Women of the Civil War

Around the time of the civil war there were two types of women. Women who acted outside the sphere the "Sphere of Domesticity" and others chose to stay within traditional gender roles. The sphere of Domesticity includes cooking, cleaning, staying home and taking care of the kids instead of having a job. The Sphere is basically all the household roles a women would have. Some women would act inside of it while others would venture on to do more "man like" things like having a job, public speaking, and some even joined the war. Both sides in and out of the sphere had strong arguments for why they chose their roles.

Women like Rose O'Neal Greenhow, Dorthy Dix, Martha Coston didnt let things like the "Sphere of Domesticity" hold them back. All three dared to venture outside of the circle in their own way. Martha Coston mother of 4 who lost her husband who was a scientist. He was in the process of making the flare when he died and Martha wanted to finish it for him. She had followed his work when he was alive making it easier for her to pick up where he left off. Since she worked so hard the flare was not only finished, but was used all over the United States. Dorthy Dix went outside the circle in a different way. Dorthy was in charge of medical treatments and the care of patients. She was not only in charge of the nurses but even was in charge of some male doctors. Rose O'Neal Greenhow acted outside the circle much different from the two others. Rose O'Neal Greenhow acted as a spy for the confederacy. Since she was a women she was able to blend in easily and be inconspicuous making her one of the best spies the confederacy had. All three of these women broke the norm of being a housewife with no job by making their own paths outside the circle  and are perfect examples of women acting outside the Sphere of Domesticity.

One woman who is an example of a women acting inside the sphere of domesticity is Alice Chapin. She was a mother of 5 who was left by her husband who decided to go into the army, leaving her with little money and many mouths to feed. She was going to get a job as a teacher but her husband forbid it. She obeyed him and instead of getting the job, she sent care packages to the army in hope that it might help her husband and other soldiers. Alice Chapin is a perfect example of a women who acted inside the Sphere of Domesticity