Women and the American Experience

A Concise History

Nancy Woloch

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2024
• Print ISBN: 9781032284897
• eBook ISBN: 9781040021781
• Edition: 3
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: History

The third edition of Women and the American Experience: A Concise History is a comprehensive survey of U.S. women's history from the seventeenth century to the present that illuminates the diversity of women's experience and underscores the roles that women have played as agents of change.

Moving women's lives from the margins of history into the spotlight, the text draws links between women's experience and traditional facets of history, such as colonization, industrialization, politics, and war. This new edition grapples with emerging themes and debates in the field. A new chapter covers the Civil War and emancipation. Discussions of current issues include the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on women's health and work, the #MeToo movement, transgender activism, reproductive rights, and the ERA. Updated suggestions for further reading reinforce evolving trends in women's history.

Used often to shape college curricula and revised to include recent research, this book is designed to serve students, teachers, and general readers concerned with U.S. history and women's past.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half-Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Preface
• 1 The Seventeenth Century: A Frontier Society
• 2 The Eighteenth Century: The Eve of Modernity
• 3 Promoting Woman’s Sphere, 1800–1860
• 4 Benevolence, Reform, and Slavery, 1800–1860
• 5 Civil War and Emancipation, 1860s and 1870s
• 6 Women at Work, 1860–1920
• 7 The Rise of the New Woman, 1860–1920
• 8 Feminism and Suffrage, 1860–1920
• 9 Cross-Currents: The 1920s
• 10 Emergencies: The 1930s and 1940s
• 11 High Expectations: 1950–1975
• 12 In Search of Equality: 1975–2000
• 13 Launching the Twenty-First Century: 2000–2020
• 14 Recent Times: Issues in Motion
• Index