Feminist Philosophy Essay

Mary Wollstonecraft was no doubt a great feminist and deserved to be called grandm different of the feminist thought. Her early experiences of an unsuccessful family life as well as the overriding notion of the philosophers at that time about wo custody shaped her views to become current feminist grand mother. Wollstonecrafts feminist ideas affected the low gear jar of womens lib through her arguments against the prevailing views on women most notably that of Rousseaus which categorized women as subservient to men. Rousseau held that womens education should be designed entirely to make them pleasing to men.Rousseau reflected to please, to be useful to us, to make us love and think about them, to educate us when young and take c are of us when grown up, to advise, to console us, to render our lives scant(p) and agreeablethese are duties of women at all times(Feminist Philosophy). Against this view, Wollstonecraft work hard to emphasize that the role of women in the society wer e not simply an ornaments and playthings of men as they are also capable of attaining masculine virtues of light and rationality if society would allow those value to be cultivated (p.475-476).Wollstonecraft pointed out that the prevailing views on women had knotty implications not only on women but on society as well as they give only breed bitterness, jealousy, and folly. She affected the first wave of feminist by encouraging them to restore women to their lost(p) dignity by encouraging better ideas of woman hood (p. 476). How did Simone de Beauvoirs writing shape the second wave?The second wave of feminism was a resurgence of early feminism as a impression of various works of feminists during the 1940s such as her works. De Beauvoir writings shaped the second wave of feminism by shedding light about what is a woman in the concept of being other, and how men views women during this period. In her writings de Beauvoir shed kind understanding on womanhood. She pointed out that the fundamental social subject matter of woman is Other.She explained, No group ever sets itself up as the One without at once mount up the Other over against itself (p. 479). The thought that de Beauvoir was pointing out was that men do not view women as human being like them but as Others who are to be treated as rum that do not deserve equal treatment. The implication of mens treatment of women as Others check to de Beauvoir was that because women are others, they do not need to be given equal weight to their preferences simply because they are others (p. 480).Debeauvoirs writings shaped the second wave of feminism through her unique way of providing social understanding about how women were regarded by men during this period. How did the events of the first and second wave affect each other? Apparently, the event of the first and the second wave of feminism affect each other in a way that they connect the second wave to the first. The second wave feminist was inspired by th e events during the first wave to tag along their path of pushing for the recognition of womens rights.Apparently, the events of the first wave feminist shaped the understanding of the second wave feminism about womens rights, against the existing social and philosophical views on women. Thus, the events of the first wave serves as mirror for the second wave, and as inspiration for them to continue womens struggle for the restoration of their lost dignity as women equal with men in many aspect, curiously on human rights. Reference More-Bruder Philosophy The Power of Ideas (2008) Feminist Philosophy The McGraw-Hill Companies