Individual: Abigail Adams


long to hear that you have declared an independency. And, by the way, in the new code of laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make, I desire you would remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the husbands. Remember, all men would be tyrants if they could. If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to foment a rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any laws in which we have no voice or representation.”-Abigail Adams in a letter to her husband John Adams, March 31, 17761.


1. At the time this letter was written, John Adams was away in Philadelphia working with the Continental Congress. Although the Declaration of Independence had yet to be written, Adams was beginning to think about its creation and Abigail was attempting to influence what might be put in the document. Who does Abigail Adams ask her husband to include in any such document?


2. What does Abigail Adams say this group will do if left out?


3. What might Abigail Adams use as justification for her argument?