Laws Concerning Women

I think it is evident that women have suffered from over-legalization and have been treated as property. Even if the laws did not address women specifically they still fell under the restraints and control of the law. A single woman had to pay the same taxes and could own the same property as a man, but did not have the right to vote. There is a list of rules for what a woman could and could not do under marriage. Her person and everything she owned belonged to her husband, even her earnings during marriage. She no longer had control over her life and the things in it. I think that this definitely gives us a greater understanding of how a woman must have felt during a marriage, in particular, an unhappy one. She could burn down her husband’s house and still be under the control of her husband with no legal consequences. There was little to no escape. As a woman, you are trapped in a box of how you should be and your value according to society.

The idea that a wife is the property of her husband is really expressed a lot within the writing. The married couple is “one person”, yet one owns the other and one has little freedom. To me these ideas are conflicting. What does this mean?

She clearly is opposed to this “protection” and security that a man has in the marriage. I think it would be interesting to explore how other women felt within a marriage. And how pressured a man may have felt about his role within a marriage.

In-class questions to remember:

  • What positions and power could women hold?
  • Influence-social status
  • How much of a necessity is marriage?
  • Protection- what does it imply about the protector and the person in need of protection?