Question

How and why did women's status seem to decline despite the earlier feminist writings of Mary Wollstonecraft from the Enlightenment? For this research question, you will use literature from the Enlightenment and/or Victorian time period.

Answer 1

In the Enlightenment, Mary Wollstonecraft and other thinkers wrote about women's rights, advocating for education and equality. However, social norms, biological determinism, and male opposition led to a decline in women's status despite these writings. Athenian women in the Age of Pericles had more visibility and participation in public ceremonies compared to women in later periods.

Step-by-step explanation:

Role of Women in the Enlightenment

In the Enlightenment period, women's rights and their social status were topics of discussion among Enlightenment thinkers like Mary Wollstonecraft. Wollstonecraft, in her work 'A Vindication of the Rights of Woman,' argued that women should be treated as rational beings and advocated for women's education. However, despite these feminist writings, women's status seemed to decline in the following years.

Reasons for the Decline

There were several factors that contributed to the decline of women's status despite earlier feminist writings:

1. Social Norms: Society during the Victorian era upheld traditional gender roles, placing men as leaders in the public sphere and women in the domestic space. These social norms limited women's opportunities for education, work, and political participation.
2. Biological Determinism: Some Enlightenment thinkers, like Rousseau, believed that women were naturally inferior to men based on physical and intellectual differences. This viewpoint reinforced women's subordinate status.
3. Male Opposition: Women's movements for equality faced significant opposition from men, who belittled and undermined their efforts. Men in positions of power often dismissed the demand for equal rights as frivolous and threatened by women's advancement.

Comparison to the Athenians in the Age of Pericles

In the Age of Pericles in ancient Athens, women lived under a different set of social norms. Athenian women had limited rights and were confined to the domestic sphere, focusing on household duties and child-rearing. However, they had more visibility and participation in religious and public ceremonies compared to women in later periods like the Victorian era.