English feminist philosopher and writer (1666–1731)
Mary Astell (12 November 1666 – 11 May 1731) was an English protofeminist writer, philosopher, and rhetorician who advocated for equal educational opportunities for women. Astell is primarily remembered as one of England's inaugural advocates for women's rights and some commentators consider her to have been "the first English feminist."[1]
Astell's works, particularly A Serious Proposal to the Ladies and Some Reflections Upon Marriage, argue for the fundamental intellectual equality between men and women. Her philosophical writings are thought to have influenced subsequent generations of educated women, including the literary group known as the Bluestockings.[2] Astell, who never married, formed the majority of her close personal relationships with women. During the early 1700s, she withdrew from public life and dedicated herself to planning and managing a charitable school for girls. Astell considered herself a self-reliant, modern female; one who was on a definite mission to rescue her sex from the oppression of males.[3]
Despite Astell's contribution to the feminist cause, there is a notable tension in the broader body of scholarship when it comes to categorising her as the unequivocal "first English feminist." This discrepancy arises due to Astell's conflicting intellectual commitments. In addition to her belief in women's inherent intellectual potential and her thorough exploration of the perils of oppressive husbands, Mary Astell was a staunch High Tory, a conservative pamphleteer, and an advocate for the doctrine of passive obedience.[2] Even during their initial publication, her strongest political views may have seemed outdated and out of touch with the prevailing beliefs of the time. Furthermore, her emphasis on religion's importance to female friendship and feminist thought has rankled contemporary critics of her work.[3]
^Batchelor, Jennie, "Mary Astell". The Literary Encyclopedia. 21 March 2002. Accessed 6 July 2008.
^ abDuran, Jane (2006). Eight Women Philosophers: Theory, Politics, and Feminism. University of Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0-252-03022-2. JSTOR 10.5406/j.ctt1xcn4h.
^ abKinnaird, Joan K. (1979). "Mary Astell and the Conservative Contribution to English Feminism". Journal of British Studies. 19 (1): 53–75. doi:10.1086/385747. ISSN 1545-6986. S2CID 161848352.
MaryAstell (12 November 1666 – 11 May 1731) was an English protofeminist writer, philosopher, and rhetorician who advocated for equal educational opportunities...
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of Enlightenment The Lives of the Ancient Philosophers (London, 1702) MaryAstell, Moderation Truly Stated (London, 1704) Giambattista Vico, The New Science...
authors, and philosophers which included MaryAstell, Lady Mary Chudleigh, Elizabeth Thomas, Elizabeth Elstob, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, and John Norris. She...
included Mary Wollstonecraft, Olympe de Gouges, Catherine Macaulay, MaryAstell, Judith Sargent Murray (under the pseudonym "Constantia"), Mary Chudleigh...
English philosopher, proto-feminist, and advocate for women's education. MaryAstell (1666–1731) was an English feminist writer and rhetorician known for...
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Clarissa", SNNTS 30 (Summer 1998): 246–259. Derek Taylor, "Clarissa Harlowe, MaryAstell, and Elizabeth Carter: John Norris of Bemerton's Female 'Descendants'"...
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– engineer and industrialist Ove Arup – architect and civil engineer MaryAstell – writer ("the first English feminist") Robert Barker – painter and inventor...
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1695). Sancroft provided financial support to MaryAstell and an introduction to her future publisher; Astell later dedicated a collection of poetry to him...
Nails (2012) ‘John Locke and the Right to Bear Arms’ – M. Tunick (2014) ‘MaryAstell on Marriage and Lockean Slavery” - Jacqueline Broad (2014) *The City...
Pascal - Pensées [Thoughts] (incomplete at his death in 1662) 1700 – MaryAstell, Some Reflections Upon Marriage 1607 – Francesco Sforza Pallavicino -...
library of Trinity College, designed by Christopher Wren, is completed. MaryAstell (anonymous) – A Serious Proposal to the Ladies, for the Advancement of...
and necessary crafts of the house and estate." Like his contemporary MaryAstell, Locke believed that women could and should be taught to be rational...
and Greatest Interest and Some Reflections on Marriage published by MaryAstell. 1791: Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Female Citizen published...
the Duke and Dutchess of Mazarine’s Case; Which is Also Considered., MaryAstell (1700) Williams, H. Noel (1915) Rival sultanas: Nell Gwyn, Louise de...