Historical Context Flashcards
What was the Antebellum South? (5 points)
Lasted from around 1812 to the start of the Civil War in 1861
Cotton plantations like Belle Reve were very profitable “great white columns” and were supported by slave labour
At the top of Southern white society were families that had made generational wealth with slave plantations
These families staunchly defended using slave labour - living the American dream meant possessing slaves, producing cotton, and owning land
The Dubois family was aristocratic gentry and would have held immense privilege in the Deep South
What is the context behind the Civil War? (3 points)
A war between the Northern and Southern states that lasted from 1861 to 1865
One of the major reasons was the issue of Slavery in the South:
+ Northern states (the Union) wanted it abolished
+ Southern states (the Confederacy), who relied on it for running their plantations, did not
The North eventually won
Socio-Political Context: How was the South affected post-Civil War? (4 points)
After the Civil War, the South became very separated from the rest of America and formed its own identity
It was viewed as a place of extreme racism and poverty with emphasis placed on people’s history and family ancestry
Image of ‘the South’ remained in Southerners’ minds despite losing the war -they were reluctant to give up their old-fashioned ways
While slavery was illegal, segregation was prevalent, perpetuating cheap labour based on race
How is the Civil War related to the play? (2 points)
The Kowalskis’ apartment is a microcosm of pre-civil war America
The conflict between Blanche and Stanley assimilates that of the Civil War - Stanley represents the Union, who fought the abolition of slavery to pave the way for a new America
What is the historical context behind immigration post-WWII? (4 points)
The play reflects the cultural tensions that pervaded the nation after the horrors of WWII
The idealistic and ambitious USA attempted to prove its superiority and its power to the world by attempting to squash the threat of Nazi Germany
They succeeded in doing so but millions of Americans lost their lives in an effort that left Germany powerless in the hands of the USA and the other Allied forces
Europe experienced large-scale movements of people due to the war’s devastation and the need for reconstruction - led to significant immigration to countries like the United States
What is the Napoleonic code? (4 points)
The French civil code established during the French Consulate in 1804
Much like other legal systems of the time, it made the wife legally inferior to the husband by increasing men’s authority over their families and depriving women of individual rights
“The husband owes protection to his wife, and the wife owes obedience to her husband.”
It also highlights the idea of community, referring to the joint pool of assets and liabilities in the marriage - a wife’s dowry was included but her ‘paraphernalia’ was not
What are the Jim Crow laws? (2 points)
State and local laws introduced in Southern states in the late 19th and 20th centuries which enforced racial segregation
This included the separation of white people from ‘persons of colour’ in public transportation and schools, parks and cemeteries, and theatres and restaurants as well
