William Tyler
The Rise of “the New Woman”
Summary
The eighteenth century saw the rise of a new professional and entrepreneurial middle class. Women began to make their voices heard in fields ranging from politics to religion via intellectual thought such as the publication of Mary Wollstonecraft’s ‘Vindication of The Rights of Woman’.
Education for middle class women improved greatly as did the opportunity for employment, with women entering the medical profession in various roles. Yet these advances did not mean that women reached equality with men, and the Victorian husband and father remained ‘pater familias’. However, change was happening and not be reversed.
William Tyler
William Tyler has spent his entire professional life in adult education, beginning at Kingsgate College in 1969. He has lectured widely for many public bodies, including the University of Cambridge and the WEA, in addition to speaking to many clubs and societies. In 2009, William was awarded the MBE for services to adult education, and he has previously been a scholar in residence at the London Jewish Cultural Centre.
No, we’re never a queendom, David. It’s always a kingdom. A kingdom with a queen, but not a reigning queen, but a sovereign queen, never a queendom. But she wasn’t very bright, to be honest, David. And she never took on board the role of, the position of other women in society. It was not something that crossed her mind.
Absolutely.