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The worth of women : wherein is clearly revealed their nobility and their superiority to men

Gender equality and the responsibilty of husbands and fathers had currency in Renaissance Venice as evidenced by the publication of this title in 1600. Moderata Fonte was the pseudonym of Modesta Pozzo (1555-92), a Venetian woman who produced literature in genres that were commonly considered "masculine" - the chivalric romance and the literary dialogue. This work takes the form of the latter, with Fonte creating a converation among seven Venetain noblewomen. The dialogue explores nearly every aspect of women's experience in both theoretical and practical terms. These women, who differ in age and experience, take as their broad theme men's curious hostility towards women and the possible cures for it. Fonte seeks to elevate women's status to that of men, arguing that women have the same innate abilities as men and, when singularly educated, prove their equals.

The worth of women : wherein is clearly revealed their nobility and their superiority to men

"Written in dialogue form, the work purportedly records a conversation among seven Venetian noblewomen of widely varying age and experience, whose discussions, though lossely unified around the theme of men's unjustifiable hostility to women and possible cures for it, range over almost every aspects of their lives."--Introduction, p.1Gender equality and the responsibilty of husbands and fathers had currency in Renaissance Venice as evidenced by the publication of this title in 1600. Moderata Fonte was the pseudonym of Modesta Pozzo (1555-92), a Venetian woman who produced literature in genres that were commonly considered "masculine" - the chivalric romance and the literary dialogue. This work takes the form of the latter, with Fonte creating a converation among seven Venetain noblewomen. The dialogue explores nearly every aspect of women's experience in both theoretical and practical terms. These women, who differ in age and experience, take as their broad theme men's curious hostility towards women and the possible cures for it. Fonte seeks to elevate women's status to that of men, arguing that women have the same innate abilities as men and, when singularly educated, prove their equals.

Online EBSCO Academic Comprehensive Collection

The merits of women : wherein is revealed their nobility and their superiority to men

You would as well look for blood in a corpse as for the least shred of decency in a man . . . Without help from their wives, men are just like unlit lamps . . . Just think of them as an unreliable clock that tells you it's ten o'clock when it's in fact barely two . . . A man without a woman is like a fly without a head . . . These are but a small selection of the quips bandied about at this lively gathering of women. The broad topic at hand is the relative pros and cons of men, and the cases in point range from pick-up artists to locker-room talk, and from double standards to fragile masculinity. Yet this dialogue unfolds not among ironically misandrist millenials venting at their local dive bar, but rather among sixteenth-century women--variously married, widowed, single, and betrothed--attending a respectable Venice garden party. Written in the early 1590s by Moderata Fonte, pseudonym of the Renaissance poet and writer Modesta Pozzo, this literary dialogue interrogates men and men's treatment of women, and explores by contrast the virtues of singledom and female friendship. As the women diverge from their theme--discussing everything from astrology to the curative powers of plants and minerals--a remarkable group portrait of wisdom, wit, and erudition emerges. A new introduction by translator Virginia Cox and foreword by Dacia Maraini situate The Merits of Women in its historical context, written as it was on the cusp of Shakespeare's heyday, and straddling the centuries between the feminist works of Christine de Pizan and Mary Wollstonecraft. Elegantly presented for a general audience, this is a must-read for baby feminists and "nasty women" alike, not to mention the perfect subtle gift for any mansplaining friend who needs a refresher on the merits of women . . . and their superiority to men.

Online DeGruyter