79 pages 2 hours read

Mary Wollstonecraft

A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: with Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects

Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 1792

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During Reading

Reading Questions & Paired Texts

Reading Check and Short Answer Questions on key points are designed for guided reading assignments, in-class review, formative assessment, quizzes, and more.

DEDICATION-INTRODUCTION

Reading Check

1. What topic did Talleyrand-Périgord write about?

2. In what way does Wollstonecraft see men as superior to women?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. How does the subjugation of women impact men, according to Wollstonecraft?

2. What analogy does Wollstonecraft draw between women and flowers?

CHAPTERS 1-3

Reading Check

1. Whose “return to nature” philosophy does Wollstonecraft reject?

2. What does Wollstonecraft believe can be used to free women from their habit of “blind obedience”?

3. What does Wollstonecraft see as the primary aim of women’s education as it is commonly practiced in her day?

Short Answer

Answer each question in at least 1 complete sentence. Incorporate details from the text to support your response.

1. What does Wollstonecraft see as the root cause of human degradation?

2. What does Wollstonecraft identify as the primary way that men maintain their “tyranny” over women?

3. What weakness does Wollstonecraft identify in the argument that women should exist in a state of childlike innocence so that men can more easily lead them?

4. What primary cause does Wollstonecraft point to for the supposed physical frailty of women?