Sophie DeGreen
APUSH Ch. 4

Section Review

In what ways were the lives of women and men in New England similar? In what ways were they different? Like in a lot of other parts of Europe, women and men had very different lives. They did have their similarities, such as following strict religious values, generating large families as part of the Puritan foundation, and took part in agriculture and farming. But compared to differences, there were barley any similarities because women were always looked at as inferior to men. Women raised their children and cared for the home. Women practiced domestic arts, such as weaving and spinning. Women also tended to the garden. Men didn’t have any cultural restraints the way women did. But between 1700 and 1776, lives for the people of New England changed. Women became more engaged in a patriarchal system when land became scarce as population grew, and women had fewer children. Having fewer children gave women more time to take part in different activities. Although women were very important, they were still viewed as inferior to men.

What was the threat to the freehold ideal in midcentury New England, and what strategies did farming families use to preserve this ideal? The biggest threat the freehold idea was the large number of migrants coming to New England. In 1700, the New England population was 100,000 and it grew to 400,000 in 1750. This caused the amount of land one owned to become smaller since the land was getting divided up more and more as the migrants came. This led to parents not being able to provide much land for their children to inherit, and parents then had less control over their children’s lives. The citizens still wanted to preserve the freehold idea. They developed a system that a historian called “household mode of production.” This included families swapping labor and goods. Women and children would work in groups to spin yarn, sew quilts, and shuck corn. Men would loan neighbors tools, draft animals, and grazing land. Farmers would plow fields of artisans and shopkeepers in return for shoes, furniture, or store credit.

Who were the new migrants to the Middle colonies? Why did they leave Europe? What were their goals in British North America? The migrants to the Middle colonies included Scot-Irish Presbyterians, English and Welsh Quakers, German Lutherans, and Dutch reformed Protestants. Many migrants left Europe because there was little religious liberty and had to follow strict rules, whereas in America, the colonies were more liberal and free. Also, the abundant fertile land attracted many migrants and grain exports to Europe and the West Indies financed the rapid settlements. What the migrants wanted in British North America was to farm grain and other goods to trade with Europe. The income earned from the exports of grain and many other products paid for English manufactures, which the settlement in the Middle Colonies imported in large quantities after 1750.

What were the main issues that divided the ethnic and religious groups of the Middle colonies? Some the issues that divided the ethnic and religious groups of the Middle Colonies included language, cultural heritage, religious beliefs, political allegiances, and marriage choices. Since the migrants were coming from Europe, they had diverse religions, beliefs, traditions and languages, so that made it hard to be around each other and it was difficult for them to agree since they had different viewpoints.

In what ways did the Enlightenment and the Great Awakening prompt Americans to challenge traditional sources of authority? The Enlightenment challenged traditional sources of political authority in the way that it said that God did not give someone the power to rule. People for centuries believed that God gave someone the power to rule, and the Enlightenment challenged this completely. The Great Awakening, led by Whitefield in America, showed citizens to reason and think for themselves,