English poetry -- 19th century; Women -- History; Women -- Social conditions; Women -- Suffrage
If M. Letourneau will apply his strictures as to senility and decay to
so-called “Society” and its system, rather than to the individual, he
will find many thinkers, both of his own and other nationalities, agree
with his conclusion. Yet not death, but reform, is the righter event to
indicate. And by what means that reform may be ensured is, at least in
part, clearly set forth in the following passage from a paper recently
published by the Women’s Printing Society:—
“My positive belief is that women, and women alone, will be able to
reverse the world’s verdict, but they must change their method of
reform in two important matters.
“First and foremost, every mother must teach her daughters the truth,
the whole truth, and nothing but the truth about the relations of the
sexes, the condition of social opinion, the historical, physiological,
ethical aspects of the question. She must train herself so as to be
able to teach the young minds these solemn, serious aspects of life,
in such a way that the world may learn that the innocence of ignorance
is inferior to the purity of right-minded, fearless knowledge. She
must strengthen the minds and form the judgment of her daughters, so
that they may demand reciprocal purity in those whom they would
espouse.
“I fully understand the difficulty of teaching our pure-minded,
delicately-nurtured daughters the terrible lessons of this seamy side
of life. I am a mother of daughters myself, and I know the cost at
which the courage has to be obtained, but in this matter each mother
must help another. What a mighty force is influence! What help is
conveyed by pressure of opinion! How often do I remember with
gratitude the words which I once read as quoted of Mrs. John Stuart
Mill, who taught her little daughter to have the courage to hear what
other little girls had to bear. How gladly I acknowledge the stimulus
of that example to myself, and therefore I would urge all women to
SPEAK OUT. Do not be afraid. You will not lose your womanliness. You
will not lose your purity. You will not have your sensibilities
blunted by such rough use. No, “To the pure all things are pure.” We
must reach the mass through the unit, it is the individual who helps
to move the world.
“We must teach and train the mind of every woman with whom we come in
contact, for we have mighty work to do. A no less deed than to reverse
the judgment of the whole world on the subject of purity. I do not
believe it is possible for men to accomplish any radical reform in
this matter. It belongs to women—I was going to say exclusively—but I
will modify my assertion; and if women do not speak out more
courageously in the future than they have done in the past, I believe
there is but slight chance of any further amelioration in the
condition of society than those which are such an inadequate return at
the present time, for all the love and money expended on them.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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