Mary Wollstonecraft, From Vindication Of The Rights Of Woman

Date

Mary Wollstonecraft, from Vindication of the Rights of Woman

Thesis Statement: In the book, the author is talking about women rights by suggesting that since men and women were born with the same ability to reason, women should be accorded equal opportunity with their male counterparts. Women should enjoy their right to power, education, and influence in society just as men do. The author continues and says that the only notable reason that men outsmart women is because the girl child lacks the same education privilege as the boy child (Wollstonecraft 233).

In the literature, the author has stated that men only have an advantage when it comes to their physical strength, however, with today's civilization, such added benefits, male masculinity should mean less. The author has even criticized other ancient writers who had the opinion that women's education should only focus on making women pleasing to men, and that girls should only concentrate on dressing nicely, cooking, and being quiet in the house like a bouquet of flower.

However, on the other hand, the author has openly expressed her displeasure that women should just be objects to cook and perform laundry work in the house. The author has advocated for women rights by suggesting that certain habits are the primary cause of social problems that we are having in our society. For instance, she argues how do we expect a woman to raise her kids the right way without proper education coupled with the ability to reason with the children. Besides, how do we expect women to become morally upright if not educated on the virtues of morality?

As the chapter of the book proceeds, the author reiterates that education should be compulsory, and both men and women should be accorded equal rights regardless of the social status of their parents or guardians. The author even continues and proposes a free schooling system that educates kids up to a certain level.

There is certainly no reason to support women oppression without being a bully or a tyrant for that matter because, at the end of it all, a future with educated women is much better than a future without educated women.

In the essay, the Author has used Plot development to support women rights. Most good literature works begin with a list of elements: initial situation, conflict, complication, climax, suspense, denouement, and conclusion (Godwin et al., 34).

The author has opened the theme by instituting three fundamental grounds. She says humanity is unique, human are better through moral goodness, and humans have passion and emotions, and that they can apply and to reason to overcome the passions and emotion during the process, they acquire knowledge.

The author depicts women oppression by complaining about the idea why women should receive better education compared to their male counterpart. In the literature, we have seen that women are preferred to focus on their prettiness while men get educated in lucrative professions such as math's and sciences.

The author does not only settle with improving women's education but rather wants an overhaul of the public school system by introducing free learning up to a certain level so that both the boy and girl child, have equal access to education.

In the closing parts, the author is disappointed that certain parents and guardians only take kids to schools for their ego and showing off purposes. The parents only want their children to look good hence do not see the long term benefit of educating their kids.

The author is closing the book by telling men to respect women and not to be tyrants by bullying women, and that women must be accorded equal opportunities in any society.

Katherine Mansfield, 'The Doll's House.'

Thesis Statement: The central theme in this literature is the vindictiveness of class distinctions. The author, Katherine Mansfield was born in New Zealand when the country was still a British colony when class distinctions were the norm of the day.

In the Dolls House, Burnell family, except Kezia consider themselves superior to others. Burnell views themselves through their social class and because Mrs. Kelvey is a working class woman, and the fact that Mr. Kelvey is in prison, Burnell consider themselves to be of the upper class. In the story, a dolls house, it is also open that the kids and the teacher in the school, just like Burnell's, consider themselves of a high social status than the Kelvey's. The situation in hand is aggravated by the fact that Mrs. Kelvey is so economically disadvantaged that she dresses her daughter with clothes and items that her neighbors do not need. All the characters are judging the Kelvey's based not only on their lower class but also by their appearances, because, they are not smartly dressed as the rest of the society (Mansfield et al. 27).

There is a lot of symbolism in the story, which is imperative. The doll's house is a representation of the upper-class Burnell's family. Through the association of the Burnell family with the doll's house, it is equally well to suggest that they are wealthy individuals and the only family around that can afford a doll's house. The fortune manifests when the author expresses to the reader that Burnell has sent their kids to the local school not only because they could not afford a more affluent institution, but also, because, it was the only school available around. However, something funny is that there is some smell coming from the dolls' house, and this serves as an indicator that not all is well with the Burnell's (socially prejudiced).

