I am in total fan girl mode and in awe of Mary Wollstonecraft. Can you imagine being a feminist in the late 1700s?! Such a forward thinking woman. Her education and viewpoints of women and society, education, marriage, sex, rights, intelligence…….just wow. “Strengthen the female mind by enlarging it, and there will be and end to blind obedience.” So much truth in that statement! Being a firm believer in education and the freedom it creates I was ” rah-rah rah” while reading this book.
It’s interesting that being a used copy, I got to read the former owners notes and see where they underlined text. This proved entertaining as this particular reader did not always agree with the writer, and I did agree. It was like being in a classroom and discussing what was read. Fun for me. As I started reading I would stop and look up facts about the author. She is the mother of Mary Shelly, author of Frankenstein and other wonderful works. She lead for the time quite a ‘scandalous’ life, so much so that her literary work didn’t initially get the proper credit. Mary Wollestonecraft died from the complications of childbirth. The same complications of childbirth that my daughters best friend died of 6 1/2 years ago. This fact just amazed me. 1797 and 2011, women die from the same complication of childbirth. Mary’s life is extremely interesting and wrought with sadness, but still she persevered, just amazing. So sad that we lost her so soon. Her words are still so relevant today, I believe she would have appreciated that.
This book is an excellent choice if you want to read viewpoints on feminism. The fight for this women to have other women be educated brought tears to my eyes. A must read for women’s studies and in my opinion, every young woman.
Now to order up all her other books to read…….this fall!
Peace.
