1. Choose two of the writers in this lesson. • Benjamin Franklin
Judith Sargent Murray
• The writer of the Ladies' Declaration of Independence
• Abigail Adams
2. Pose as one of the writers and write a letter to the other writer you selected. (For example, write a letter from
Benjamin Franklin to Abigail Adams).
• Your letter must address whether they agree or disagree.
• Include evidence from their writing that reveals each person's opinion on the role of women.
3. Be creative and give the writer of your letter a fitting personality. Use the appropriate tone to create that
personality. (For example, given what you know about Franklin's tone, you can assume that he wouldn't write a
rude or angry letter to Adams.)
4. Your letter should be a minimum of 10 sentences long.
5. A full credit response must cite the words of the recipient and react to them.

After depriving her of all rights as a married woman, if single, and the owner of property, he has taxed her to support a government which recognizes her only when her property can be made profitable to it…. he has denied her the facilities for obtaining a thorough education, all colleges being closed against her…. he has usurped the prerogative of jehovah himself, claiming it as his right to assign for her a sphere of action, when that belongs to her conscience and to her god. he has endeavored, in every way that he could, to destroy her confidence in her own powers, to lessen her self-respect, and to make her willing to lead a dependent and abject life. now, in view of this entire disfranchisement of one-half the people of this country, their social and religious degradation--in view of the unjust laws above mentioned, and because women do feel themselves aggrieved, oppressed, and fraudulently deprived of their most sacred rights, we insist that they have immediate admission to all the rights and privileges which belong to them as citizens of the united states. read the passage on the left to answer the following questions: 4) in what manner was this document patterned off of the preamble to the declaration of independence? a) it uses the same language, but frames women being oppressed by men instead of the 13 colonies being oppressed by the british. b) it uses different language, but argues for a society in which men and women separate like the colonists separated from the british. c) it uses the same language, but frames the notion of men standing up for women instead of the 13 colonies standing up to the british. d) it uses different language, but argues for a society in which men and women join forces to attack the injustices that plague both sexes.