The gate Kezia is sitting and swinging is also symbolic in a way, and may depict social prejudice that Burnell's and associates have towards the Kelvey's. By allowing Kezia to open the gate for Lil and Else, the author may be suggesting that Kezia is trying to eliminate social prejudice towards Lil and Else so that they can be equal with the rest of the society. Amongst the children who are featured in the story, it is only Kezia and Else who are astonished by the lamp. It is also symbolic in a way, because, the author is trying to clear the social class barriers existing between the girls that could have been created by Aunt Beryl and Mrs. Burnell.

The story ends in a very entertaining fashion. Despite the persistent social prejudice from Aunt Beryl by telling both Lil and Else to go their homes and never come back, Else is not affected, because she is sitting next to Kezia, and by seeing the lamp she realizes that she is not different in any way with Kezia. By Kezia eliminating the class barrier between Lil and Else, the two girls are now allowed to be just like any other children in the society and equal for that matter.

Analysis (Social issue regarding economic status)

The author has used powerful expressions as a metaphor to indicate economic segregation. The metaphors are shown by describing Else Kelvey, by persistently calling her our 'else.' Through descri ptions such as in her 'nightgown of dress' Else resembles a ghostly image, which to most readers appears more of a sad angel. Else seems not to be comfortable in the society and appears completely out of the world (Mansfield 19).

The author has used the doll's house as an allegory depicting wealthy upper class that develops a figurative language surrounding it. The small amber lamp that Kezia is looking at represents a real value in an isolated emotional world.

The last view of the Kelvey after going through the doll's house builds the spiritual overtone in the literature. Aunt Beryl's cruelty is a finished affair, and the little lamp seen by the Else indicates Kezia's kindness and humanity that means the inhumane side of the class distinction, and that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel regardless of the situation. At the end of the story, we can also read about Else 'rare smile.'

Some of the comparisons and contrasting of the two essays in relation to the development of women issues includeslt;/p>To begin with, women are considered as second class citizens in any society. In the essay 'vindication of the rights of a woman' we can see how women were perceived to be hopeless people in the society and that they should not be equal with their male counterparts. Women are considered to be people who should not be given education but to be left to do the laundry, and beautify themselves. On the other hand, their male counterparts were getting more educated and taking the best jobs including aviation, engineering, and medicine. The situation in the essay contradicts an equal society where education is given to all equally regardless of whether someone is a boy child or a girl child.

In Katherine Mansfield, 'The Doll's House.' There is also some similarity, because, Mansfield the author has tried to depict how 'Else' who also happens to be a girl child, lacks equal opportunity because she is a woman and this is the main reason as to why they are poor. In the two essays women are associated with poverty and this is why in the first essay, a woman should not be educated, while in the second essay, it is also a woman who is involved with poverty having come from a poor family.

In addition, the two essays also depict how women struggle being accorded equal education opportunities, and this can also be seen especially in the second essay when 'Else's' family cannot afford education. In the two essays we have also seen a similarity that when women are accorded equal opportunities they are able to outshine their male counterparts.

There are very many contrasting events. In the first essay, the author is talking about women living in poverty due to education attainment and lack of equal education opportunities and this is the main reason as to why women are poor. However, in the second essay, we can see how 'Else' who is a poor woman happens to be poor because she is coming from a poor family, and what is really affecting her is not because the parents are poor per se, but discrimination comes in the form of economic segregation.

In addition, in the first essay, the author is advocating for equal opportunities, when saying that women should be accorded equal opportunity. However, in the second essay, we can see how 'Aunt Beryl' who is also a woman is looking down upon 'Else' who is also a woman.

Works Cited

Godwin, William, Pamela Clemit, and Gina Luria Walker. Memoirs of the Author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman. Peterborough, Ont.: Broadview, 2001. Print.

Mansfield, Katherine, and Gillian Boddy. Katherine Mansfield: A `do You Remember` Life: Four Stories with an Illustrated Introduction. Wellington: Victoria UP with the Katherine Mansfield Birthplace Society, 1996. Print.

Mansfield, Katherine, and Vincent O`Sullivan. Katherine Mansfield`s Selected Stories: The Texts of the Stories, Katherine Mansfield__from Her Letters, Criticism. New York: W.W. Norton, 2006. Print.

Wollstonecraft, Mary. "Of the Pernicious Effects Which Arise from the Unnatural Distinctions Established in Society." Mary Wollstonecraft A Vindication of the Rights of Men with A Vindication of the Rights of Woman and Hints (1925): 230-41. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.