Last week in English, we read what I thought was a very interesting argumentation on the sexes by Margaret Cavendish. It was written in the late 1600s so it was really liberal for her time. It is an argumentation of 7 different viewpoints on the role of women (and men) in society. It opened up my eyes to the advantages and disadvantages of being either of the sexes. Here is the argumentation (I've written a short summary under each of the 7 sections):
I: Ladies, gentlewomen, and other inferior women, but not less worthy: I have been industrious to assemble you together, and wish I were so fortunate as to persuade you to make frequent assemblies, associations, and combinations amongst our sex, that we may unite in prudent counsels, to make ourselves as free, happy, and famous as men; whereas now we live and die as if we were produced from beasts, rather than from men; for men are happy, and we women are miserable; they possess all the ease, rest, pleasure, wealth, power, and fame; whereas women are restless with labour, easeless with pain, melancholy for want of pleasures, helpless for want of power, and die in oblivion, for want of fame. Nevertheless, men are so unconscionable and cruel against us that they endeavour to bar us of all sorts of liberty, and will not suffer us freely to associate amongst our own sex; but would fain bury us in their houses or beds, as in a grave. The truth is, we live like bats or owls, labour like beasts, and die like worms.
SUMMARY: Women have nothing while men have everything, especially the power to deprive us of many freedoms.
II: Ladies, gentlewomen, and other inferior women: The lady that spoke to you hath spoken wisely and eloquently, in expressing our unhappiness; but she hath not declared a remedy, or showed us a way to come out of our miseries; but, if she could or would be our guide, to lead us out of the labyrinth men have put us into, we should not only praise and admire her, but adore and worship her as our goddess: but alas! men, that are not only our tyrants but our devils, keep us in the hell of subjection, from whence I cannot perceive any redemption or getting out; we may complain and bewail our condition, yet that will not free us; we may murmur and rail against men, yet they regard not what we say. In short, our words to men are as empty sounds; our sighs, as puffs of winds; and our tears, as fruitless showers; and our power is so inconsiderable, that men laugh at our weakness.
SUMMARY: This viewpoint agrees with the first and elaborates that men do not take into account womens' opinions but ignore them as petty trials.
III: Ladies, gentlewomen, and other inferior women: The former orations were exclamations against men, repining at their condition and mourning for our own; but we have no reason to speak against men, who are our admirers and lovers; they are our protectors, defenders, and maintainers; they admire our beauties, and love our persons; they protect us from injuries, defend us from dangers, are industrious for our subsistence, and provide for our children; they swim great voyages by sea, travel long journeys by land, to get us rarities and curiosities; they dig to the center of the earth for gold for us; they dive to the bottom of the sea for jewels for us; they build to the skies houses for us; they hunt, fowl, fish, plant, and reap for food for us. All which, we could not do ourselves; and yet we complain of men, as if they were our enemies, whenas we could not possibly live without them, which shows we are as ungrateful as inconstant. But we have more reason to murmur against Nature, than against men, who hath made men more ingenious, witty, and wise than women; more strong, industrious, and laborious than women; for women are witless and strengthless, and unprofitable creatures, did they not bear children. Wherefore, let us love men, praise men, and pray for men; for without men, we should be the most miserable creatures that Nature hath made or could make.
SUMMARY: This viewpoint is the opposite of the first two: Nature has made men better than women. Women cannot live without men for men are the ones who protect and provide for women since women cannot do that themselves.
IV: Noble ladies, gentlewomen, and other inferior women: The former oratoress says we are witless and strengthless; if so, it is that we neglect the one and make no use of the other, for strength is increased by exercise, and wit is lost for want of conversation. But to show men we are not so weak and foolish as the former oratoress doth express us to be, let us hawk, hunt, race, and do the like exercises that men have; and let us converse in camps, courts, and cities; in schools, colleges, and courts of judicature; in taverns, brothels, and gaming houses; all of which will make our strength and wit known, both to men and to our own selves, for we are as ignorant of ourselves as men are of us. And how should we know ourselves, when we never made a trial of ourselves? Or how should men know us, when they never put us to the proof? Wherefore my advice is, we should imitate men; so will our bodies and minds appear more masculine, and our power will increase by our actions.
SUMMARY: Women should imitate men so that we can prove that we are just as capable as they are.
