“…true poetry expresses the passionate, solitary meditations of the author; it is not so much heard as “overheard”. (page 514). This was a point made in John Stuart Mill’s What is Poetry?. I truly feel that his writings expressed his thoughts and views from a personal stand point instead of that of others. Mill’s writings made you think about the society as a whole. He made you think about what is truly right and wrong. He pointed out things he thought needed improvement whether you hated his idea or not.
I really enjoyed reading “The Subjection of Women”. He made some valid points that in today’s society we are still wrestling with. One point that caught my eye was the fact that he went to jail for distributing information on birth control at the age of seventeen! Let me just say that I have three beautiful children and I do not desire to have another one at the current moment. Birth control is working for me! The problem today is not retrieving the information but getting young females to take advantage of the information. Another point he made was on page 522, “It arose simply from the fact that from the very earliest twilight of human society, every woman…was found in a state of bondage to some man.” In the 1800s, it was “natural” for women to do the housework and the men go to work. It was natural for them to have dinner ready and cook and clean before their husbands came home. Well in this time period, that is not the case. We may still do housework but we are also known to work too. So my future husband to be might as well get ready to have McDonald’s and Wendy’s a couple of nights for dinner! I feel that Mill’s strongest point was “equality”. He was a strong believer that men and women should be treated evenly among all things. He also used “equality” in reference to the masters and their slaves. I loved the way he took and intertwined slaves to masters and women to men to illustrate the “unnatural”. For a woman to vote and work outside the house was unnatural to the society. For a slave to be free and work on the same level as a master was unnatural. Mill’s made his readers think and he probably ticked off a few people as well.
To show his strong support of equality he wrote, “Statement Repudiating the Rights of Husbands”. I thought this was neat. “And in the event of marriage between Mrs. Taylor and me I declare it to be my will and intention …that she retains in all respects whatever the same absolute freedom of action, and freedom of disposal of herself…” It was as if he were bowing down to his future wife to be to assure her that she was just as equal as he was.
I really enjoyed John Stuart Mill’s boldness to stand up to society to inform them that man and woman and masters and slaves are all equal. I loved the way he made them realize that the unnatural needed to take place.
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4 comments:
I totally agree with your statement that Mill's arguments are aimed to force the reader to look at, and examine what is morally right. By removing the element of emotion, Mill forces the use of logic in the examination of issues.
In my sociology class, I have read that one view (functionalist view) of how the traditional roles of men and women developed (woman as homemaker, man as breadwinner) was based on the need for efficiency and division of labor rather than the view held by conflict theorists that is was used to subjegate women. Of course that is only one view, but interesting none the less.
Enjoyed your writing!
Mignon,
Very good discussion of Mill's writings on women. I like the way you both pay attention to the text and connect it to your own observations and life experiences.
Mignon,
You are so funny about the birth control. Congrats on having three children and going to school better you than me (lol). I also enjoyed Mill's and the fact that he stood up for society. Great Job.
I agree with you about the reading, "The Subjection of Women." I also enjoyed it. I could definitely see some of the very same issues still present in our society today. I also agree that, now days, it is not the woman's place to do the houshold duties. As a woman, I would expect the man to do half the work. I was glad to see these points brought up.
Well in this time period, that is not the case.
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