Directions: Read the passage given below carefully and answer the question that follows:
Mary Wollstonecraft was a pioneering feminist theorist and author who gained widespread recognition following the release of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman in 1792. After Wollstonecraft passed away due to complications from childbirth, her husband William Godwin authored a biographical tribute detailing her romantic involvement with Henry Fuseli and Gilbert Imlay. This exposed her private history to the public eye, triggering significant scandal and damaging her posthumous reputation. Wollstonecraft's scholarship mounted a scathing critique of female subjugation within patriarchal social structures. Her writings represent an early wave of feminist thought, examining how systemic oppression conditions women to view their own servitude as a moral obligation. A core tenets of her philosophy was the necessity of female education. In her seminal treatise, Wollstonecraft forcefully repudiated contemporary views that framed women as inherently fragile or intellectually subordinate. She argued that proper intellectual training was the essential pathway for women to contribute meaningfully to civic life, contending that denying them equal education consigned them to perpetual dependency. However, her premise that women primarily influence the social order through their maternal role in raising future citizens was later sharply contested by Marxist-feminist theorists.
Correct Answer :
Wollstonecraft posited that women impact society primarily through child-rearing, a view that Marxist-feminist theorists strongly disputed
Solution :
Correct Answer: Wollstonecraft posited that women impact society primarily through child-rearing, a view that Marxist-feminist theorists strongly disputed
Step-by-Step Explanation:
1. Analyze the Question:
The question asks to identify the main point of disagreement (contention) between Mary Wollstonecraft and Marxist-feminist theorists based strictly on the provided passage.
2. Locate Relevant Text in the Passage:
Scanning the passage for mentions of "Marxist-feminist theorists" leads to the very last sentence:
"However, her premise that women primarily influence the social order through their maternal role in raising future citizens was later sharply contested by Marxist-feminist theorists."
3. Connect Key Terms:
• Wollstonecraft's premise was that women's primary societal influence occurs through their maternal role in raising future citizens (child-rearing).
• Marxist-feminist theorists sharply contested (strongly disputed) this specific premise.
4. Evaluate the Options:
• Correct Option: "Wollstonecraft posited that women impact society primarily through child-rearing, a view that Marxist-feminist theorists strongly disputed" directly matches the statement in the text.
• Other Options: Details regarding socio-economic class struggles, legislative suffrage/voting rights, or combining political agendas are not mentioned in the passage as the specified point of contention.
Conclusion:
Thus, the core point of contention is Wollstonecraft's belief regarding child-rearing/maternal influence, which Marxist-feminist theorists disputed.
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