V: Noble, honorable, and virtuous women: The former oration was to persuade us to change the custom of our sex, which is a strange and unwise persuasion, since we cannot change the nature of our sex, nor make ourselves men; and to have female bodies, and yet to act masculine parts, will be very preposterous and unnatural. In truth, we shall make ourselves like the defects of Nature, and be hermaphroditical, neither perfect women, nor perfect men, but corrupt and imperfect creatures. Wherefore let me persuade you, since we cannot alter the nature of our persons, not to alter the course of our lives; but to rule so our lives and behaviours that we be acceptable and pleasing to God and men; which is, to be modest, chaste, temperate, humble, patient, and pious; also, be houswifely, cleanly, and of few words. All which will gain us praise from men and blessing from Heaven; love in this world and glory in the next.
SUMMARY: Women cannot alter their predestined states as women. Therefore, they should live as God intended them to (imitate God).
VI: Worthy women: The former oratores's oration endeavored to persuade us that it would not only be a reproach and disgrace, but unnatural, for women in their actions and behavior to imitate men: we may as well say it will be a reproach, disgrace, and unnatural to imitate the gods, which imitation we are commanded both by the gods and their ministers; and shall we neglect the imitation of men, which is more easy and natural than the imitation of the gods? For how can terrestrial creatures imitate celestial deities? Yet one terrestrial may imitate another, although in different sorts of creatures. Wherefore, sicne all terrestrial imitations ought to ascend to the better and not to descend to the worse, women ought to imitate men, as being a degree in nature more perfect than they themselves; and all masculine owmen ought to be as much praised as effeminate men to be dispraised; for the one advances to perfection, the other sinks to imperfection; that so, by our industry, we may come, at last, to equal men, both in perfection and power.
SUMMARY: If it is unnatural to imitate men, then it is more unnatural to imitate God, for He is such a higher being. But because men are also human as women are, we should imitate men so that we may be in equality one day.
VII: Noble ladies, honorable gentlewomen, and worthy female-commoners: The former oratoress's speech was to persuade us out of ourselves and to be that which Nature never intended us to be, to wit, masculine. But why should we desire to be masculine, since our own sex and confition is far the better? For if men have more courage, they have more dancer; and if men have more strength, they have more labor than women have; if men are more eloquent in speech, women are more harmonious in voice; if men be more active, women are more graceful; if men have more liberty, women have more safety; for we never fight duels not battles; nor do we go long travels or dangerous voyages; we labor not in building not digging in mines, quarries, or pits, for metal, stone, or coals; neither do we waste or shorten out lives with university ir scholastical studies, qusetions, and disputes; we burn not our faces with smiths' forges or chemists' furnaces; and hundreds of other actions which men are emplyed in; for they would not only fade the frsh beauty, spoil the lovely features, and decay the youth of women, causing them to appear old, when they are young; but would break their small limbs, and destroy thri tender lives. Wherefor woemn have no reason to complain against Nature or the god of Nature, for although the gifts are not the same as they have given men, yet those gifts they have given to women are much betterl for we women are much more favored by nature than men, in giving us such beauties, features, shapes, graceful demeanor, ad such insinuating and enticing attractiveness, that men are forced to admire us, love us, and be desirous of us; insomuch that rather than not have and enjoy us, they will deliver to our disposals their power, persons, and lives, enslaving themselves to our will and pleasures, also, we are their saints, whom they adore and worship; and what can we desire more than to be men's tyrants, destinies, and goddesses?
SUMMARY: God never intended for us to be like men because each of the sexes has what the other sex has not. Women and men each have different gifts so we have no right to complain. Women are made better than men for we have the beauty that attracts men to us. That attraction forces men to do anything and everything for us.
MY VIEWPOINT: Now, I do strongly believe that we are equally capable as men in many areas so we shouldn't be entirely dependant on guys to be happy. I also believe that essentially, we're pretty spoiled. We want "equality," but that only applies when that equality benefits us. I mean, every girl still wants to be treated like a princess or be pampered to SOME degree. If we have TOTAL equality with guys, Daddy wouldn't give you anything you wanted if you cried and your boyfriend wouldn't buy you nice gifts (These are merely examples, of course). We want equality in the sense so we could do things like being able to climb the corporate ladder without the glass ceiling. Until women get that "beneficial equality," we won't be satisfied.
NOW IT'S YOUR TURN TO COMMENT...WHICH VIEWPOINT DO YOU AGREE WITH MOST?
Well, I know there are still ads on this page but I'm gonna work so that they'll be completely gone in a couple of days. I also added to the 'ME' section of the content by adding a section called THE ROOM! since this layout features some pictures of my room.
Anyway, I haven't gotten ANY homework or studying done yet so I'm gonna try and do that now...AGH!
HELENMEL0N posted at 06:04 p.m.. [ ]
