1. What aspects of women’s lives does Wollstonecraft seem interested in changing? Why?
2. Wollstonecraft quotes Pope’s famous line “Whatever is, is right.” How does she interpret this line? Does she agree with Pope?
3. Do you think women are still raised to be “pleasing”? Why or why not?
4. What does Wollstonecraft have to say about marriage? In her view, what would allow a woman to be a good wife and mother?
3. Do you think women are still raised to be “pleasing”? Why or why not?
Although the roles of women have changed drastically over the decades, I believe that society still categorizes the expectations of women and men. Indeed, there are many countries around the world where women do not enjoy equality, but even in democratic societies women are constantly reminded of their position. This is seen in the work place, in government, and in social interaction.
Many individuals still struggle with letting go of their traditional values and conforming to modern feminist ideas. For example, I am born and raised in the United States and enjoy many freedoms. My parents always encouraged me to be an independent, educated woman, but also reminded me that I will be a wife and mother some day. Consequently, they have an image of the type of woman you should be to become a good wife and caring mother. This image has been engrained in the minds of individuals for many generations. The issue with women’s rights and equality is that tradition and conservative ideas will always creep their way in to modern society.
Personally, I do not consider myself a “feminist”. Quite frankly, I believe recent feminist movements portray a terrible image of women and their qualities. I believe that there are certain roles that women posses that men cannot (i.e. being a mother), but also women have the ability to do everything men can do and more.
Do you think women are still raised to be “pleasing”? Why or why not?
Throughout time, the role of women have changed drastically from Wollstonecraft’s time period. Even though the concept of being raised to “please” for women may differ in other parts of the world. I think society has changed the view of women in a positive outlook. During the time period of Wollstonecraft, women were expected to “please” in a sense they had implied duties to clean, educate, take care of children, cook and ect. In the reading she also mentions how the husband can lose interest and leave if the women refuses the ability to please. We can tell that time periods have changed during these times and more rights have been present for women. Even though in society, some countries may have some of these implications on women. Women now have rights and the ability to do what they please. I don’t think women are raised to “please” but rather the concepts are positively incorporated in some traditions. The difference between now and before in time periods is that women now have their own voice and choices to follow through with these implications.
What aspects of women’s lives does Wollstonecraft seem interested in changing? Why?
Wollstonecraft seems interested in changing the education and upbringing that girls are receiving. She argues that girls are only being taught to please men, and she presents this argument by convincing men that if girls are only being taught to please, then that’s all they’ll ever do… even if it means if it’s not their husbands. She acknowledges that men feel fear and jealousy, and uses that idea to convince them to teach girls more. In reality though, she cares for girls to be able to be independent of men, given her troubled past not only in her parents’ marriage, but her marriages as well. She knows that her audience consists of men, so she’s smart enough to not even mention that girls deserve independence away from them. She wants girls to receive the same type of education that men do.
Do you think women are still raised to be “pleasing”? Why or why not?
I think women are still raised to be pleasing but now in a different way then in the past. In the past the role of women was to be the house wife and the care taker of the children. Their role was to raise the kids cook meals and clean the house while the role of the man was to go out and work hard and make money to provide for the family. It seems in recent times almost the opposite is true. From my point of view in recent times women are raised to be “pleasing” by them growing up to be very successful and make a lot of money by becoming doctors or generally having a successful career. It seems in recent time that girls are being raised to become successful. I think men are as well but it seems that girls are more found more attractive and pleasing when they are successful financially or have a successful career.
Do you think women are still raised to be “pleasing”? Why or why not?
I think that women are still being raised to be pleasing and the reason why I think so is because of cultural influence. Throughout time, females in a lot of cultures have been taught how to properly take care of a man or how to be a good housewife. For some time now, men to some are seen as the breadwinner or superior even till this day but this practice still continues due to dominance and acceptance. In addition, women in some cultures sometimes accept the role because it is what they were taught to do, so some women may think I was born to fulfill that role. Dominance I would say plays a factor in this because men in some other cultures strictly and enforce this role to women in order to be superior and to show dominance.
Do you think women are still raised to be “pleasing”? Why or why not?
I definitely believe that historical gender roles still affect our present-day society. I grew up in a traditional Mexican household where these roles were all too prevalent. During my childhood, I was taught to study and work hard so I could find a job, marry a wife and buy a house. My sisters were taught to cook, clean, and please their future husband. In many cultures, women are taught that they should be home-makers, instead of following their own dreams. Independent career women are frowned upon while those who take care of household duties and children are congratulated and accepted.
As society becomes more progressive, this irrational perception of women will continue to affect them. It is ingrained in our cultures, religions, and even politics! Women should not be forced to “put on a smile” or stay quiet in every situation. They have every right to act and speak the way they deem fit.
3. Do you think women are still raised to be “pleasing”? Why or why not?
The roles of women has drastically changed over the years, yet still to some degree i believe that society engrains the traits of pleasing others into women. While this varies a great amount based upon geography, In the United States women are constantly judged based upon beauty and for the most part are expected to be aesthetically pleasing. American women are also still raised from a young age to be more nurturing and generally more likely to handle the cooking and cleaning within the household. While gender roles today are nowhere close to the extreme views of the past, they still without a doubt hold an impact on the way things are today.
Do you think women are still raised to be “pleasing”? Why or why not?
Thogh it is in 21st century, women are still raised to be”pleasing” in some particular region. It is true that Women has earned lots og right in USA or europe , but womem’s condistion in many regions such as ,middle east , is not better than it was in 17th century. The most essential goal for them is to find a good husband. Thus, women in middle east are definetly raised to be pleasing .
Do you think women are still raised to be “pleasing”? Why or why not?
In the work by Mary Wollstonecraft, it is observed that women were ought to be taught only one thing- “to render them pleasing” meaning, to pleasure men. However, over the past centuries, the roles of women have changed as the idea of “equality” is coming into existence. This does not mean that it had been any easy or has changed the lives of women everywhere. There are still millions of women who are submissive to their respective males, however, most of them on the good part are not raised to be “pleasing” anymore because the occupations, rights, and opportunities available to women today are same as that to men, if not in all, then in most places.
Do you think women are still raised to be “pleasing”? Why or why not?
I don’t necessarily believe that women of the 21st century are being raised to so solely please their husbands, but more-so to be his partner, his equal so to speak. This is the case because of the modern world we live in where people both men women and child have the freedom to pursue their interests regardless of societal norms and expectations. More women are entering “male dominant” work fields and proving that they’re just as competent as any man as women on a whole attempt to one day break the glass ceiling. Hillary’s run for president only a couple years ago was a great representation of how far womanhood and society as a whole has journeyed from earlier times when Mary Wollstonecraft lobbeyed for women to have the right to vote.