Fullers Woman in the 19th Century

A detailed Summary of Fullers Woman in the 19th Century

In her essay Woman in the Nineteenth Century, Margaret Fuller discusses the state of marriage in America during the 1800's. She is a victim of her own knowledge, and is literally considered ugly because of her wisdom. She feels that if certain stereotypes can be broken down, women can have the respect of men intellectually, physically, and emotionally. She explains why some of the inequalities exist in marriages around her. Fuller feels that once women are accepted as equals, men and women will be able achieve a true love not yet know to the people of the world.

Fuller personifies what is wrong with the thoughts of people in nineteenth century society. She is a well-educated, attractive woman and yet, in America she is considered unmarriageable because of the unintended intimidation her knowledge brings forth. She can't understand why men would not want to find a woman with whom they can carry on an intelligent, meaningful conversation and still be physically attracted to. She knows that once this inferiority complex is gotten past, women will start to excel in all different fields. My interpretation is that Fuller feels if women are educated and skilled then they will be able to take care of themselves until the r

In the end of this example says Fuller, the woman will look at the man as "an effeminate boy", and he will see her as "an unlovely syren"(42). In the long run, she will not respect him as a man, because she considers him a "pretty boy", and he will not respect her for using her looks to dupe him into marrying her. They will resent each other for the rest of their lives. They will live out their days saying "I should have done this" or "I should have done that". Fuller would rather never marry than end up in a relationship like this.

When she states "this relation is good, as far as it goes"(42), Fuller implies that women are settling for the sake of settling. In the nineteenth century there was a stigma attached to any woman in her twenties who was not yet married. Fuller questions why two people would settle for each other when there are so many people with different things to offer each other. I think that marriage is sacred to her, not in a religious sense, but in a moral and intellectual sense. She feels that people who are to be wed should be able to look at each other and state "this is the person I will share the rest of my life with", and with that, they should be perfectly happy. When she looks around America that is not what she sees.

The third example of the breakdown of equality is in the relationship of "intellectual companionship"(42). Fuller explains that this is a rising trend amongst the scholars of this era. Men are marrying women who are their intellectual equals and with whom they are friends. They see eye to eye on a wide array of topics, and the stereotype of the woman in the home only being good for cooking and cleaning are being broken down. These men are cognizant of the strides women are making intellectually and a

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Approximate Word count = 1195
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English