The reading “Wollstonecraft vs. Rousseau” presents an interesting insight into the debate over women’s rights during the Victorian era. Although Wollstonecraft’s ideas are not as modern and progressive as a reader today might hope, both writers have fundamental disagreements about the status and potential of women in society. Both the excerpts from Wollstonecraft’s “Make Women Rational Creatures, and Free Citizens” and Rousseau’s “Emile,” were written in Europe during the mid- to late-eighteenth century. During this period of Enlightenment, different ideas about what should and should not be became less taboo for people to explore. People began to question commonly-held ideas, and as a result, the idea of women’s rights became a hotly debated topic. In this context, the writings from both Wollstonecraft and Rousseau served to promulgate differing opinions about the status of women and their place in the academic world. While Rousseau argued that women are naturally inferior and submissive to men and therefore should not be educated, Wollstonecraft argued that women should be educated in order to be stronger wives and mothers. …show more content…
Men were encouraged to pursue careers and academic interests, whereas women were tasked with caring for the needs of her husband, their household, and their children. Men were allowed to pursue activities for individual pleasure, whereas women were not. Because women were trained from a young age to be housewives and mothers, a woman getting an education was seen as a threat to the current system. During this time, men and women were commonly viewed as fundamentally different and unequal. People such as Rousseau thought it was unnecessary to educate a woman not only because she is too dumb to understand scholarly ideas, but also because she has no interest in learning them
In this essay I will be assessing the extent to which Rousseau and Wollstonecraft work contributed to the development of social thought and focus on the key ideas both of these researchers encountered, jean- Jacques Rousseau remains an important figure in the history of political philosophy and moral psychology, Rousseau views often very negative seeing philosophers as the past- hoc rationalizers of self interests, as apologist for various forms of tyranny, and as playing a role in the alienation of the modern individual from humanities natural impulse to compassion. The major concern that dominated Rousseau’s work was to find a way to preserve human freedom in a world where humans are increasingly dependent on other for the satisfaction of
The Enlightenment is known as the revolution that brought to question the traditional political and social structures. This included the question of the woman’s traditional roles in society. As the public sphere relied more and more ?? and the advances in scientific and educated thinking, women sought to join in with the ranks of their male counterparts. Women held gatherings known as salons where they organized intellectual conversations with their distinguished male guests. Seeking to further their status, enlightened women published pamphlets and other works advocating for educational rights and political recognition. Even with this evolution of woman in society, many still clung to the belief that the role of the woman was solely domestic. The females that spoke up were usually deemed unnatural. However these women used the time period of reason and science that allowed them the opportunity to break away from their domestic roles and alter the view of women in society.
In examining how women fit into the "men's world" of the late eighteenth century, I studied Eliza Fenwick's novel Secresy and its treatment of women, particularly in terms of education. What I found to be most striking in the novel is the clash between two very different approaches to the education of women. One of these, the traditional view, is amply expressed by works such as Jean-Jaques Rousseau's Emile, which states that women have a natural tendency toward obedience and therefore education should be geared to enhance these qualities (Rousseau, pp. 370, 382, 366). Dr. John Gregory's A Father's Legacy to His Daughters also belongs to this school of thought, stating that wit is a woman's "most dangerous talent" and is best kept a well-guarded secret so as not to excite the jealousy of others (Gregory, p. 15). This view, which sees women as morally and intellectually inferior, is expressed in the novel in the character of Mr. Valmont, who incarcerates his orphaned niece in a remote part of his castle. He asserts that he has determined her lot in life and that her only duty is to obey him "without reserve or discussion" (Fenwick, p.55). This oppressive view of education served to keep women subservient by keeping them in an ignorant, child-like state. By denying them access to true wisdom and the right to think, women were reduced to the position of "a timid, docile slave, whose thoughts, will, passions, wishes, should have no standard of their own, but rise, or change or die as the will of the master should require" (Fenwick, 156).
