The Role of Women since the Enlightenment: Is there still a need for Growth?
The age of Enlightenment is by far one of the most important stages in the development of modern thought. In Europe, the Enlightenment produced a diverse collection of thoughts. Social interaction among well-educated intellectuals, primarily male, pondering the plight of the individual increased. Furthermore, centuries of traditional thought in the domains of religion, education, politics, and gender roles were now subject to scrutiny and assessment. The influence of great thinkers such as John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and Antoine-Leonard Thomas shaped political and social attitudes. These philosophers ushered in a new way of thinking; John Locke debated the displacement
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Women were primarily regarded as instruments for men’s pleasure and were denied access to the public sphere. While some philosophers supported the liberation of women, others who defended the principles of equality believed these principles should only be applied to their own gender and race. For example, John Locke gives an important status to women. He argues that women are not property, women have power over their children in the absence of the father and women are allowed to leave their marriage. Although Locke gives women a sense of importance, he still falls short of feminist ideals because of the limitations he sets forth. Rousseau, another brilliant thinker during the Enlightenment, thought that it was natural for women to obey men because she is inferior. Even though Rousseau was present during the conversations in the salons of highly intelligent women, he still had misogynistic views. Additionally, Thomas, an enlightened thinker who primarily focused on gender roles in his society agreed with Rousseau, believing that women are by nature inferior to men, dependent on men and their main purpose is to serve as wives and mothers. Furthermore, Thomas believed that women should be excluded from the politics in the public sphere and be educated primarily for their role as domestic wives and …show more content…
Women also took advantage of new literary forms as a way to politically participate in society. As female authors began to emerge, one in particular—Mary Wollstonecraft—gained significant influence. Wollstonecraft began responding to enlightened thinkers who argued that women should not receive a formal education in her best known work, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: With Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects (1792). She argued that education is an integral aspect of advancement in society, thus, women should receive a formal education. Ultimately, Wollstonecraft’s ideologies can be considered as the foundations of modern day
The Enlightenment involved a span of many different people across social classes, coming together in the, “public sphere of influence” (Garcia Lecture 2/3/15) to discuss the popular theories of the time. Men gathered in public places (such as pubs) while women gathered in Salons. According to Spielvogel, “Salons… offered women access to intellectual stimulus that was generally otherwise denied to them.” (Spielvogel 515). The Enlightenment started to raise questions about women, and their roles within society in Western Europe. Women were only allowed to discuss these intellectual stimulations within the salons, however not outside in public. This started the groundwork for further speculation. Arguably, the most notable (and influential) philosopher of the Enlightenment was Voltaire. He was one of the few philosophers that was able bring about the positive view of philosophy among Western Society. He, among other great Enlightenment thinkers of the time, “thought that religion was rather irrational” (Garcia Lecture
A time period known as The Age of Reason or The Enlightenment was when philosophy, politics, science and social communications changed drastically. It helped shape the ideas of capitalism and democracy, which is the world we live in today. People joined together to discuss areas of high intellect and creative thoughts. The Enlightenment was a time period in which people discussed new ideas, and educated people, known as philosophers, all had a central idea of freedom of choice and the natural right of individuals. These philosophers include John Locke, Voltaire, Adam Smith, and Mary Wollstonecraft.
Mary Wollstonecraft lived in a time where women had no right to vote, no right to education beyond what their mother or governess taught them, and basically no right to individuality or an opinion. They were considered possessions and virtually had no mind of their own. She realized that this was a problem of society and openly voiced her opinions on the matter. She wrote the book A Vindication of the Rights of Women in response to a literary response to the society's so-called proper behavior of a woman and what her rights should be. But her opinions were brought on by more that the ability to think for herself; she suffered much during her childhood and throughout the years to come. Wollstonecraft dealt with the beating of her mother and sister, death of a close friend, and even a nervous breakdown of her sister. Her own experiences in her life inspired her to write a book that would cause her to be criticized harshly for her radical views.
Mary Wollstonecraft’s (1759-1797) famous work, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, originally published in 1792, is often considered to be a founding work of the liberal feminist movement. In it, Wollstonecraft sets out her beliefs that if women were given equal treatment to men and afforded the same opportunities, there would no longer be a difference between the behaviour and abilities of men and women.
