How Wollstonecraft Perceived Women's Degradation in Her Time

This essay examines Mary Wollstonecraft's perspective on the degradation of women in the 18th century, as presented in 'A Vindication of the Rights of Women.' Wollstonecraft argued that traditional societal attitudes and lack of education confined women to a domestic sphere, rendering them dependent on men and preventing them from exercising their full potential. She criticized the education system for its focus on superficial accomplishments and argued for equal education for women, emphasizing the importance of intellectual development and critical thinking. Wollstonecraft believed that women's lack of education and societal expectations of them as merely decorative beings led to their perceived inferiority, hindering their ability to participate fully in society and form equitable relationships. She advocated for women to be treated as rational beings, capable of contributing to both family and society, and for marriage to be based on friendship and mutual respect rather than mere dependence. The essay highlights Wollstonecraft's call for a transformation in social conditions to ensure true freedom and equality for both men and women, emphasizing the need for women to be educated to be better mothers and partners.

TEXT AND TRADITIONS

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Explain how Wollstonecraft perceived women to be ‘degraded’ in her day by traditional
attitudes on how women should behave. ........................................................................................1
REFERENCES ...............................................................................................................................4

A Vindication of rights of women focuses on the education of women on how females are being
degraded from males, and they have rights of being educated rather than getting education in a
confined and restricted seminary. They deserve to be respected and must be treated equally in
every aspect. Women are more emotionally strong and have more potential to run a family and
can take care of a child. Here, Mary Wollstonecraft who was also known as mother of feminism,
was an English writer who had devoted many pages that endorsed women and their rights to
attain a place in the male dominated society.
Explain how Wollstonecraft perceived women to be ‘degraded’ in her day by traditional attitudes
on how women should behave
Wollstonecraft was an English woman writer who had devoted many pages that
magnified a women role in the society. She says that either man and women are naturally
different as the world has made the partiality between them (Wollstonecraft. 1996, p. 9). From
the day women is born, they face that they are weak and dependent upon men; hence they just
compete with other women. They are not centred on any other things or duties because they are
housebound. Due to confinement in their private sphere, women always chooses to stay at home
rather than going to public places. They were not allowed to do jobs nor they were permitted to
participate in any political area. Education of women lacks in such a way that it does not allow
them to take their own decisions, ultimately all the pronouncements are taken by males.
Wollstonecraft has mentioned in her work from the view point on moral attitude that females are
inferior to men.
The main theme of vindication is education. Women are inferior because of their
education system. As the studies of females mentioned here and was heavily based on
domesticity are of not much relevance, hence it is inapt. They do not get to learn anything
serious or even if females learnt anything of substance, it would be considered as essential for
their living. Bodies of females are not strong because they are forced to stay inside the house and
thus even at boarding schools, women are just used to compete with other girls of the same age.
That is why, they should attain school with boys and live with families rather than living in a
boarding school. This will result in letting them free mentally and physically as well.
The only way women can rise is through marriage and people expect them to act as if
they are children who should just dress well and need to paint themselves. But, Wollstonecraft
says that men should respect them especially their wives who deserve respect from their
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husbands. Both partners should be treated equally and women must understand that a marriage
becomes successful only when both persons are good friends first, rather than merely being
lovers. If both can bring out the best from each other rather than taking out the worst, then this
will help them in improving one another.
Education is the most important consideration but educating boys and girls together is
really imperative so that females will not ever feel inferior in front of males. Mary
Wollstonecraft goes on to lay out that educating girls will make the marriage and relationship
more strong. Her concept of marriage underlies this statement (Wollstonecraft. 1996, p. 10) It
states that a stable marriage is a human relationship between a male and a female -- a marriage is
an interpersonal contract between two people. A woman thus needs to have equal knowledge and
maturity, to maintain the relationship; that is the reason, a Successful marriage also helps in
giving proper education to children.
In this corrupted state of society, females are being slaved and are being tortured to work
in the house and not to step out of their homes. People feel that women are meant to work in a
closed space where they will feel bounded. No one wants women to work for the nation or in the
field of politics and that is how, females are degraded in the society.
In eighteenth century, focus was on priority of women and their roles in the society. That
time, Wollstonecraft came up with the rights of women and disagreed that males were superior to
females. And as per her belief, change has been drawn-out in social conditions and she says that
one should not follow what their ancestors have done. All individuals are equal and have same
moral values without any discrimination on the basis of caste, colour and abilities
(Wollstonecraft. 1996, p. 11)
As per the present modification of society, women are equally capable for everything that
is required to be done in any society but in eighteenth century, it was believed that women were
wrongly educated and were not suitable to have knowledge. Hence, they became more inferior
and ultimately, all the decisions were taken by men. Wollstonecraft has also cited in her work
that on grounds of moral defiance and cultural norms laid in the society that females will always
be inferior to men.
Wollstonecraft also says about parenting that it is very risky to make children believe that
they should follow their parents blindly. Children should always follow their parents because
they have more knowledge and are rational human beings. Wollstonecraft recommended with
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better education for women, they can become better mothers and can lead the entire generation in
an optimistic direction.
But in Vindication, Mary Wollstonecraft, makes very distinct remarks about her position:
only when woman and man are entirely free, males and females are equally obedient in terms of
their responsibilities to family and society, which can give them true freedom. The necessary
effort for such equality, Mary Wollstonecraft is sure about qualitative education for woman;
that is, an education which can acknowledge her duty to educate her own children, to be a better
and equal partner with her husband in the family, and which recognizes that woman, like man, is
a creature of both thought process and impression and that is a creature of reason and logic.
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REFERENCES
Wollstonecraft, M. (1996). A Vindication of the Rights of Women. Mary Wollstonecraft,
Vindication of the Rights of Men, in Works of Mary Wollstonecraft, 5, 8.
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