Unit 2 blog: A Vindication of the Rights of Woman

In one section of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman, Mary Wollstonecraft addresses Rousseau’s ideas of a woman’s beauty and education. Wollstonecraft effectively persuades her audience by pointing out the fallacies of Rousseau’s arguments. She does this with her use of colorful and alluring vocabulary. Even if you are unfamiliar with this particular work she makes her premise very clear and lets the reader know her intentions and beliefs from the start. She begins by stating that even though you may know her opinion she feels that she must defend her position and in her own words explains that she must, “attack it in a more circumstantial manner, and make the application myself” (Wollstonecraft chap. 5 par. 2). Throughout the chapter Wollstonecraft includes direct quotes from Rousseau in an attempt to show the audience that she is not misquoting or deviating from his message. She follows by giving an explanation of why she disagrees. This is an excellent use of evidence and lends her argument ample credibility. At one point she quotes Rousseau as saying, “The education of women should always be relative to men” (Wollstonecraft chap. 5 par. 10). He is further quoted and explains that he believes that because young girls like to play dress up and that this must be the way nature has intended women to be and that as a society we should only nurture those qualities in regards to a woman’s education(Wollstonecraft chap. 5 par. 11). Wollstonecraft responds in a very direct manner, using powerful language, saying that Rousseau is not going back to nature but he is in fact appealing to his own “disturbed” and “crude” appetite (Wollstonecraft chap. 5 par. 16). Wollstonecraft uses the warrant or enthymeme that adultery could be a consequence of following Rousseau’s logic. She further backs her argument by explaining that if a woman is able to caress her husband while she should be angry, then why wouldn’t she be able to do the same when parting with a lover (Wollstonecraft chap. 5 par. 31). She continues to directly quote Rousseau and also persists that she wants to be consistent and give the reader an objective view. I love the way she concludes her argument by explaining that she does not hate Rousseau, but rather she explains, “I war not with his ashes, but his opinions” (Wollstonecraft chap. 5 par. 60). She also warns of the suffering and degradation of women if certain prejudices are not overcome. Wollstonecraft perfectly employs all points on the rhetoric triangle and is very persuasive by accommodating her audience and giving great reasons behind her claims. It is hard for me to imagine the attitude and behaviorism of her era but I can only imagine the courage it must have taken for her to state her opinions and beliefs. Even in today’s society women are often scorned for strongly expressing their views and are ridiculed publicly. I look forward to studying her works further.

Works Cited

Wollstonecraft, Mary. A Vindication of the Rights of Woman. Boston: Peter Edes

for Thomas and Andrews, 1792. Bartelby.com. Web. 23 February 2010.