The Great Lawsuit

“As men become aware that all men have not had a fair chance, they are inclined to say that no women have had a fair chance.”

Fuller believes that it is an ideal time for women to fight for equal rights. There is growing awareness that the playing field is not level for all members of American society. This is becoming clearer as people see how a lack of freedom—especially for slaves—can determine the course of one’s entire life. She believes that by comparing women’s lot to that of other oppressed people, especially slaves, the tide is more likely to turn.

“It is inevitable that an external freedom, such as has been achieved for the nation should be so also for every member of it. That, which has once been clearly conceived in the intelligence, must be acted out.”

It is not enough to simply believe in the notion of freedom, or to believe that freedom for many is adequate, Fuller says. If one truly believes in freedom, this belief must be put into action. This includes supporting reforms such as women’s suffrage and the abolition of slavery. Such actions are not only just but can help a person make progress on his or her journey to enlightenment.

“But if woman be, indeed, the weaker party, she ought to have legal protection, which would make such oppression impossible.”

Fuller does not believe that women are weaker than men in all respects, but she does believe they are weaker in the eyes of the law because they don’t have the same rights as men. She explains how unscrupulous men can easily live off his wife’s financial contributions to the household and inherit everything if she dies, while she will inherit only a portion of what is his if he passes away. Likewise, a woman whose husband deserts can only make a claim to a part of their estate, while the man can claim the entire thing. Fuller believes the law ought to protect women from such circumstances. Not only do these unequal rights reek of unfairness and the notion that women are dim and childlike, but they make sure a woman must suffer from low status if her husband isn’t present, even if this situation has nothing to do with her.

“There is but one law for all souls, and, if there is to be an interpreter of it, he comes not as man, or son of man, but as Son of God.”

In making her case for the equality of the sexes, Fuller notes that all humans are subject to the same divine law. Humans do not get to make this law, but they must follow it. Therefore, humans are not supposed to decide which among them deserve freedom. If God has decided that all people are equal and free, then it must be so, and only a divine figure has the ability to decide how to apply this law.

“[E]arly I perceived that men never, in any extreme of despair, wished to be women. Where they admired any woman they were inclined to speak of her as above her sex.”

Fuller suspects that if men really thought women were their equals, they would sometimes want to be women. She has never sensed this to be true. She also takes offense at something she has witnessed more often than she’d like: Men calling a woman “manly” when she makes an astute observation or accomplishes something noteworthy. It’s as if men are allowing their sex to take credit for the achievement. Women as a group gain nothing, and the woman who achieved something probably isn’t gaining the status that comes with being a man.

“But not only is man vain and fond of power, but the same want of development, which thus affects him morally in the intellect, prevents his discerning the destiny of woman.”

In 19th-century American society, men tend to be spiritually stunted and blind to the types of things that would aid their quest for enlightenment, Fuller says. Vanity, selfishness, and the desire for power prevent spiritual awakening as well as sound moral decision-making. Because their perspective is compromised in so many ways, they cannot see that women, too, are destined to achieve a divine state of being.

“We will not speak of the enthusiasm excited by actresses, improvisatrici, female singers, for here mingles the charm of beauty and grace, but female authors, even learned women […] are sure of an admiring audience, if they can once get a platform on which to stand.”

Fuller thinks it is hard for women to get the attention they deserve in a patriarchal society. Unless a woman highlights qualities the patriarchy deems valuable in a woman—beauty and grace, for instance—others, especially men, are unlikely to take notice. Because beauty and grace are practically required of female actors and singers, they inevitably become part of the package when these women speak. For women whose accomplishments are less linked to these qualities, garnering attention is much more difficult. Fuller knows that a much broader cross-section of women needs to be heard and feels confident that they will be well received. The question is how to get people to notice them and listen to their messages.

“If there is a misfortune in woman’s lot, it is in obstacles being interposed by men, which do not mark her state, and if they express her past ignorance, do not her present needs.”

Fuller feels that men place obstacles in the way of women’s progress toward enlightenment and equal status in society. These obstacles are not a reflection on women’s worth or her needs. If anything, they are an indication of men’s selfishness and blindness to the needs and wants of women.

“A great majority of societies and individuals are still doubtful whether earthly marriage is to be a union of souls, or merely a contract of convenience and utility.”

Fuller recognizes that many people disagree about what marriage is for and what makes such a union a favorable one. She believes that a union of souls is a better type of marriage than a utilitarian contract but realizes that both exist in American society. She thinks a union of souls is preferable, especially if it’s a union rooted in spiritual growth, because it is more likely to acknowledge the needs and goals of both the husband and the wife. She also feels that this type of union is more conducive to spiritual growth, the task she values the most in life. 

“So much is said of women being better educated that they may be better companions and mothers of men!”

One argument some 19th-century thinkers make in favor of women’s education is that it makes women more useful and pleasant for men to spend time with. Fuller feels this is not only disrespectful but misses an important point about the meaning of life: like men, women are meant to transcend to a higher spiritual plane. Therefore, they should be educated because it helps them pursue enlightenment. In other words, women are spiritual beings with divine futures, not the tools or playthings of men. As such, they should receive a good education because they deserve it, not for the benefit of men.

“Women are indeed the easy victims of priestcraft, or self-delusion, but this might not be, if the intellect was developed in proportion to the other powers.”

Neglecting girls’ intellectual development puts women at risk of being tricked and led astray, Fuller says. In addition to providing high-quality formal education for girls and women, society should encourage them to develop self-reliance, self-respect, and the capacity to look inward for answers to spiritual questions and wisdom about life’s great dilemmas.

“There is no wholly masculine man, no purely feminine woman.”

In Fuller’s estimation, each person has masculine and feminine qualities. For this reason, she believes that every individual should be allowed to achieve “the fullness of being,” in which masculine and feminine qualities coexist and interact (Paragraph 129). Permitting and encouraging this might keep men and women from seeing each other as opposites, and from men treating women as inferior.

“But men do not look at both sides, and women must leave off asking them and being influenced by them, but retire within themselves, and explore the groundwork of being till they find their peculiar secret.”

In Fuller’s day and age, women are discouraged from thinking independently and making their own decisions. Many are taught to defer to their husbands and other men in their lives, often because of a widespread belief that they are intellectually inferior. Fuller rejects these ideas and advocates for high-quality women’s education and broadened opportunities for women to develop and use their intellects. She believes that women must be encouraged to develop self-reliance and the ability to look within to determine what is true and right about the world and about themselves.