State of 'The Union' by Sandra Schroer

Author:Sandra Schroer [Schroer, Sandra]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: History, General, Social History, Social Science, Gender Studies
ISBN: 9781135498597
Google: aehTAQAAQBAJ
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2013-10-11T01:19:27+00:00

Why is this movement called Free Love at all? Do we ask for no freedom out of the sphere of the affections? Perhaps not if we take this in its broadest, fullest sense for in that it comprehends all; but take it in its highest purest significance as it relates to the attractions between the sexes and it is but a portion of the demands which the throbbing heart of Progressive Humanity, is calling on man, angel and God to grant it, as its eternal Birthright. (Age, April 22, 1858, p. 3)

The way Elvira phrased “the throbbing heart of Progressive Humanity” connotes emotional pain that goes with being a social reformer and specifically a Free Lover. Also, the use of capitals on “Progressive” and “Humanity” were eye-catching. This foregrounding draws attention to the emotionally loaded terms. It is all the more influential when analyzed within the context of the rest of the sentence where two additional words were capitalized, “God” and “Birthright.” If one is influenced by the bold attention while briefly scanning the article three terms stand out, Progressive “Humanity” (a reference to all social reformers), “God” and “Birthright.” The connotation is that Progressive Humanity is Godly, and a privilege that everyone is entitled to. In contrast, those who disagree or “traduce” Free Love are not progressive and are not in favor with God because they are imposing restrictions on people whom only God should be in charge of. This is further supported by the closing sentence, “Truly has the world pronounced their own verdict of condemnation?” (Age, April 22, 1858, p. 3). Elvira's message was that to go against Free Love, which included all forms of freedom, was equivalent to going against God himself.

Freedom was another common topic of articles that was often addressed through connotations. Elvira addressed freedom, using connotations of slavery. She wrote of the “peculiar Institution of American Slavery” (Good, March 29, 1859, p. 2) to refer to slavery of all types. Barry also used the term “slavery” in the same way, to represent the experiences of non-Free Lovers and other groups who experience restrictions. Connotations associated with slavery were particularly strong in the context of this time period [18–58] because the issue of Black slavery was on the minds of many people. Free Lovers and other reformists attached themselves to the term to get the most emotion out of the existing social turmoil over the topic of slavery. Calling oneself a slave to anything raised questions of human freedom, violence and control, so it was an effective way to demonstrate the level of seriousness one felt toward a topic. Furthermore, some reformists, including Free Lovers, saw the abolishment of Black slavery as just a stop-gap. They argued for complete legal freedom for all people. This included freedom from the inequality of marriage, women's rights, freedom for slaves, and freedom for laborers exploited by business owners. “‘Not fit for freedom’ has been the cry of tyranny in all ages; everywhere have error and superstition feared

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.