A Woman of the Future
Margaret Cavendish was born Margaret Lucas in 1623, while the English Civil War was fuming. She was educated in all things women of her age were expected to know such as singing, dancing, playing instruments, etc. (Jokinen 1). Margaret was a Royalist during the war and was the maid of honor for Queen Henrietta Maria. While serving the Queen, Margaret met William Cavendish and married him (Sunshine 1). With a respectable marriage and financial stability Margaret was able to fight for the rights of women. Throughout Margaret's life she wrote; she wrote poetry, essays, letters, orations and much more. Many of her writings were criticized by her male contemporaries, but she continued to write in spite of their jeering. Margaret is one of the first known feminists because of her writing style and works, her perception of
Her style and works paved the road for up and coming feminists. She defended the fairer sex in all areas of her accomplishments including her published works. She stood by her beliefs in the midst of constant adversity. Although, she was constantly criticized by her male contemporaries she still defended her sex. Margaret Cavendish was born way before her time. She affirmed that they both had souls and are both human. Most of her ideas and theories were confusing and novel to the people of her time because she had no one who shared her opinions (Sunshine 1). She believed the men of science were wasting too much time with gadgets and not enough time trying to benefit society. She pondered the idea of the size of an atom (Jokinen 2). Margaret also believed that science and great minds were being wasted on superficial art, for instance optical glasses. Many of her works were written in a fashion that would be considered sarcastic. She stated facts in her writing displaying the equality of the sexes. Margaret saw men as equal to women, even though men thought the contrary. She set a precedent by writing a play titled The Convent of Pleasure; it was about a lesbian relationship, a subject totally unheard of in England during the seventeenth century.
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Acceptance Essays
