I found Mary Wollstonecraft's A
Vindication of the Rights of Woman to be interesting, especially when it
came to her view on marriage. According to her, marriage should be based off of
friendship, not how wealthy the girl is or has beautiful she is because,
eventually, looks and wealth do fade. “For, like the flowers which are planted
in too rich a soil, strength and usefulness are sacrificed to beauty; and the
flaunting leaves, after having pleased a fastidious eye, fade, disregarded on
the stalk, long before the season when they ought to have arrived at maturity”.
Mary argues that literature is pressuring women into thinking that they should
be “alluring mistresses” rather than “rational mothers or affectionate
wives”. Women should fall in love with
men, not just because they are charming and attractive but also because they
can offer something of value in the relationship. Women should also be given
respect, which when you are busy running around acting like an airhead, it is
hard to command any respect at all.
While I agree completely with
what she is saying, I think that for that time period it may have been viewed
as feminist thinking and a little advanced.
I certainly agree with you Katie that this is a progressive perspective. Remember to include discussion questions though at the end of your posts (should also help you not just barely scrape by the word requirement). Yet to a certain extent Wollstonecraft still sees women within marriages for the most part (or is that a fair observation). She bases her argument on the idea that more rational, intellectual women would make better wives, which is to a certain extent still degrading (or is it). What do you think?
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