Founding Mothers : The Women Who Raised our Nation
by Cokie Roberts
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Book Summary Information
Author: Cokie RobertsEdition: Hardcover
Published: 2004
ISBN: N/A
Number of pages: 359
Publisher: William Morrow & Co, Inc.
Book Reviews of Founding Mothers : The Women Who Raised our Nation
Book Review: Low Premium, Great Value
Summary: 5 Stars
~Regarding the Public and it's Opinions and Support: "One fourth may be said to always be on the side of Government; one fourth sunk in sensuous pleasure; one fourth immersed in business; and the remainder inattentive and indolent to all public matters provided a grievance does not actually happen to their own...."
~Dennis deBerdt - page 122~
Another excellent tribute by Cokie Roberts to the "women behind the men and the scenes" during the Revolution. Another book by Cokie, "Ladies of Liberty" belongs on every DAR (whether by lineage or by ideals) library shelf. Cokie pulls no punches when delivering the goods in either of these books - the oft repeated appeal of Abigail Adams to her John "Do not Forget The Ladies" is taken quite literally by Cokie Roberts and she eloquently brings their discounted intelligence, courage and sacrifices to the rightful place in history with the men by whom they stood; for whom they loved, feared for, farmed for, bore children for without the protection of sufficient medicine, as though nothing out of the ordinary was going on at the time; some even covertly donned the garb of men and charged into battle too. Add another paradigm of stress while keeping THAT a secret while being surrounded by armies of Friends and Foes.
Some of them, such as Eliza Pinckney, would have made any modern CEO look like the fools most of them are. At the tender age of 16, this girl, barely more than a child, was taking over not only the family acreage in the absence of parents, but was "thinking ahead" like any good chess player - making business decisions that were to bear the fruit of those decisions years down the road. I suspect nobody gave her a gargantuan bonus or "incentive options" in Unplanted Indigo for her hard work, but that's a more modern story.
I must admit, my huge admiration for Benjamin Franklin suffered another slight setback after reading Cokie's remarks regarding him; but they were points well taken, since I had secretly suspected most of it myself gathered from the histories regarding Ben prior to reading this literary autopsy of him; but every icon deserves a notch or two downward occasionally just to keep them within the confines of the human race. In a strange paradox, Ben Franklin promoted freedom of speech with his covert pen taking the heat for him as Silence DoGood; at the same time, the fact that he used a pen name at all supports the remarks that he "waited in abeyance to see which side of the fence was going to prevail" before making a commitment. ( In Old Ben's defense, however, one must remember that speaking your mind publicly was a more difficult matter then than it is now - if you could actually keep it a secret, a pen name was a great buffer zone whilst getting the job done). Clay on the feet detract but little from his measure, after all. But Cheers to Ms. Roberts for rising to the cause of the long-suffering Mrs. Franklin and making us laugh at the same time.
Mercy Otis was one of the few women of that time who were supported by their men and families more openly as a important voice in politics and writing. She was of particular interest to me, and it was one of the best accountings I have read concerning her contribution to the Revolutionary movement. Quite an accomplishment, maintaining appearances as a lady, while keeping a keen brain under control at the same time.
Nonetheless, it was clear that while they were given little public credit for their thoughts, nonetheless, they were listened to - if mostly behind closed doors. Not all of them were American Heroines, either. A couple of them, most notably the infamous Mrs. Loring, were spies for the British, applying their wiles while passing the secrets; a humiliating lesson that never seemed to be learned over time by the men among us, either. So much for 250 years making a difference......
I'm not a rabid feminist, because I don't have to be. My grandmother, whose ancestors number among those in this book, did it for me. The debt of gratitude will never be fully repaid.
Thanks, Cokie.
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