Mary Wollstonecraft

Pioneering feminist philosopher and author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman

The English writer and philosopher Mary Wollstonecraft is most famous for championing women's rights.^[1]

Quick Facts

Born: 27 April 1759
Birthplace: Spitalfields, London, England
Died: 10 September 1797
Place of death: Somers Town, London, England
Notable work: A Vindication of the Rights of Woman
Spouse: William Godwin (1797)
Partner: Henry Fuseli, Gilbert Imlay
Children: Frances "Fanny" Imlay, Mary Shelley

Life and work

Her father squandered the family income on speculative projects, causing financial instability.^[2][3] As a teenager, she protected her mother from her father's violent drunken rages.^[4] In 1784, she persuaded her sister Eliza to leave her husband and infant, demonstrating her willingness to challenge social norms.^[5] She traveled to France in December 1792 and became involved with the American adventurer Gilbert Imlay.^[6][7]

She gave birth to her first daughter, Fanny, in 1794.^[8] After Imlay rejected her, she attempted suicide twice.^[9][10][11] She later married the philosopher William Godwin in 1797 and died of septicaemia after giving birth to her second daughter, Mary.^[12][13]

What the cited sources add

A BBC Teach account notes that Wollstonecraft's older brother received an extensive formal education while she spent only a few years in a day school.^[14] The same source states that by age 25, Wollstonecraft had opened a small girls' school with her sisters and friend Fanny Blood.^[14] The BBC Teach account also reports that the radical publisher Joseph Johnson published her first book, Thoughts on the Education of Daughters.^[14] A blue plaque was unveiled in her honour by her biographer Claire Tomalin.^[15]

References

Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Mary Wollstonecraft", Oxford University Press; "Mary Wollstonecraft: 'Britain's first feminist'", BBC Teach; "Mary Wollstonecraft", The British Library (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Franklin, xiv.; Rossi, 25. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Tomalin, 9, 17, 24, 27; Sunstein, 11. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Todd, 11; Tomalin, 19; Wardle, 6; Sunstein, 16. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Todd, 45–57; Tomalin, 34–43; Wardle, 27–30; Sunstein, 80–91. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Furniss 64. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Furniss 67. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Tomalin, 218; Wardle, 202–203; Sunstein, 256–257.; Quoted in Wardle, 202. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Todd, 286–287; Wardle, 225. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Tomalin, 225–231; Wardle, 226–244; Sunstein, 277–290. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Todd, 355–356; Tomalin, 232–236; Wardle, 245–246. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: St. Clair, 172–174; Tomalin, 271–273; Sunstein, 330–335. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Wikipedia, "Mary Wollstonecraft" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gordon, 356.; Todd, 450–456; Tomalin, 275–283; Wardle, 302–306; Sunstein, 342–347. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
"Mary Wollstonecraft: 'Britain's first feminist'", BBC Teach. facts only, no text reused. bbc.co.uk
"Mary Wollstonecraft blue plaque unveiled", London SE1. facts only, no text reused. london-se1.co.uk

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Mary Wollstonecraft (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.