Mary Astell: Theorist of Freedom from DominationPhilosopher, theologian, educational theorist, feminist and political pamphleteer, Mary Astell was an important figure in the history of ideas of the early modern period. Among the first systematic critics of John Locke's entire corpus, she is best known for the famous question which prefaces her Reflections on Marriage: 'If all men are born free, how is it that all women are born slaves?' She is claimed by modern Republican theorists and feminists alike but, as a Royalist High Church Tory, the peculiar constellation of her views sits uneasily with modern commentators. Patricia Springborg's study addresses these apparent paradoxes, recovering the historical and philosophical contexts to her thought. She shows that Astell was not alone in her views; rather, she was part of a cohort of early modern women philosophers who were important for the reception of Descartes and who grappled with the existential problems of a new age. |
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Page xv
... rhetorical question about freedom . It is important to see why the question was rhetorical , and how in this regard her position contrasts with that of Judith Drake , who argues quite literally that women are enslaved . Astell does not ...
... rhetorical question about freedom . It is important to see why the question was rhetorical , and how in this regard her position contrasts with that of Judith Drake , who argues quite literally that women are enslaved . Astell does not ...
Page xvi
... rhetorical forensics that cashed out in terms of specific justiciable rights . But Astell was not a rights theorist , and it is ironic that , in the long haul , she should be seen to join her bitter adversary , Locke , as a defender of ...
... rhetorical forensics that cashed out in terms of specific justiciable rights . But Astell was not a rights theorist , and it is ironic that , in the long haul , she should be seen to join her bitter adversary , Locke , as a defender of ...
Page 1
... rhetorical question in the 1706 Preface to Reflections upon Marriage : ' If all men are born free , how is it that all women are born slaves ? ' . ' These well - chosen words have earned her a place not only in the feminist but also in ...
... rhetorical question in the 1706 Preface to Reflections upon Marriage : ' If all men are born free , how is it that all women are born slaves ? ' . ' These well - chosen words have earned her a place not only in the feminist but also in ...
Page 2
... rhetorical question . But her feminism is seen to sit uneasily with her Anglican High Church and Tory views , and the critical literature rarely does justice to the extraordinary range of her thought or treats in sufficient detail her ...
... rhetorical question . But her feminism is seen to sit uneasily with her Anglican High Church and Tory views , and the critical literature rarely does justice to the extraordinary range of her thought or treats in sufficient detail her ...
Page 12
... rhetorical strategies in the age of Anne , Rachel Weil , concludes that both parties had ' multiple ideologies of gender ' , but that in terms of the benefit to women there was not much to choose between them.32 The new wave of Astell ...
... rhetorical strategies in the age of Anne , Rachel Weil , concludes that both parties had ' multiple ideologies of gender ' , but that in terms of the benefit to women there was not much to choose between them.32 The new wave of Astell ...
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