Wollestonecraft's Vindication of the Rights of Women is a manifesto written by a woman and expressing the subjugation of women as a result of natural and unnatural gender stereotyping. The use of floral imagery is quite prevalent in the text. In her writing, Wollestonecraft seems to deviate from the traditional floral imagery's purpose of the day (flowers serving as innocent entities of beauty), using them, rather, to symbolize the socially-constructed and accepted female of the day. She contests, "The conduct and manners of women, in fact, evidently prove that their minds are not in a healthy state, for like the flowers which are planted in too rich a soil, strength and usefulness are sacrificed to beauty" ((373). This excerpt reveals the discontent with which Wollestonecraft views the current station expected of and attributed to women. The planters and cultivation of such ideology and gender stratification, I believe to be not only males but males belonging to the higher classes. It is especially interesting, therefore, that Wollestonecraft decides to "pay particular attention to those in the middle class, because they appear to be in the most natural state" (374). This statement, at first glance, seems to merely outline her intended class of study, from which she plans to extrapolate. However, when closely analyzed, I think it contains subtle hints that any other class (arguably the higher, more privileged classes) would not be a sound population to view. Wollestonecraft implicitly suggests that the higher classes are the prime propagators of the delinquent thinking of female inferiority: "Perhaps the seeds of false-refinement, immorality, and vanity, have ever been shed by the great" (374). I believe "the great" refers to the upper classes and, as Wollestonecraft asserts, their more strict adherence to and agreement with such "false views" may stem from their accessibility to education. Thus, Wollestonecraft makes an argument not only about the gendered nature of society and the subjugation of women but also makes a bold remark about the English educational system at the time.
I also found Wollestonecraft's introduction very full of information and insightful. Her selection of the middle class really caught my eye as well because while at first it seemed to me like she was insulting them because they have had neither good upbringing and education, nor the strength and experience that comes with hard work. However, as I read on I realized she was siding with them and selecting them because "they are in their most natural state," meaning that they have not been as influenced and formed by societal rules as the upper and lower classes. In this way, she sneaks in a stab at the upper echelons of society (especially the ladies), without blatantly saying so.
ReplyDeleteI agree Wollstonecraft inserts snubs at the upper classes, and she values more the lifestyles of the middle class. I think part of this discrepancy relies on the differences in daily routine between the classes: middle class women labored in the home whereas upper class women, like flowers, were only to be admired. Her emphasis on preparing women to be productive members of society mirrors this valuing of physical and mental labor.
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