Reason and Sensibility: The Ideal of Women's Self-Governance in die Writings of Mary Wollstonecraft
C Mackenzie - Hypatia, 1993 - cambridge.org
Hypatia, 1993•cambridge.org
It is standard in feminist commentaries to argue that Wollstonecraft's feminism is vitiated by
her commitment to a liberal philosophical framework, relying on a valuation of reason over
passion and on the notion of a sex-neutral self. I challenge this interpretation of
Wollstonecraft's feminism and argue that her attempt to articulate an ideal of self-governance
for women was an attempt to diagnose and resolve some of the tensions and inadequacies
within traditional liberal thought. 1
her commitment to a liberal philosophical framework, relying on a valuation of reason over
passion and on the notion of a sex-neutral self. I challenge this interpretation of
Wollstonecraft's feminism and argue that her attempt to articulate an ideal of self-governance
for women was an attempt to diagnose and resolve some of the tensions and inadequacies
within traditional liberal thought. 1
It is standard in feminist commentaries to argue that Wollstonecraft's feminism is vitiated by her commitment to a liberal philosophical framework, relying on a valuation of reason over passion and on the notion of a sex-neutral self. I challenge this interpretation of Wollstonecraft's feminism and argue that her attempt to articulate an ideal of self-governance for women was an attempt to diagnose and resolve some of the tensions and inadequacies within traditional liberal thought.1
Cambridge University Press