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daytimebelle 's review for:
A Vindication of the Rights of Woman
by Mary Wollstonecraft
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
This book feels less like a calm, well-organized essay and more like a passionate rant from someone who’s sick and tired of the nonsense, and I kind of loved that energy. It’s like she’s saying, “I see through your nonsense, and I’m not afraid to say so.”
Her main argument is pretty simple: women are just as capable as men and deserve to be treated like full human beings. At the time, this was radical, but reading it now, it’s almost shocking to think how long it took for these ideas to gain traction. Women are not naturally inferior to men but seem so because they lack access to the same education. That core message still feels incredibly relevant, especially when you think about how education (or the lack thereof) still plays such a big role in shaping opportunities for women today. She’s all about reason, intellect, and equality, not just for the sake of women but because society as a whole would benefit.
Though, I noticed that while her ideas were revolutionary for her time, they aren’t exactly inclusive by today’s standards. Her focus is mainly on middle-class women, and she doesn’t really talk about issues of race or class that affect access to education. But it’s important to read this in the context of her era. It's groundbreaking just for existing.
Some parts of the book are a bit of a slog. The writing is definitely from the 18th century, so there are long sentences and a lot of repetition. At times, it felt like she was hammering the same point over and over, but I guess that’s what you do when you’re trying to get people to listen to something they’ve ignored for ages.
I've been meaning to read this since Miss Universe 2023, Sheynnis Palacios, mentioned Mary Wollstonecraft in her winning answer, and I think this book is worth reading, especially if you’re into feminism or history. It’s one of those works that reminds you how far we’ve come, but also how much we still have to fight for.
Her main argument is pretty simple: women are just as capable as men and deserve to be treated like full human beings. At the time, this was radical, but reading it now, it’s almost shocking to think how long it took for these ideas to gain traction. Women are not naturally inferior to men but seem so because they lack access to the same education. That core message still feels incredibly relevant, especially when you think about how education (or the lack thereof) still plays such a big role in shaping opportunities for women today. She’s all about reason, intellect, and equality, not just for the sake of women but because society as a whole would benefit.
Though, I noticed that while her ideas were revolutionary for her time, they aren’t exactly inclusive by today’s standards. Her focus is mainly on middle-class women, and she doesn’t really talk about issues of race or class that affect access to education. But it’s important to read this in the context of her era. It's groundbreaking just for existing.
Some parts of the book are a bit of a slog. The writing is definitely from the 18th century, so there are long sentences and a lot of repetition. At times, it felt like she was hammering the same point over and over, but I guess that’s what you do when you’re trying to get people to listen to something they’ve ignored for ages.
I've been meaning to read this since Miss Universe 2023, Sheynnis Palacios, mentioned Mary Wollstonecraft in her winning answer, and I think this book is worth reading, especially if you’re into feminism or history. It’s one of those works that reminds you how far we’ve come, but also how much we still have to fight for.