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"I 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 favourable 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."
- Abigail Adams, March 31, 1776
_______________________________________
This is an actual quote from Abigail... Do you think that John coud have accomplished what he did without Abigail? And do you believe that all Men would be tyrants if they could??
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Posts:
1
Registered:
5/6/08
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(18 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
May 6, 2008 2:51 AM
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Behind every drama is a disgusting mastectomy??? It would be my guess that 100% of the viewers did not need to experience this surgery in order to imagine how devastating this must have been for the Adams family. As someone who has just been diagnosed with breast cancer for the second time, it was sad to see it used for dramatic license. Usually HBO, and Tom Hanks for that matter, show a bit more sensitivity toward viewers. Abigail Adams would have been appalled. She knew the difference between smart politics and cruel intentions.
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Posts:
847
Registered:
1/17/08
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(17 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Apr 12, 2008 12:40 PM
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> > First, what house did John and Abigail enter at
> the
> > end of Epi 5? George Washington had vacated
> > it....but who stripped the place bare?
> >
>
> That was the President's House in Philadelphia. The
> White House hadn't been built yet.
>
> Apparently, Washington furnished and staffed the
> place at his own expense; so when he went home, the
> furniture and staff went with him. Washington got
> out of Philadelphia the second he could, leaving the
> staff to handle the packing -- I guess they got a
> little carried away, lol.
>
> --
> Flavio's not coming.
Thanks for the information! I was not sure what house they were in either.
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Posts:
334
Registered:
11/22/05
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(16 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Apr 12, 2008 6:34 AM
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nah, no apology needed To be clear, what I wrote first was my interpretation of that confusing scene. I think the scriptwriters took a minor incident -- the Adamses moving into a lonely, empty mansion -- and blew it up into a big deal, to make it more dramatic I guess.
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Flavio's not coming.
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41
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4/6/08
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(15 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Apr 12, 2008 3:07 AM
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You're right, gasconade, I misread what you wrote - or maybe ill processed, saw one thing and processed another. My apologies.
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Posts:
334
Registered:
11/22/05
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(14 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Apr 12, 2008 1:24 AM
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Well, your link says the seat of government moved from New York to Philadelphia in 1791, in Washington's first term. It seems that when Washington moved out the house was "sparsely furnished," though not stripped bare; Congress had to appropriate $14,000 to make the place look decent. No mention of the staffing arrangements, but I know that Washington brought his own slaves from Virginia to staff the place.
> I am not sure of the historical accuracy of the scene
> mentioned and wonder what was the scene's purpose.
^agreed with that, anyway. I've never heard that the residence was trashed when Washington left.
--
Flavio's not coming.
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41
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4/6/08
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(13 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Apr 11, 2008 2:07 PM
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The Presidential Residence was in New York at the time, not Philadelphia, and the government authorized funds to furnish it. President and Mrs. Washington supplemented the government's furnishings, they did not provide all furnishings. One source - The White House Historical Association
I am not sure of the historical accuracy of the scene mentioned and wonder what was the scene's purpose.
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Posts:
334
Registered:
11/22/05
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(12 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Apr 11, 2008 2:13 AM
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> First, what house did John and Abigail enter at the
> end of Epi 5? George Washington had vacated
> it....but who stripped the place bare?
>
That was the President's House in Philadelphia. The White House hadn't been built yet.
Apparently, Washington furnished and staffed the place at his own expense; so when he went home, the furniture and staff went with him. Washington got out of Philadelphia the second he could, leaving the staff to handle the packing -- I guess they got a little carried away, lol.
--
Flavio's not coming.
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Posts:
208
Registered:
10/8/03
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(11 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Apr 11, 2008 12:14 AM
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First, what house did John and Abigail enter at the end of Epi 5? George Washington had vacated it....but who stripped the place bare? I felt their pain (I own rental property...ghastly messes left behind). It was interesting that Abigail typically pulled out a broom, began cleaning and had to prod John to get out of the chair.
Was the house robbed just because, or would that have been in protest to Adams assuming the Presidency?
I thought that Adam's inauguration was anticlimatic enough, but then he and Abigail had to move into such an awful mess. She had tears in her eyes. Sad.
