White Southern Women and Slavery

Which statement best encapsulates James Redpath's perspective on Southern women's stance on emancipation?

What does the narrative suggest regarding the common patriarchal view of white Southern women and slavery?

Based on the account of Martha Gibbs, how did she exercise control over her enslaved workforce?

How did Martha Gibbs's marital relationships reflect her autonomy in managing her financial affairs and slave ownership?

What action did Martha Gibbs take after the Civil War that demonstrates her continued investment in the institution of slavery, even after emancipation?

What does the text imply about the focus of historical scholarship on women who owned slaves?

What argument do some scholars make regarding women's authority over enslaved people?

How does the author plan to build upon previous studies detailed in the text?

What is the author's main argument regarding the relationship between Southern women and slavery?

How did some men in the South view marriage to women with enslaved people, according to the text?

What assumption did James Redpath make regarding white Southern women's knowledge of slavery?

Why does the author mention legal and financial documents, alongside narrative sources and military/government correspondence?

How did Martha Gibbs's actions contradict common assumptions about women's roles in the 19th-century South?

What does Litt Young's description of Martha Gibbs suggest about her character and position?

What rationale explains why Martha Gibbs gathered some of her formerly enslaved people and traveled to Texas after they were initially freed?

How does the author critique existing historical scholarship on women who owned enslaved people?

What does the term 'fictive masters' imply in the context of historical discussions about women and slavery?

How will the author expand the understanding of women's relationship to slavery?

According to Adam Smith's perspective, why was financial dependence on a husband significant for women in the 18th century?

What does John Moore's crass statement about 'girls' and 'niggers' illustrate about marriage prospects in the South?

What underlying belief did James Redpath hold regarding the perspective of white Southern women on slavery?

How did Martha Gibbs defy conventional expectations of women's behavior in the antebellum South?

What does the author imply about the general focus of historical studies on women who owned slaves?

How does the author intend to challenge existing views on women's relationship to slavery?

Which statement accurately reflects the significance of Adam Smith's view on women's financial dependence within marriage during the 18th century?

What does the author aim to reveal by describing southern women as 'mistresses of the market'?

How did some slave-owning women ensure compliance and prevent enslaved people from escaping while relocating them, as exemplified by Martha Gibbs?

Based on the text, what can be inferred about the legal standing of married women in relation to their property rights in the 19th-century South?

What does the author suggest about the reliability and interpretation of narratives from formerly enslaved people, particularly those gathered during the Works Progress Administration (WPA)?

How might examining women’s economic engagement with slavery challenge existing interpretations American capitalism?

How might the economic agency of women who owned slaves reshape understandings of early American capitalism and its historical narratives?

What was a key factor that enabled women to significantly contribute to the scale of cotton cultivation in the 19th-century South?

In what way did marriage function as a financial strategy for some men in the 19th-century South?

Based on the actions of women like Martha Gibbs, how were historical interpretations of women’s roles in the 19th-century South potentially limited?

How might acknowledging wives' ownership of enslaved people change traditional interpretations of American slavery and capitalism?

What actions did Martha Gibbs take to contradict prevailing assumptions about women's dependence on men in financial and business matters?

What does the author suggest about the economic complexities of slave ownership when both spouses owned enslaved people?

How did perceptions of white women potentially influence the reliability and interpretation of narratives from formerly enslaved people, especially those gathered during the Works Progress Administration (WPA)?

Based on the text, what inference can be made about the legal rights of married women in the 19th-century South concerning their property?

How does framing southern women as 'mistresses of the market' broaden conventional understanding of their roles in the antebellum South?

What assumption did James Redpath make about the knowledge of white Southern women regarding the scope of the interstate slave trade?

How did the author's perspective on the economics of slavery differ from that of Sven Beckert?

What potential limitation does the author identify in relying on narratives collected from formerly enslaved people by the Federal Writers' Project (FWP)?

What contradiction emerges from Martha Gibbs's post-Civil War actions involving her formerly enslaved workforce?

Based on the information about Abigail Adams's advice to her son John Quincy, how did her perspective challenge traditional expectations regarding marriage for women?

In what way might the study of women's economic engagement with slavery provide a more nuanced understanding of American capitalism?

Despite potential challenges and biases, what does the author emphasize about the value and significance of the narratives from formerly enslaved people?

How did the legal standing of married women in the 19th-century South potentially complicate their status as slave owners, requiring specific actions to protect their property rights?

How were formerly enslaved people's recollections about their female owner beneficial, and what did they suggest about their owners?

What does the author suggest about the term 'mistress' in the context of slave-owning women, contrasting it with conventional interpretations?