Work · Empiricism, Enlightenment & Liberalism
The Subjection of Women
For complete legal equality between the sexes.
Introduction
Mill wrote the essay in 1861 but held it back until 1869, when women’s rights had become a live political issue; two years earlier he had moved in the House of Commons to extend the vote to women. In four chapters he argues that the subordination of women rests on custom and feeling rather than reason, and that what is called the nature of women is largely an artificial product of upbringing and circumstance. His main targets are marriage law, which left a wife legally dependent on her husband, and the exclusion of women from the professions and public office. Translations into several languages followed quickly, and the book is regarded as a classic of liberal feminism.
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More works by John Stuart Mill
- 1859On Liberty
- 1863Utilitarianism
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