I have to be honest and say that this essay confused me. Even reading it through three times could not clear my confusion so I am still feeling unsure of what to write. I did however pull three separate trains of though from the essay. The first being that women are lesser than men. The second being that while it may seem as though men wear the pants, they are really being controlled by women and their sexuality. The third being that everyone is equal in the eyes of God so does anything else really matter?
From the start of the essay I assumed that the entire essay would be about women oppression. Margaret Fuller started off strong with an introductory paragraph about men living off the work and earnings of women. Fuller even goes as far as to say that, "...in a world of men, a true feeling towards women as towards slaves." She also touched upon education and power and how it was not seen as something a woman should have. I think, for the most part, Fuller was right to say what she did about women oppression. Fuller saying that women were thought of as nothing more than slaves was a stretch for me but I really liked how she said that in the current times, a woman with power can be sexy. I mean just look at Beyonce!
The third paragraph had me thinking that maybe the essay would be double sided. Maybe Fuller would take both sides. She said that, "All men are privately influenced by women..." Fuller made a fantastic point in saying that men do have to cater to women in some way so that the women will stick around and give the men what they want. In that way women hold the power. If the woman is not happy, the man is not happy either.
As the essay came to a close I noticed more and more biblical references. Then the essay took a religious twist. The final two sentences said exactly what I believe should be true of our world. "If the negro be a soul, if the woman be a soul, appareled in flesh, to one master only are they accountable. There is but one law for all souls, and, if there is to be an interpreter of it, he comes not as man, or son of man, but as Son of God."
Hey Cora!
ReplyDeleteYes I have to agree, this article was a bit hard to read. In Fuller's time, women had no rights. They were property to men, even "...a true feeling towards women as towards slaves." It's hard to think about being a "slave" to your husband, his having every right to do what he pleases with you. This brings up another point you made about all of us being equal. Yes!! We are all equal under God's eyes. We all have one greater that we are all accountable to.
Sup, Cora? Great post, yo! I really liked the quote, "All men are privately influenced by women," too. It is true though, just as woman are influenced by men. I like how you stated that women hold the power in the relationship too. Strong point! The last quote of course is a winner too. For we are all equal under God's eyes.
ReplyDeleteHi Cora,
ReplyDeleteI understand and identify with your confusion with Fuller’s essay. It does get a little rambling and confusing at times, I read it twice to make sure I didn’t miss anything important. I agree that the confusion stems from the fact that it looks like she might be taking both sides of the argument. What I got out of the article is that she was bringing up the main argument against equality then making counterarguments against them. To the argument that voting rights weren’t needed because male voters were personally influenced by females, she points out that men looked down on the intelligence of women and do not take them seriously. The problem is that it is hard to tell when she is presenting the opposing argument and when she starts her counterargument, as she switches back and forth frequently. I think the final passage about oneness under God was meant as summation by pointing out that since women spiritually equal men, they should be socially equal to men as well.