First published in 1792, A Vindication of the Rights of Woman tackles many of the punitive patriarchal attitudes that dominated eighteenth-century society. With warmth and passion, Mary Wollstonecraft urges women to prioritize reason over emotion—a necessary step in building the strength of character required to break free from male notions of female fragility and foolishness. Wollstonecraft bases much of her argument in the case for women’s education. Without it, women are merely men’s “slaves” and “playthings”—not the intelligent, rational companions of a just and equal society. As stirring as when it debuted, Wollstonecraft’s signature work remains an essential text in the feminist literary canon.