On Mary Wollstonecraft's Quest In Vindication Of The Rights Of Woman

The story of a gallant hero’s quest in which he overcomes obstacles to save a princess or find the holy grail is a timeless example of one of literature’s most recognizable plots. During the Enlightenment, male scholars were successfully fulfilling their quest to end the tyranny of the monarchy, yet they ignored the similar enslavement of their wives and daughters, who were submissive and powerless to men. In Vindication of the Rights of Woman, Mary Wollstonecraft embarks on a revolutionary quest to persuade women that they have the potential to rise above society’s conventional view of women as dependent and inferior creatures. Mary Wollstonecraft tells her readers that her quest will be as difficult as finding the legendary “philosopher’s stone” (29). Historically, the philosopher’s stone was a mythical yet highly sought-after substance with the power to turn lead into gold and to produce immortality. This historical allusion is a metaphor for Wollstonecraft’s quest to encourage women to break free from the societal conventions that keep them in perpetual states of dependence. Wollstonecraft is an example of a woman who is an exception to the long-established assumption that women are intellectually inferior, yet she still must now convince the world of the potential of her fellow
women. Wollstonecraft’s quest is a complex web of ideas, but the overarching concept is her desire to convince women that despite their physical weaknesses, they have heretofore untapped mental capabilities. With this knowledge, Wollstonecraft believes that she can empower women to be active participants in their European society that is already prepped for change. While scholarly men fight for their freedom to play a role in government, Wollstonecraft believes that women can use the momentum of the Enlightenment’s human rights campaign to convince men of women’s equal right to education and independence. However, this rebellion can only be accomplished if women transcend conventional ideas of their abilities and unite against the dominance of men. In order for women to present themselves as a united, rational force, Wollstonecraft faces many obstacles, which are the long-standing prejudices that penetrate society’s views of the differences between men and women. The first obstacle is the European idea that women’s inferior physicality justifies the assumption of women’s inferior rationality. This belief results in women who are childlike and dependent on their fathers and husbands. Rousseau leads the philosophical debate that for women, “dependence is called natural” (41). Further, women are compliant in their dependence on men because society tells them that docility and gentleness are necessary to attract a husband. With no education or ability to rationalize the unfairness of their situation, this cycle of dependence continues as women instruct their daughters to be passive and weak. In Vindication of the Rights of Woman, “ .
. . deeply rooted prejudices have clouded reason” (11). Mary Wollstonecraft’s quest to encourage women to understand the irrationality of their continual dependence on men persisted years after her death. Since writing this account of her quest to enact change in her society, the obstacles of the eighteenth-century were slowly defeated with the realization of both men and women that curiosity and thirst for knowledge are universal characteristics of all humanity. With an increase in the availability for education, women united and shared Wollstonecraft’s quest that women should not “have power over men; but over themselves”
(63).