Status
Available
Genres
Publication
London : Longmans, 1870.
Description
Gender Studies. Philosophy. Nonfiction. HTML: John Stuart Mill's 1869 essay The Subjection of Women argues for equality between the sexes, putting forward ideas that were an affront to many at the time. His wife, Harriet Taylor Mill, is credited with co-authoring the essay. The Subjection of Women puts forward a detailed and passionate opposition to the social and legal inequalities imposed on women by society. Mill saw that he was going against the grain of the time, but argued that such inequality was a past relic from a time when might equaled right and that it had no place in the modern world. Inequality between the sexes limited human development as it made half of humanity unable to contribute to society outside of their own homes..
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User reviews
LibraryThing member Devil_llama
An early entry in the feminism genre which shows that feminism wasn't suddenly invented in the 20th century, and that men weren't all drug along to the battle, but some went willingly.
LibraryThing member heradas
Written in 1861 and first published in 1869, though an arduous read, this was way ahead of it’s time. Although incredibly forward thinking, it is still a product of the 19th century, and it shows occasionally.
The author gets a lot of criticism for the few times that he does a disservice to the
He’s very clear that women absolutely can and should be fully equal to men, and argues his point with great wit. I think that some misunderstand this, or simply don’t have the patience or vocabulary to read through his admittedly difficult writing, to understand what he is ultimately saying. After all, a seemingly disparaging statement made toward the current women of 1861 might not be completely followed up and shown in actuality to be a representation of the repressive circumstances in which women have been shaped, until several pages later. His paragraphs are that long. It’s hard to follow.
Mill's writing is terribly long winded. His sentences sometimes drawing on for hundreds of words, and paragraphs that are often 3-4 pages long. He could’ve used a good editor. I imagine that an abridged version of this text might carry twice the punch than it does in its current form.
The author gets a lot of criticism for the few times that he does a disservice to the
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current women of his time, in an attempt to do a service to the potential women of the future. If you follow his train of thought long enough, he always has valid reasoning for his argument. Mainly, that women of his time haven’t been given an opportunity to be educated, and have had their place in society shaped by a society that hasn’t given them a chance to exercise their will, and are therefore, in their current state, not yet the equals of men in some regards. It was the truth of the time, and ultimately, it always becomes a hopeful statement toward the potential of women that may exist in the future, if society would change the rules that have been imposed on them. The whole point of the book is to affect change. He’s very clear that women absolutely can and should be fully equal to men, and argues his point with great wit. I think that some misunderstand this, or simply don’t have the patience or vocabulary to read through his admittedly difficult writing, to understand what he is ultimately saying. After all, a seemingly disparaging statement made toward the current women of 1861 might not be completely followed up and shown in actuality to be a representation of the repressive circumstances in which women have been shaped, until several pages later. His paragraphs are that long. It’s hard to follow.
Mill's writing is terribly long winded. His sentences sometimes drawing on for hundreds of words, and paragraphs that are often 3-4 pages long. He could’ve used a good editor. I imagine that an abridged version of this text might carry twice the punch than it does in its current form.
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LibraryThing member madepercy
If it were not for archaic words such as "burthen" (burden) and "rainment (clothing)"; the necessity to counteract arguments from phrenology; and the use of the figurative "Mrs Grundy" (an archaic Mrs Bucket); one might be reading a contemporary argument for diversity and greater opportunities for
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women. Mill exerts his authority by challenging then-dominant ideas (such as phrenology and assumptions about biology then-untested) and then reconciles this absurdity for the modern reader by suggesting that while such things are unknown, and he has little time for these, he can still argue away their objections to his central thesis. Mill was far ahead of his time and his arguments took some time to materialise in universal suffrage and equality of opportunity for women, but the central message, then radical, is now part of political discourse. I intend to focus on James Fitzjames Stephen now to see how Stephen deals with Mill's authoritative works on liberty. Show Less
LibraryThing member smallself
This is a powerful example of not letting society determine your opinions.
Language
Original publication date
1869
ISBN
0879753358 / 9780879753351