Final answer:
Wollstonecraft viewed cunning as a trait developed by women as a response to societal restrictions, arguing that with equal education, such traits would be unnecessary as women could act on reason.
Step-by-step explanation:
Mary Wollstonecraft, an advocate for women's rights and a prominent Enlightenment thinker, often critiqued what she saw as artificial distinctions between the sexes that were encouraged by societal norms. In her view, cunning is a trait that develops in people, particularly in women, due to a lack of access to education and the subsequent necessity to navigate a society that limits their roles and opportunities. By denying women education and equal opportunities, society encourages them to resort to manipulation and cunning as a way to achieve their ends within the constraints placed upon them. Wollstonecraft argues that if women were treated as rational beings and given the same educational opportunities as men, they would not need to develop such traits, but could instead rely on reason and moral integrity.