Born as a free woman in London, England Mary argued for education along with unjust laws for women that subjected them to a form of slavery. As the world around her at the time was facing a political breakthrough with the United States using idea’s formed by philosophers John Locke and Thomas Hobbes theories in the social contract, to break free from England, she hoped the French Revolution would create an era of equality and reason. Wollstonecraft places her opinion that the condition of adult women is caused by the neglect of education for girls. Most of the essay is based on her argument for education of
As mentioned above, women’s role were unjust to the roles and freedoms of the men, so an advanced education for women was a strongly debated subject at the beginning of the nineteenth century (McElligott 1). The thought of a higher chance of education for women was looked down upon, in the early decades of the nineteenth century (The American Pageant 327). It was established that a women’s role took part inside the household. “Training in needlecraft seemed more important than training in algebra” (327). Tending to a family and household chores brought out the opinion that education was not necessary for women (McElligott 1). Men were more physically and mentally intellectual than women so it was their duty to be the educated ones and the ones with the more important roles. Women were not allowed to go any further than grammar school in the early part of the 1800’s (Westward Expansion 1). If they wanted to further their education beyond grammar, it had to be done on their own time because women were said to be weak minded, academically challenged and could n...
Both Mary Wollstonecraft and Sor Juana de la Cruz are writers of the Enlightenment period, but they each approach women’s rights in a different way. While De la Druz was a Catholic nun from Mexico ad preferred to study and be alone, Wollstonecraft asserted women’s rights for all through publications directed at the masses. During the Enlightenment, people began to question old authoritative models like the Church. Our texts states, “thinkers believed inreason as a dependable guide. Both sides insisted that one should not take any assertion of truth on faith, blindly following the authority of others; instead, one should think skeptically about causes and effects, subjecting all truth-claims to logic andrational inquiry” (Puchner 92). Indeed,
Indisputably, Mary Wollstonecraft was one of the most influential figures of Enlightenment, also considered the ‘first feminist’. It is certain that her works and writing has influenced the lives of many women and altered the outlook of some societies on women, evolving rights of women a great deal from what they used to be in her time. It is clear that Wollstonecraft’s arguments and writing will remain applicable and relevant to societies for many years to come, as although there has been progression, there has not been a complete resolution. Once women receive so easily the freedom, rights and opportunities that men inherently possess, may we be able to say that Wollstonecraft has succeeded in vindicating the rights of women entirely.
After reading Vicinus' book and attending lectures I realized that many Victorian fears of educating women were simply absurd. However they were widely believed by both men and women. While this might have been the result of a lack of education on women's part I could only hope that these ideas were not as widely believed by men as historians say they were. I think that men often played off of women's fears and that women backed these ideas because they were afraid of the alternative. For example the idea that educating women would cause them too much mental excursion and could cause them to become sterile seems almost laughable today. However it was something that was believed by both sexes during the Victorian period. Along with mental strain causing sterilization in women it was also believed that too much learning would unsex a woman. This idea was widespread, fanned by Social Darwinists concerned about "the decline of the species" and by doctors convinced that time spent studying would drain maternal energy. So by educating a woman you would have been unsexing her, draining her of her maternal energy and sterilizing her. During this time being a mother was one of the very few privileges that a woman could have, so without that opportunity what else would she have to live for? With these ideas floating around it was a wonder that women were even allowed to think for themselves, because who knows what harm that could have caused them. While many women pursued careers it came with a price. Vicinus used the example of Constance Maynard to articulate this. Maynard opened her own college in 1882, which had been a dream of hers for a long time.
Vindication of the Rights for Women by Mary Wollstonecraft was published in 1792, during the French Revolution. Wollstonecraft preached that intellect will always govern to persuade women not to endeavor to acquire knowledge but convince them that the soft phrases, acceptability of heart, delicacy of sentiment, and refinement of taste, are most preferred. By intellect, I mean the men because they were the ones that were allowed to get an education therefore allowing them to become intellectual. Wollstonecraft cleverly does not try to prove her point through protests or accusations, but argue that women are not naturally inferior to men, but appear to be only because they lack education. She suggests that both men and women should be treated as rational beings and imagines a social order founded on reason. She believed it was unfair for women to be treated differently and passionately wanted to make a change. That it was time to let go of feelings and begin the thought process behind the rationality of the women’s predicament. Men felt that while they would get an education an...