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.
Mary Wollstonecraft was as revolutionary in her writings as Thomas Paine. They were both very effective writers and conveyed the messages of their ideas quite well even though both only had only the most basic education. Wollstonecraft was a woman writing about women's rights at a time when these rights were simply non-existent and this made her different from Paine because she was breaking new ground, thus making her unique. Throughout her lifetime, Wollstonecraft wrote about the misconception that women did not need an education, but were only meant to be submissive to man. Women were treated like a decoration that had no real function except to amuse and beguile. Wollstonecraft was the true leader in women's rights, advocating a partnership in relationships and marriage rather than a dictatorship. She was firm in her conviction that education would give women the ability to take a more active role in life itself.
The Enlightenment of the 18th century evolved due to the many changes brought about by the Scientific Revolution. With all of the new scientific discoveries, new thought processes were developed. The scientists of the Scientific Revolution brought about revolutionary change. These scientists inspired the philosophes of the Enlightenment to challenge the ways of the "Old Regime" and question the ideas of the church. Philosophers such as Francois Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and John Locke published their controversial ideas and these ideas along with some important political action, helped to mold a new type of society. The new society was one that tolerated different religious beliefs. "The minds of men, abandoning the old disciplines and contentions of theology, turned to what they called "natural philosophy," namely, the faith in individual reason rather than in divine revelation; they welcomed the excitement offered by the ever widening opportunities for discovery and commerce and by the prospect of immeasurable progress owing to the inventions of science and technology and the spread of education."1 Religious toleration during the Age of Enlightenment was ultimately affected by changes in the Roman Catholic Church, the politics of the 18th century, and the philosophy movement.
The scarce amount of women who were fortunate enough to obtain schooling sadly did not receive enough to meet society’s expectations, or lead a content lifestyle (Tomaselli). Wollstonecraft believed that education should be equal for both men and women. She argued that women are capable and have the right to be learn about important subjects, including reading, writing, arithmetic, botany, history, and philosophy (Powell). Wollstonecraft even emphasized the significance of physical education (Powell). She called for reforms, suggesting that schools be mixed regarding sex so as to “‘form a just opinion of ourselves’” (“On National Education”). As mentioned earlier, Wollstonecraft did her part to advocate for this by opening a school, but was forced to close it in a short amount of time (“On National Education”).
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.
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...
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,”
Women roles have changed drastically in the last 50 to 80 years, women no longer have to completely conform to society’s gender roles and now enjoy the idea of being individuals. Along with the evolution of women roles in society, women presence and acceptance have drastically grown in modern literature. In early literature it was common to see women roles as simply caretakers, wives or as background; women roles and ideas were nearly non-existent and was rather seen than heard. The belief that women were more involved in the raising of children and taking care of the household was a great theme in many early literatures; women did not get much credit for being apart of the frontier and expansion of many of the nations success until much later.
Mary Wollstonecraft: the Mother of Modern Feminism Mary Wollstonecraft was a self-educated, radical philosopher who wrote about liberation, and empowering women. She had a powerful voice in her views on 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 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.
Mary Wollstonecraft was a feminist writer who is most well-known for publishing A Vindication of the Rights of Woman. The main focus of her work revolves around pushing for educational reform, so that women would be given the same access to educational opportunities as men. It is said that Wollstonecraft’s work is more of a counterargument to the ideas of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who believed that women should only be educated for the purpose of teaching them to obey and please their husbands better (Mary Wollstonecraft). On the other hand, William Godwin was an acclaimed political philosopher known for writing Political Justice, which focuses on the treatment of the common people. Godwin’s other works focus on class distinctions between the Bourgeois and the Proletariat and how the higher classes often abuse their power (William Godwin).
The Enlightenment questioned the role of women. For centuries men have dominated what the role of women should be. Many male writers believed that that women were lower intellectually value to men. But there were some philosophies, which showed some positive feed back for women. They argued that women were capable of all that men are. It was the woman thinkers who added new perspectives to the women question by suggesting better improvements for woman. Those thinkers believed that woman should be better educated. They should be able to learn what men are learning. A English writer Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797) was the fonder of modern European feminism. She began the women movement arguing the rights of women. She declared, that women should have equal rights with education and in economic and political life.