Feminist Ideals in Literature

Paper Summary:

This paper compares the works of Wollstonecraft and Woolf as pieces of feminist literature and examines the differences in their style. Wollstonecraft lays a basis for arguing the rights of women while Woolf writes of women's exclusion from education, professions and the public sphere. Both authors apply metaphors, similes and feminist thought to their works. However, as Wollstonecraft reveals her outrage, Woolf maintains an inviting and calm tone, displaying a variation between their writings.

From the Paper:

"Feminism, both as a theoretical analysis of gender inequality and oppression and as a political movement, has used literary texts extensively in making and disseminating its meanings. Although it was only in the twentieth century that many basic feminist ideas became accepted within the mainstream of most societies, the history of feminist thought spans more than three hundred years. In 1792, Mary Wollstonecraft wrote "Pernicious Effects Which Arise from the Unnatural Distinctions Established in Society" in an attempt to point out the inequalities in the treatment of women. In 1929, the novelist and essayist Virginia Woolf considered the question of how gifted women could hope to achieve important works despite their oppression. She wrote "Shakespeare's Sister," imagining for William Shakespeare an equally gifted sister named Judith and then tracing her probable development in sixteenth century England. The works of both Wollstonecraft and Woolf display a similarity within their use of figure of speech and feminist ideals; however, each applies a different tone to communicate their point-of-view."

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