Mary Astell Thesis

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Mary Astell Topic? 2 outside sources (Women rights obligations etc.)
During the 1600s marriage was a high demand among men and women. This was the time when England was impacted by different events that occurred. As a man in England they were responsible for keeping the country’s political and economic businesses going. While, women did not have a huge amount of responsibility politically or economically. The seventeenth century in England marriage and sexual morals was important Mary Astell, who was an English feminist writer and rhetorician. She was known for her advocacy of equal opportunities for women. She could express her political and theological through the different works she published. She was the voice for women during this time. …show more content…

In the essay, Some Reflections upon Marriage, Mary Astell addresses happy marriages and failed marriage. She talks about how money is based on some marriages in England and how some marriages do not last because they lack the emotional concept that comes with marriage. Astell also addresses the viewpoint of men and what marriages mean to them. She says that some men marry for love and some marry because of the women’s appearance. But, she addresses the women opinion on marriage and how some women marry because it’s the norm and it’s not a necessity. Astell states, “If marriage be such a blessed state, how comes it, may you say, that there are so few happy marriages? Now in answer to this, it is not to be wondered that so few succeeded; we should rather be surprised to find so many do, considering how imprudently men engage, the motives they act by, and the very strange conduct they overserve throughout” (Astell 2421). In this quote Astell addresses the how can marriage be a happy thing that happens in life, but there are so few marriages that last long and where both men and women are happy in the marriage. She argues that a happy marriage will not last because of the man’s

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