I have been waiting to read about the beginnings of the feminist movement, since the start of the semester. Because of the enlightenment, many old traditions had been challenged. One in particular, was the idea that women were inferior beings. "The French Revolution raised the possibility of re-creating human societies on new foundations. Many women participated in these events, and a few insisted, unsuccessfully, that the revolutionary ideals of liberty and equality must include women" (805). As Mary Wollstonecraft (author of
Vindication of the Rights of Woman) quoted, "who made man the exclusive judge, if woman partake with him of the gift of reason" (805). Because of the raising middle class, not all women had to just stick to household duties. Some women took part in temperance movements, charities, abolitionism, missionary work, and sometimes socialist and pacifist organizations. The first organized expression was in Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848. That day, a conference was held where women came to finally say what was on their minds. "By the 1870's, feminist movements in the West were focusing primarily on the issue of suffrage and were gaining a growing constituency" (806). My favorite part of the reading was about
A Doll's House.
A Doll's House is a three-act play by Henrik Ibsen, which he wrote in 1879. Nora, the heroine, finds herself in a loveless and oppressive marriage, and decides to leave her husband and kids. Of course, this play had its haters. This play was certainly ahead of its time, with its topics. "Writers, doctors, and journalists addressed previously taboo sexual topics, including homosexuality and birth control. That is why I love art though. It sometimes crosses boundaries and makes people really look at the world. The playwright George Bernard Shaw found Ibsen's willingness to point out flaws in society exhilarating and so do I!!
I have been waiting to read about the beginnings of the feminist movement, since the start of the semester. Because of the enlightenment, many old traditions had been challenged. One in particular, was the idea that women were inferior beings. "The French Revolution raised the possibility of re-creating human societies on new foundations. Many women participated in these events, and a few insisted, unsuccessfully, that the revolutionary ideals of liberty and equality must include women" (805). As Mary Wollstonecraft (author of Vindication of the Rights of Woman) quoted, "who made man the exclusive judge, if woman partake with him of the gift of reason" (805). Because of the raising middle class, not all women had to just stick to household duties. Some women took part in temperance movements, charities, abolitionism, missionary work, and sometimes socialist and pacifist organizations. The first organized expression was in Seneca Falls, New York, in 1848. That day, a conference was held where women came to finally say what was on their minds. "By the 1870's, feminist movements in the West were focusing primarily on the issue of suffrage and were gaining a growing constituency" (806). My favorite part of the reading was about A Doll's House. A Doll's House is a three-act play by Henrik Ibsen, which he wrote in 1879. Nora, the heroine, finds herself in a loveless and oppressive marriage, and decides to leave her husband and kids. Of course, this play had its haters. This play was certainly ahead of its time, with its topics. "Writers, doctors, and journalists addressed previously taboo sexual topics, including homosexuality and birth control. That is why I love art though. It sometimes crosses boundaries and makes people really look at the world. The playwright George Bernard Shaw found Ibsen's willingness to point out flaws in society exhilarating and so do I!!
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