The Determined, Decisive, and Diverse: Women of the Atlantic World
ENDNOTES
One of the most destructive and devastating periods of the human history was the transatlantic slave trade occurring from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries. Millions of vulnerable African men, women, and children were forcibly taken from their homes, put on large, unsanitary, and overcrowded ships bound for European colonies in North and South America and the Caribbean. The life expectancy of these Africans was very short due to the tremendous hardships associated with being a slave. Moreover, as the demand of the European market was the main concern of slave traders, the African mortality rate soared as Africans were considered expendable and easily replaceable. In other words, Africans were seen as a disposable commodity, with the sole purpose of providing labour for Europeans who believed themselves to be the race superior in all regards. Even in such a savage world, free and freed women living in these profitable slave-trading communities were able not only able to assert themselves within the male-dominated societies, but they also found ways to exploit the harmful industry and reap its economic benefits. However, because of the traditional historical narrative which emphasizes the power of men during this period, women who climbed the social ladder to rival their male counterparts have often been forgotten. This article explores the ways women were able maneuver through and overcome their society’s rigid expectations of gender roles and establish themselves as key players in the history of the Atlantic world. To comprehend the transformative nature of a women’s place within society, it is important to understand sixteenth-century attitudes towards women. Perhaps the most common outlook towards women was the belief in their general inferiority to men, which significantly limited their participation in both the public and domestic spheres of society. For example, in western Africa, families were often polygamous with the husband taking on many wives whose importance was ranked based on seniority or by the number of children they birthed.1 As well, daughters were typically placed in marriages which would prove to be economically and socially beneficial to their families.2 Outside the home, in addition to the typical domestic duties of cooking and raising children, African women did have freedom to participate within the public marketplace in selling agricultural produce. However, this freedom was limited as women needed their husband’s permission to participate in such activities since their husbands provided them with their initial capital.3 Even then, women did not have complete autonomy as their actions were closely monitored and their lives were dictated by their femininity.4
La Signare de Gorée avec ses esclaves (The Signare of Gorée with her Slaves), East India Company Museum, Ji-Elle, Creative Commons, via Wikimedia Commons.
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