emergence of corporations and its impact on women
The emergence of corporations came with new forms of livelihood for many people who sought employment from different parts of the world. However, in the United States, these factories had a massive impact on women who were the most preferred labor in these textile mill industry. To understand why this trend was popular was, “At the time the Lowell cotton mills were started, the caste of the factory girl was the lowest among the employments of women” (Robinson). In this time, sexism and inequality correlated to make the women in these factories indirectly slaves. Although young girls and women were subjected to many hours of work, there was a demand for their skills in the growing industrialization and growth of the education sector. The men were more valued in the family and had a bigger chance of becoming successful if they attained education in some profession. According to Robinson, the women in this period managed to educate “some male members of the family” (Robinson), which was able to influence the whole community as a whole. The wages that these women were making played a significant role in the 1836 strike. In working hardtop support, a man to attain her degree women’s relevance was felt, and they were able to learn a tradition of saving rather than becoming money spenders. However, it is clear that women labor was undervalued in every manner because it even underage girls were employed under these corporations and forced to work long hours. Robinson says that “She was represented as subjected to influences that must
destroy her purity and self-respect. In the eyes of her overseer, she was but a brute, a slave, to be beaten, pinched, and pushed about”. The statement proves that women in this period had to undergo social injustices not only physically abut their character was negatively bombarded with negative energy that they came to accept they were less of humans to men. Their innocence and weakness were exploited to the maximum by the overseers who decided the time to rest, and if he was in a lousy mood, the girls could work in insane hours. In this period, they were used to exploitation, and it became even worse with an announcement that their wages were going to be reduced, which triggered the famous 1836 strike. The strike symbolized that the working environment had become unbearable to women, and for the first time, they rose and faced their oppressors.
The memoir provides us with actual information on what workers, especially women, had to undergo to change their lives for the better. Workers’ rights have from then altered to be more accommodative for most people, but there is so much to be done regarding sexism and inequality when it comes to employment. The traditions and beliefs that a woman should stray in the kitchen were proven wrong by women workers in Massachusetts who worked to support their male family members to acquire information. Robinson came face to face with what was happening in these corporations to young girls and women between 1832 to 1845 in the textile mills. The working conditions and wages that women received were absurd, and much more needed to be done to curb this situation which triggered strikes to demand better wages and working environment. The memoir by Robinson can be considered more trustworthy because she is explaining her encounter because she lived and worked at theses corporation. “An Account at Lowell” does not give a personal account of what was happening and how the whole employment setup was tailored to victimize and oppress women. Memoirs can offer some limitations because it entails a personal experience which can sometimes be clouded by own feelings and prejudice. A memoir as a primary source is limited only when one can identify some elements of emotions from the author.
Part II
I think it is essential to consider this source through a more prominent perspective by asking ourselves, is Robinson a feminist? Or is she a Worker’s activist?