Francesca Caccini

Suzanne G. Cusick, who considers herself a speicialist in the life and works of Francesca Caccini, argues that Francesca was a proto-feminist and the music she composed for the Medici court contributed to the career of the Grand Duchess Christine de Lorraine of Tuscany. She therefore claims that through her works, Caccini encourages the sexuality and political aims of women in the early seventeenth century.1

I support Cusick's argument that Caccini was a proto-feminist who, through her works for the Medici court, supported the rights of women, specifically, through her first and most recognized opera, La liberazione di Ruggiero dall’isola d’Alcina. In this opera, which is recognized as the first opera composed by a woman, Caccini illustrates a feminist approach to her composition, and makes musical statements about gender that support and reflect the joint reign of Christine and her daughter-in-law, Archduchess Maria Magdalena of Austria. Not only are the characters in the opera portraying strong and capable women, but also the music composed for the characters demonstrates the differences between men and women through musical elements, such as the usage of sharps and flats. Because of works such as these, Caccini plays a major role for the female gender in the early seventeenth century.

An Introduction to Proto-feminism

“Feminism”, as defined today, is “1: the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes,” and “2: organized activity on behalf of women’s rights and interests.”2 Many critics claim that feminism has been active longer than the word itself has existed.3 The word, “feminist” was not in true use until the late 1800s and early 1900s, but activism for women’s rights was alive and well a...

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...tivating for the advancement of women, without realizing they were doing so. She also claims that the term "feminist" changes over time, to become appropriate for how one would like to apply it.
Taruskin, R., & Taruskin, R. (2010). Music in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
This is the second volume of Richard Taruskin's historical work, and it highlights composers of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. He examines the progression of different styles and eras of music.
Upham, A. H. (1913). English "femmes savantes" at the end of the seventeenth century. The Journal of English and Germanic Philology, 12(2), 262-276.
This journal highlights advances women made in the seventeenth century. Upham goes into great detail about certain leaders in the advancement of women such as Catherine Trotter, Mary Pix, and Aphra Behn.