The term refers to a prevailing societal value system during the 19th century, particularly impacting middle and upper-class white women in the United States. It emphasized the roles of wife and mother as central to a woman’s identity, idealizing piety, purity, submissiveness, and domesticity. Examples included women focusing on household management, raising children, and providing moral guidance within the home, while being discouraged from pursuing education or careers outside of it.
This ideology shaped social expectations and limited opportunities for women. It offered a sense of purpose and influence within the domestic sphere but also reinforced patriarchal structures by confining women to the home and excluding them from public life, including politics and professional endeavors. This framework is essential for comprehending social and gender dynamics in the antebellum period and the subsequent challenges to traditional gender roles.
