The end of the 18th century was a busy period for writers and thinkers. Affected by the French Revolution, these people regularly published their opinions for public review and comment. The entire literary community was abuzz, publishing articles and responses to articles seemingly overnight. Edmund Burke, author of “Reflections on the Revolution in France” (1790), criticized English sympathizers of the Revolution. To which Mary Wollstonecraft published a response, "A Vindication of the Rights of Men", disputing Burke's position and accusing him of forgetting to take the lower class into account. His essay sparked a flood of responses, including Thomas Paine's “The Rights of Man,” published in 1791-92. Within six weeks, Wollstonecraft responded with "A Vindication of Women's Rights", an essay defending women because of their disadvantaged nature. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay In this essay, Mary Wollstonecraft shares her views on the roles of men and women and how they are shaped by nature, society, and nurture. She frequently says that if women were given the opportunity to educate themselves, they could find themselves on an equal footing with men. She also says that the goal of this education is total independence. Therefore, since fully educated women should be equal to men and independent, then fully educated men should already embody their “ideal person”. Through a careful reading of her text, particularly her perception of gender roles and her aspects of an "ideal person", one can conclude that Mary Wollstonecraft's model for her "ideal person" is based on men . men and women for their inferior position in life. She begins by saying that man has a natural advantage because, simply by virtue of his physiological constitution, he is superior. However, just because men can lift bigger rocks doesn't mean it forces women into the doldrums they find themselves in. Wollstonecraft says that it is a great misfortune that manners are learned before morality because women learn their social roles before they have wit enough to challenge them. She goes on to argue that men place women and children in the same category, as innocent but stupid creatures of no practical value. With the current structure of education, women were educated at home, thus learning to become heads of households. Wollstonecraft believes that men can only respect a woman as one would a faithful servant, which is unacceptable. Another disservice to women is their lack of opportunities to exercise their minds. “Women's minds are weakened by false refinement,” Wollstonecraft says, adding that the same problem afflicts members of the upper classes of society. Education is wasted on women and the rich because they are never forced to put into practice what they learn. Women seem useless because they are not equipped with the tools to develop themselves and become something of value to society; their world does not extend beyond the walls of their home. However, Wollstonecraft firmly believes that women and men are equally capable; we simply need to give women an opportunity. We can see how society has paralyzed women's vision of themselves and their potential. Wollstonecraft is quick to address the shortcomings of the educational and societal system as it relates to women; therefore,.