a vindication of the rights of woman book

That is, inadequate education makes women vulnerable if anything goes wrong in marriage, especially after the early passion of marriage fades.īased on the principles instilled into women all their lives, it makes sense that many women agree to marry immoral men who know how to present themselves attractively-after all, they’ve been primed to fall for a sentimental picture of “bravery prostrate to beauty,” without much regard for internal virtues. Wollstonecraft goes on to claim that not only does typical girls’ education have limited utility in later life, but it also sets them up for unhappiness in the marriages they’ve attained through such questionable means. Wollstonecraft writes: “Taught from their infancy that beauty is woman’s scepter, the mind shapes itself to the body, and, roaming around its gilt cage, only seeks to adorn its prison.” What’s more, if girls are taught to be preoccupied with physical beauty from a young age, it’s no surprise that they will be preoccupied with frivolous, external concerns as adults.

“How,” she asks, “can she be a good wife or mother, the greater part of whose time is employed to guard against or endure sickness?” Sheltered girls, in other words, become sheltered and ineffectual women. She critiques middle-class practices whereby girls aren’t allowed to play freely, but are instead weakened from a young age through sedentary indoor play. Wollstonecraft notes that women are socialized to boast of their weakness in order to make themselves more appealing to suitors, writing: “Virtue is sacrificed to temporary gratifications, and the respectability of life to the triumph of an hour.” This custom has a negative effect on society as a whole, because it creates lifelong patterns of elevating gratification and romantic conquest over relationships founded on mutual respect.Įven if females are naturally weaker than males, Wollstonecraft argues, that doesn’t mean they should be allowed to become even weaker than nature intended. Women are encouraged to make a virtue of weakness and use this as a power play to attract men-thereby establishing patterns that serve women poorly throughout their lives.

What’s more, she argues that these weak families and unhappy marriages are in fact destructive for society as a whole. Though she doesn’t ignore questions surrounding male virtue, she devotes more attention to the inadequate moral training which, she believes, leaves women ill-prepared to find worthy husbands and to build enduring marriages and families. Throughout A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, Wollstonecraft is often concerned with unequal relationships between men and women, including in marriage.

A vindication of the rights of woman book