An Essay in Defence of the Female Sex
AN
E S S A Y
In Defence of the
FEMALE SEX.
In which are inTemplate:Lserted the
CHARACTERS
OF
| A Pedant, | A VertuoTemplate:Lso, | ||
| A Squire, | A PoetaTemplate:Lster, | ||
| A Beau, | A City-Critick, &c. |
Template:Rule
In a Letter to a Lady.
Template:Rule
Written by a Lady.
Template:Rule
The Third Edition with Additions.
Template:Rule
Template:C/e
Since each is fond of his own ugly Face;
Why Template:Lshou’d you when we hold it break the GlaTemplate:Lss?
- Prol. to Sir F. Flutter
LONDON,Template:C/e Printed for A. Roper at the Black Boy, and R. Clavel at the Peacock, both in FleetTemplate:Lstreet, 1697.
- DEDICATION.
- PREFACE.
- [[/Letter 1|To the MoTemplate:Lst Ingenious Mrs. — Template:SIC her admirable Defence of Her Sex.]]
- [[/Letter 2|To Madam — on the OccaTemplate:Lsion of her ETemplate:LsTemplate:Lsay, in Defence of her Sex.]]
- The Lady’s Answer.
- Section 1
- “The QueTemplate:Lstion I Template:Lshall at preTemplate:Lsent handle is, whether the time an ingenious Gentleman Template:Lspends in the Company of Women, may juTemplate:Lstly be Template:Lsaid to be miTemplate:Lsemploy’d, or not.”
- “Our Company is generally by our AdverTemplate:Lsaries repreTemplate:Lsented as unprofitable and irkTemplate:Lsome to Men of SenTemplate:Lse, and by Template:Lsome of the more vehement Sticklers againTemplate:Lst us, as Criminal.”
- “It remains then for us to enquire, whether the Bounty of Nature be wholly neglected, or Template:Lstifled by us, or Template:Lso far as to make us unworthy the Company of Men? Or whether our Education (as bad as it is) be not Template:Lsufficient to make us a uTemplate:Lseful, nay, a neceTemplate:LsTemplate:Lsary part of Society for the greateTemplate:Lst part of Mankind.”
- “Let us look into the manner of our Education, and Template:Lsee wherein it falls Template:Lshort of the Mens, and how the defects of it may be, and are generally Template:Lsupply’d.”
- “To begin with Vanity, it is a Failing the greateTemplate:Lst Part of Mankind are tinctured with, more or leTemplate:Lss.”
- “Impertinence is a humour of buTemplate:Lsying our Template:Lselves about things trivial, and of no Moment in themTemplate:Lselves, or unTemplate:LseaTemplate:Lsonably in things of no concern to us, or wherein we are able to do nothing to any PurpoTemplate:Lse.”
- “AmongTemplate:Lst the reTemplate:Lst DiTemplate:LsTemplate:Lsimulation is none of the least BlemiTemplate:Lshes, which they endeavour to fix upon us.”
- “Envy is the Parent of Calumny, and the Daughter of JealouTemplate:Lsie.”
- “We Template:Lstand yet charg’d with Levity, and InconTemplate:Lstancy, two Failings Template:Lso nearly related, and Template:Lso generally United, that it is hard to treat of ’em apart; we will therefore conTemplate:Lsider ’em briefly together.”
- “TheTemplate:Lse are the moTemplate:Lst conTemplate:Lsiderable Imperfections, or at leaTemplate:Lst thoTemplate:Lse, which with moTemplate:Lst Colour of ReaTemplate:Lson are charg’d upon us, as general Defects; and I hope, Madam, I have fairly Template:Lshown, that the other Sex are both by IntereTemplate:Lst and Inclination more expos’d, and more Subject to ’em than we, Pride, LuTemplate:Lst, Cruelty, and many more, are by the Declaimers againTemplate:Lst us thrown into the Scale to make weight and bear us down, but with Template:Lsuch manifeTemplate:Lst InjuTemplate:Lstice, that without giving my Template:Lself any further trouble, I dare appeal to any reaTemplate:Lsonable Man, and leave him to decide the Difference.”
Sources
[Drake, Judith]. An Essay in Defence of the Female Sex. In Which Are Inserted the Characters of a Pedant, a Squire, a Beau, a Vertuoso, a Poetaster, a City-Critick, &c. In a Letter to a Lady. Written by a Lady. 1st edition. London: A. Roper, E. Wilkinson and R. Clavel, 1696. Facsimile in Internet Archive. Accessed 17 June 2009.
——. 3rd edition. London: A. Roper and R. Clavel, 1697. Facsimile in St Clair, William and Irmgard Maassen, eds. Conduct Literature for Women 1640–1710, Volume 5. London: Pickering & Chatto, 2002. pp. 4–188. Template:PD-old