CRITICISM OF SOCIAL GENDER STEREOTYPES IN MARY WOLLSTONECRAFT'S A VINDICATION OF THE RIGHTS OF WOMAN

Lê Thị Vinh, Phan Thành Nhâm

Tóm tắt

Abstract: Mary Wollstonecraft (1759 - 1797) was a pioneering philosopher and women's rights activist of the 18th century. In her work A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792), Wollstonecraft not only criticized the contemporary educational system and society for confining women to limited roles, but also highlighted the injustice of how society discriminates based on gender, viewing women as mere “decorations” in men's lives. Her criticisms of these social stereotypes about women had a profound impact on gender equality movements and laid the foundation for modern feminist movements and reforms in women's education. This article focuses on analyzing how Wollstonecraft strongly criticized social stereotypes about women, particularly how these stereotypes shaped perceptions of women's character and how women were educated.

Keywords: Mary Wollstonecraft, gender, women.