Mary Wollstonecraft’s pamphlet A Vindication of the Rights of Woman hasreceived a vast amount of recognition since its publication in 1792. My thesis surveyshow three novels – Wollstonecraft’s The Wrongs of Woman; or Maria, Amelia AldersonOpie’s Adeline Mowbray; or the Mother and the Daughter, and Helen Craik’s Stella ofthe North; or, the Foundling of the Ship – align with Wollstonecraft’s political argumentsin Vindication. I survey how each text, in its own unique way, negotiatesWollstonecraft’s philosophy, and I argue that each novel both asserts the need for a moreformal education for women and advocates for the improvement of women’s position insociety. I suggest that through their works of fiction all three women authors may be seento speak to their female audiences, encouraging them to challenge current educationalpractices and to work together for change to occur. I contend that these novels did notjust serve as tales of either struggling or flourishing women; instead, these texts had thepotential to transform readers’ minds by providing examples of both struggling andstrong women as a means to effect social change. Furthermore, I argue that all three textsestablish the need for a sense of community, or unity, amongst women. In such a societywomen might embrace their education and support one another rather than engage indistracting rivalries with one another that deter their intellectual advancement.Throughout, I maintain that the groundbreaking philosophy Wollstonecraft articulates inA Vindication of the Rights of Woman lives on through fictional stories that were alldesigned to revolutionize the social hierarchy of society and to ensure a better life forwomen overall.
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