The Equal Rights Amendment campaign in Indiana: A study of ideas and arguments
Abstract
The purpose of this study was two-fold: (1) to add to an understanding of the ideas and arguments used to support or oppose the Equal Rights Amendment, and (2) to connect those ideas with ideas expressed during efforts to secure women's suffrage. As the last state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment, Indiana provided an opportunity to examine changes that occurred over time, both in substance and construction. Thus, for example, while supporters began by arguing that the ERA should be supported for such abstract ideals as choice and the need for a symbol, they eventually turned to more pragmatic arguments that focused on specific sex discrimination cases. Opponents switched from stressing the value of women as homemakers and mothers, to increasing the type and number of negative ramifications that would occur if the ERA were ratified. Structurally, both sides improved arguments after the initial year of debate. Interestingly, while ERA supporters in Indiana were more politically experienced and better-funded than their counterparts, a comparison of arguments from a critical perspective revealed that opponent arguments were more soundly constructed. This was due, in large part, to the influence of Phyllis Schlafly's ability to prepare and disseminate information to followers who employed her arguments almost wholecloth. In addition to problems of construction, a Toulmin analysis of the arguments revealed that ERA supporters continued to meet resistance to their ideas because they were based on warrant-establishing versus warrant-using arguments. This meant that even with improved data, the argument might still be rejected on the basis of either the claim or the warrant. Both the suffrage and Equal Rights Amendments were proposed during times of social change, and in each case, it was women's participation in other social movements that prompted them to re-examine their own status in American society. There were notable differences, however, between supporters of suffrage and the ERA on the topics of politics, the status of minorities, and the nature of women.
Degree
Ph.D.
Advisors
Berg, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Communication|Political science
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