79 pages • 2 hours read
A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: with Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects
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Essay Topics
Throughout the text, Wollstonecraft refers repeatedly to “tyranny,” identifying it as one of society’s evils. In what ways does the concept of tyranny relate to the plight of women? How does Wollstonecraft see tyranny either contributing to or inhibiting women’s rights?
The book’s central concern is the hierarchy that exists between men and women, and the oppression of women by men. What other hierarchies does Wollstonecraft refer to in the text, and why does she include them?
What role does Wollstonecraft see women playing in their own oppression? How does she suggest they might change the role that they play?
In Chapter 12, Wollstonecraft says “man and woman were made for each other, though not to become one being” (187). What do you think she means by the phrase “one being”? How does the concept of “one being”—and not being “one being”—relate to the text’s central concerns?
Wollstonecraft argues that because of inequality between the sexes, women often treat each other badly. Can you find examples of the different ways in which women treat one another? How does this type of behavior derive from inequality and oppression?
A common theme in the text is parenting and parental duty. What role do parents play in both inequality and female oppression? How does Wollstonecraft suggest that parents should treat their children instead?
Towards the end of the work, Wollstonecraft argues that the education system should be entirely reformed and replaced with free, public education, with girls and boys educated side by side. What reasons does she give for providing this suggestion? What effects does she argue such an education system would have on both individuals and society at-large?
In Chapter 4, Wollstonecraft says, “it will be found that the employment of the thoughts shapes the character both generally and individually” (80). What does Wollstonecraft mean by this statement? How does this statement relate to the behavior of women?
A Vindication of the Rights of Woman is a persuasive text. Wollstonecraft attempts to convince her readers that women deserve the right to education, and to be treated as man’s equal. What persuasive and rhetorical techniques does she use, and why are these effective?
In many ways, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman can seem outdated to us now, although it was radical for the time. Which of Wollstonecraft’s arguments are no longer relevant to feminism, and why?
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