The nineteenth century was a vital time in terms of the turn of women's rights. It was becoming more common not only for women to wish to leave the home and fill a position in the workplace, but for it to actually happen. Women such as Margaret Fuller began to assume atypical roles of women in the period, making independence highly favored among the female population. Margaret Fuller displayed influence and inspiration of new age ideas... such as an appreciation for self reliance and self dependence. She demonstrates the effects of this sweeping movement in one of her most well known works: Woman in the Nineteenth Century. This piece explores the results of new age thinking on women of the nineteenth century in terms of their pursuits of the American Dream as well as the struggles and biases that they encountered.
The concept of equality between men and women in the household is explored by Fuller. Whereas men were initially held to a higher standard and more esteemed regard, Fuller seeks to equalize the standard. She even claims that women are considered to be a greater equal to children than they are to other adult men. In hopes of exploiting the effects of unequal household roles, Fuller claims "You are not the head of your wife... God has given her a head of her own" (Fuller, 729). Here, she claims that God's will for the life of a woman is not necessarily the same as God's will for the woman's husband.
"A house is no home unless it contains food and fire for the mind as well as for the body. The female Greek, of our day, is as much in the street as the male to cry" (Fuller, 732). Is Fuller suggesting that (had it not been for the role of women) society would have been atrophied in some way because there was no woman to nurture it? Fuller is firm in her belief that women should be willing to pursue a lifestyle of dependence because no one of any gender even obtains hope for pursuits of the American Dream if there is no good woman behind those pursuits.
This link gives the audience insight into biographical information about Margaret Fuller and presents other works of hers to emphasize her purpose as an author.:
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