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"Did you get your end near the lady, my brother?" Linc, "JFC"
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Posts:
536
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1/17/08
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(10 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Apr 2, 2008 11:51 AM
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> can identify with Abigain in the early part of the
> series pertaining to her lonliness & longing to see
> her husband when he has been away for so long. My
> husband works long hours 100 miles away (pales in
> comparison to a military wife) but her lonliness was
> striking to me & her strength was compelling. If in
> fact Abigail really did the things & acted the way
> Linney portrayed her, then I commend her. I cannot
> imagine living at that time without e-mail & having
> to wait so long for a letter. Then again they didn't
> know what they were missing at the time.
I think this is a time-resistant truth for women. Look at the
thousands left behind to tend to home, children and livelihoods while their soldier/husbands are deployed to some of the most dangerous places in the word - Iraq and Afghanistan, to name a couple. These women are of uncommon strength and fortitude, keeping everything going, holding the family together and praying that their men are returned home to them safely. They are incredible and I admire them greatly.
--
*********
Host_Ginna
HBO Forums Host
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2
Registered:
4/2/08
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(9 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Apr 2, 2008 11:30 AM
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can identify with Abigain in the early part of the series pertaining to her lonliness & longing to see her husband when he has been away for so long. My husband works long hours 100 miles away (pales in comparison to a military wife) but her lonliness was striking to me & her strength was compelling. If in fact Abigail really did the things & acted the way Linney portrayed her, then I commend her. I cannot imagine living at that time without e-mail & having to wait so long for a letter. Then again they didn't know what they were missing at the time.
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19
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3/17/08
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(8 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Mar 25, 2008 10:27 PM
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Perhaps my use of weathly is incorrect as you suppose. What I mean to say is that relatively speaking for the time the adams' had money. In that time, when compared to his neighbors, Adams owned land, was well educated, had his own law practice, and was able to provide a great education for his sons. Again, at the time, relative to New England, this was at least considered, well off.
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Posts:
80
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3/17/08
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(7 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Mar 25, 2008 8:18 PM
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> I find some of these points interesting to say the
> least.
>
> As to the wealth of the Congress at the time, most
> were wealthy, including Adams himself. We must
> remember that the distribution of wealth was far
> different then today. Adams was a lawyer and had
> money. The southeners, whose econimic trade made use
> of slavery, were even more wealthy. Just like today
> most polititians either have money, or to a much
> lesser degree, fame. Power's closest friends have
> always been money and fame and will continue to be.
>
> As to this posts' title, I find it to be true one
> half of the time-for the other half, women are the
> downfall of men!
John Adams was far from wealthy. He had just gotten his law practice to a bearable income level when he went off to the Congress. His father was not wealthy and left very little when he died. One has but to see the salt box houses (still there in Quincy) to understand how unwealthy he was.
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Posts:
19
Registered:
3/17/08
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(6 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Mar 25, 2008 7:58 PM
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I find some of these points interesting to say the least.
As to the wealth of the Congress at the time, most were wealthy, including Adams himself. We must remember that the distribution of wealth was far different then today. Adams was a lawyer and had money. The southeners, whose econimic trade made use of slavery, were even more wealthy. Just like today most polititians either have money, or to a much lesser degree, fame. Power's closest friends have always been money and fame and will continue to be.
As to this posts' title, I find it to be true one half of the time-for the other half, women are the downfall of men!
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Posts:
466
Registered:
9/13/04
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(5 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Mar 23, 2008 2:35 PM
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> Many Americans do not understand the dynamic between
> John and Abigail. Her family was very wealth (the
> town of Quinzy, MA is named for them). Except for
> Abigail, John hated people born of wealth.
> Unfortunately those types of people made up the
> Contintenal Congress (except for Franklin who Adams
> trusted, at first). Therefore Abigail supplied the
> means of understanding on how to deal with John's
> fellow members of Congress. She instructed him on how
> to act to get his point across and be heard.
>
> So, no, John would not have gotten as far without the
> guidance of Abigail.
This is very interesting, and it explains a lot. I too don't care for the smarmy attitude of those in the Continental Congress, with the exception of Franklin and Washington. Both seem so genteel and humble.
It is a comfort to see how much respect John Adams had for his wife, in that day and age.
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Posts:
466
Registered:
9/13/04
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(4 of 18)
Re: Behind Every Great Man - Is a Woman!
Mar 23, 2008 2:30 PM
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> Anyway, are you implying one gender is more likely to
> play the tyrant than the other?
It sounds like it to me.
I too say "no" to both.
I wonder what the Queen of England would have said to Abigail.
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