Woman's Place To-day

I loved this 19th century takedown of a patriarchal Christian minister in four glorious parts.

Equality is not equity. Men don't get to exploitatively reap the benefits of their "helpmeets" without loudly hearing about it, not even then. In a time when women had already served in the Civil War as nurses and spies, they were still fighting for the vote. Women still couldn't hold property, will property to others, recieve military pensions, or be paid equal wages (still a problem!). Divorced and widowed women could easily become destitute.

Until reading these lectures, I had no idea women could be a leading part of the Christian church in equal partnership with men, be deacons, highly regarded pattonesses and the like until the Middle Ages, when men pulled rank and stripped away such niceties.

Devereux also comes with receipts; Bible versus (women were an actual improvement on men, could hold property, sow their own gotdang fields, and reap the benefits), quotes from university professors (female students were just as attentive and sharp as male students), court cases (divorce should be granted as easily as men, especially in the face of abuse), prison stories (matrons clearly prevent SA and other abuses while better managing more female prison populations than men manage male prison populations), and public works (keeping cities clean and well-managed) to name a few.

She also quotes the minister, Dr. Morgan Dix, and methodically dissects his arguments for women to stay home basically barefoot and pregnant subservient to their husband's.

Decades before Friedan's The Feminine Mistque, Devereux delivers arguments that won't see resolution for decades more. Sometimes she gets too enraptured with metaphors--I could've done without women being compared to cows being led to slaughter. She also totes the traditional gender roles of the day.

Overall, these lecture are an empowering read for any proponent of equality and equity for all.