Mary Wollstonecraft Quotes

On wanting equal footing in a relationship not control over it:

I do not wish them to have power over men, but over themselves.

On choosing fair treatment over charity when helping someone:

It is justice, not charity, that is wanting in the world.

On raising a daughter to value her mind over her appearance:

Taught from infancy that beauty is woman's sceptre, the mind shapes itself to the body, and roaming round its gilt cage, only seeks to adorn its prison.

On respecting a partner's judgment without deferring to their authority:

I love man as my fellow, but his scepter, real, or usurped, extends not to me, unless the reason of an individual demands my homage, and even then the submission is to reason, and not to man.

On mentoring a junior colleague to think independently, not just follow instructions:

Strengthen the female mind by enlarging it, and there will be an end to blind obedience.

On becoming a better partner by becoming a fuller person first:

Make women rational creatures and free citizens, and they will quickly become good wives and mothers.

On why a relationship with a power imbalance struggles to stay honest:

Virtue can only flourish among equals.

On valuing an old friendship over a newer romance:

Friendship is a serious affection, the most sublime of all affections, because it is founded on principle, and cemented by time.

On extending equal responsibility alongside equal opportunity:

Let woman share the rights, and she will emulate the virtues of man.

On deciding whether to speak up about an unfair system at work:

There must be more equality established in society, or morality will never gain ground.