Mary Channing, Elizabeth, Mary and Sophia Peabody, Sophia Dana Ripley and Lydia (Mrs. Theodore) Parker.

· Women’s rights movement- Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton

Wordle-http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/2714229/fuller%2Cmargaret

-Krawczyk