Letter from Abigail Adams to John Adams (1776)
I wish you would write me a letter half as long as I write you, and tell me if you may where your fleet have gone? What sort of defense Virginia can make against our common enemy? Whether it is so situated as to make an able defense? . . . I have sometimes been ready to think that the passion for Liberty cannot be equally strong in the breasts of those who have been accustomed to deprive their fellow creatures of theirs. Of this I am certain, that it is not founded upon that generous and Christian principle of doing to others as we would that others should do unto us . . .
I long to hear that you have declared as independency, and by the way in the new Code of Laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make I desire you would Remember the Ladies, and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the husbands. Remember all men would be tyrants if they could. If particular care and attention is not paid to the Ladies we are determined to foment a Rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any such laws in which we have no voice or representation.
-This excerpt best represents which of the following developments during the time of the American Revolution?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Abigail Adams' letter to John Adams, urging him to "Remember the Ladies" in the new laws of independence, reflects the early development of the ideal of "republican motherhood." This concept suggested that women had a vital role in nurturing the principles of liberty and democracy within their families, particularly by educating their children. It was a significant shift in the perception of women's roles during the American Revolution, emphasizing their importance in the new nation's civic life, albeit within the domestic sphere.