A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (Rethinking the Western Tradition) - Softcover

Wollstonecraft, Mary; Botting, Eileen Hunt; Abbey, Ruth; Clarke, Norma; Cronin, Madeline; Sapiro, Virginia

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0300176473 ISBN 13: 9780300176476

Publisher: Yale University Press, 2014

Synopsis

Mary Wollstonecraft's visionary treatise, originally published in 1792, was the first book to present women's rights as an issue of universal human rights. Ideal for coursework and classroom study, this comprehensive edition of Wollstonecraft's groundbreaking feminist argument includes illuminating essays by leading scholars that highlight the author's significant contributions to modern political philosophy, making a powerful case for her as one of the most substantive political thinkers of the Enlightenment era. No other scholarly work to date has examined as closely both the ideological moorings and the enduring legacy of Wollstonecraft's courageous discourse.

About this title

Review:

"Mary Wollstonecraft's words ring as true today - and are as little heeded by government - as when she wrote them, 200 years ago, in her A Vindication of the Rights of Woman" (Guardian)

"The first pebble in the later avalanche of the women's rights movement" (Melvyn Bragg Guardian)

"A book that was bold in its time and is now considered the notable forerunner of the women's movement" (New York Times) --new york times

"The first great piece of feminist writing" (Independent) "Changed the world for generations of women to come" --(Sunday Times)

Fiona Shaw's narration brings out the meaning of prose that many listeners may find a bit difficult to parse, making this classic work more accessible to a general audience. Described as an early feminist, Wollstonecraft was both a product of, and ahead of, her time. Her primary thesis which was far from the prevailing view of the nineteenth century was that women should have equal opportunity to be educated consistent with their class in order for them to be able to fulfil their duties as mothers and wives. Shaw adopts a tone of righteous indignation as Wollstonecraft attacks the views of Rousseau, who felt that educating women was wasteful, and others. The contrast between their arguments is enhanced by the dual presentation of Shaw and Jonathan Keeble in a point/counterpoint discussion. --- J.E.M., AudioFile

Book Description:

A key work of proto-feminism, Mary Wollstonecraft's readable and impassioned argument is as relevant today as it was 200 years ago.

About this edition

• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 0300176473
• ISBN 13: 9780300176476
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 416