Lesson 8: Colonial Society Flashcards
Apprentice Definition
A person who learns a trade or craft from a master
Dame School Definition
A school run by women, usually in their own homes
The Enlightenment Definition
the movement in Europe in the 1600s and 1700s that emphasized the use of reason
Gentry Definition
The highest social class in the English colonies
Great Awakening Definition
A religious movement in the English colonies in the mid-1700s, also known as the First Great Awakening
Libel Definition
The act of publishing a statement that may unjustly damage a person’s reputation
Middle Class Definition
In the English colonies, a class that included skilled craftworkers, farmers, and some tradespeople
Libel (Noun) Definition
a false written or printed statement that damages a person’s reputation
Who was at the top of Colonial Society?
At the top of society stood the gentry. The gentry included wealthy planters, merchants, ministers, successful lawyers, and royal officials. They could afford to dress in the latest fashions from London.
Who was in the Middle Class?
Below the gentry were the middle class. The middle class included farmers who worked their own land, skilled craft workers, and some tradespeople. Nearly three quarters of all white colonists belonged to the middle class. They prospered because land in the colonies was plentiful and easy to buy and because skilled work was in high demand and paid relatively well.
Who were in the Lower Social Classes after the Middle Class?
The lower social classes included hired farmhands and indentured servants. Far below them in status were enslaved Africans and African Americans.
How did someone become an indentured servant and what did they do?
Indentured servants signed contracts to work without wages for a period of four to seven years for anyone who would pay their ocean passage to the Americas. When their term of service was completed, indentured servants received “freedom dues”: a set of clothes, tools, and 50 acres of land. Because there were so few European women in the colonies, female indentured servants often shortened their terms of service by marrying.
How many indentured servants were brought to America?
Thousands of men, women, and children came to North America as indentured servants. After completing their terms, some became successful and rose into the middle class.
From New Hampshire to Georgia, what was the main means of survival for colonists.
From New Hampshire to Georgia, most colonists survived by farming. Men worked long hours planting crops, tending the fields, and raising livestock—pigs, cows, and other farm animals. Anything beyond what the family needed to live was taken to markets to sell. Families also traded crops and livestock with their neighbors for additional goods.
What were the roles of men and women on farms, away from the backcountry?
While men typically did much of the agricultural work, women often worked within the home. They worked hard taking care of the household and the family. By the kitchen fire, they cooked the family’s meals. They milked cows, tended chickens and a vegetable garden, watched the children, cleaned, did laundry by hand, and made candles, cheese, and clothes.
What were the roles of men and women on farms in the backcountry?
Life was different in the backcountry, out beyond more settled lands. Life was difficult, and wives and husbands often worked side by side in the fields at harvest time. With so much to be done, no one worried whether harvesting was proper “woman’s work.”
What was the work life like for women in cities?
In cities, women sometimes worked outside the home. A young single woman from a poorer family might work for one of the gentry as a maid, a cook, or a nurse. Other women were midwives, who delivered babies. Still others sewed fine hats or dresses to be sold to women who could afford them. Learning such skills often required years of training. Some women learned trades from their fathers, brothers, or husbands. They worked as butchers, shoemakers, or silversmiths. Quite a few women became printers. A woman might take over her husband’s business when he died.
What was work life like for men in cities?
Men often worked in trades, for example as coopers (who made and repaired wooden barrels), blacksmiths, and silversmiths. Most large towns in the colonies were seaports, where merchants and traders brought goods to and from Europe. As this trade grew, more men also took on jobs as bankers, lawyers, and businessmen.
What were some jobs of educated men in the colonies?
Some educated men in the colonies became politicians. Others were pamphleteers, who wrote and distributed small booklets informing people on a subject. There were many doctors in the colonies, where illness was common. However, medical training varied. A surgeon might be a barber with little real medical training.
How did African and African-American culture diffuse through farming?
By the mid-1700s, the culture of Africans and African Americans in the colonies varied greatly. On rice plantations in South Carolina, enslaved Africans used methods from West Africa for growing and harvesting rice. For example, flat baskets holding the grains were shaken in the wind to separate the grains from leaves and other particles. Then a wooden mortar and pestle were used to clean the grains.
How did African-American culture diffuse through language?
Language is another area where African influences were strong. In some coastal areas, enslaved Africans spoke a distinctive combination of English and West African languages known as Gullah (GULL uh). Parents often chose African names for their children, such as Quosh or Juba or Cuff.
How was life like for Africans in Charleston and other South Carolina port towns?
In Charleston and other South Carolina port towns, some Africans worked along the dock, making rope or barrels or helping to build ships. Skilled craftsworkers made fine wooden cabinets or silver plates and utensils. Many of their designs reflected African artistic styles. Although most Africans in these towns were enslaved, many opened their own shops or stalls in the market. Some used their earnings to buy their own and their family’s freedom.