In the eighteenth century, John Locke’s rejection of innate ideas proved most fruitful concerning the abilities and rights of women. There was little force for change in these traditional gender roles during the Enlightenment period, during the Enlightenment, philosophers in the 18th century began developing ideas based on the use of logic and reason, rather than the accepted truth of contemporary religion. Logic and reason contradicted the very basis on which traditional gender roles were constituted. Voices, such as Mary Wollstonecraft and Jean-Jacques Rousseau began to rise up. Mary argued for greater educational opportunities for women to become more intelligent and intellectual companions to their husbands, in addition to performing traditional duties. Jean-Jacques Rousseau wrote multiple times about the gross inequalities between the genders and while he recognized the separation of traditional gender roles, he strongly encouraged his readers that they were necessary. He viewed the most important contributions of women in society were to be wives and mothers he often stated
The Romantic principle of individualism was shaped by the notion of man’s natural goodness which is prevented through artificial structures such as hierarchy. A Vindication of the Rights of Women was a text written to challenge the existing social and gender stratifications which constrained an individual’s freedom. Endorsing Jacques Turgot’s presentation of his Six Edicts in 1776 which proposed the elimination of privilege amongst the nobles, Wollstonecraft expresses her disdain for entitlements such as money metaphorically in her denunciation “Birth, riches, and every extrinsic advantage that exalt a man above his fellows, without any mental exertion, sink him in reality below them” exploring the dangers of the suppression of individuality.
Women today are still viewed as naturally inferior to men, despite the considerable progress done to close this gap. Females have made a huge difference in their standing from 200 years ago. Whether anyone is sexist or not, females have made considerable progress from where they started, but there is still a long journey ahead. Mary Wollstonecraft was an advocate of women 's rights, a philosopher, and an English writer. One of Wollstonecraft’s best works was “A Vindication of the Rights of Women” (1792). In her writing, she talks about how both men and women should be treated equal, and reasoning could create a social order between the two. In chapter nine of this novel, called “Of the Pernicious Effects Which Arise from the Unnatural Distinctions Established in Society,”
Mary Wollstonecraft was a self-educated, radical philosopher who wrote about liberation, and empowering women. She had a powerful voice on her views of the rights of women to get good education and career opportunities. She pioneered the debate for women’s rights inspiring many of the 19th and the 20th century’s writers and philosophers to fight for women’s rights, as well. She did not only criticize men for not giving women their rights, she also put a blame on women for being voiceless and subservient. Her life and, the surrounding events of her time, accompanied by the strong will of her, had surely affected the way she chose to live her life, and to form her own philosophies.
Rousseau had a specific perspective on the role a woman should play in society. However he did encounter other opinions that refuted his perspective. Jean-Jacques Rousseau was one of the most essential Enlightenment thinkers. His writings in the 18th centuray sparked controversy, dividing
The eighteenth century brought about a great deal of change and a new-found interest in science and reason. Because of this, many great inventions, ideas and innovative theorists arose from this time period. Among them was a forward-thinking essayist by the name of Mary Wollstonecraft. In her book, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, Wollstonecraft preaches her belief that the oppression of women is largely due to lack of female education. Although the term "feminism" wasn’t coined until decades later, Wollstonecraft paved the way for future women’s rights movements by advocating equality in education for women. She believed men and women should be equal in the very basic aspects of life, such as in loyalty in marriage. Wollstonecraft openly called out fellow philosopher and novelist of the time, Jean-Jacques Rousseau on his negative views of women and their role in society. Although against common beliefs of the time, Wollstonecraft boldly stated her opinions on a woman’s ability to think rationally and formulate ideas as well as any man.