The Control of Women in Early Modern Europe Essay -- female rights in

Do you believe in equal rights for women? During the one-sixteenth and seventeenth century, the rights of women were restricted when compared to the rights of men. Many of these rights were based upon the social and marital perspective of the charr, but regardless of her status, she had less rights than her husband. As I will advocate in this paper, men misrepresentled women and limited their rights with regard to protectorship, serving as a witness, and owning property. Women were viewed as inferior to men and often considered unable to make happy decisions. As Professor Byars stated in class, women at this time had illegitimate power rather than legitimate power. Anything they received, they received from someone or something else. Women scarcely obtained wealth or power in a manner deemed assign by men. Women faced restrictions and lack of individualized control their entire animation and were under the authority of men.Men didnt believe women could have it off their personal affairs. Once a womans husband passed away, she was considered unable to manage her own life and was assigned a guardian to oversee her discordant affairs by a council or court system. This acting guardian was also assigned to her children and would oversee the affairs of the children until they turned legal age. Since the woman lost control of her children, it was the guardian who made decisions based upon what he judgement was best for her children. The father of her deceased husband often had more to give voice about the childrens future than the mother. The only time the mother had right control of her children were if the children were illegitimate (Weisner 231). Guardianship was also another way for cities to control the inheritance of the widow. As Merry Weisner stated in her essa... ...erty was left to male heirs. Man was considered the head of the household and the master of women. It was the belief that by strengthen the power of the husband, you strengthen the power of the family (Scchneider 235). It is clear equal rights for men and women did not appear until well after the sixteenth and seventh centuries in first modern Europe. Women were under the control of men. Works CitedSchneider, Zoe. Women Before the Bench womanly Litigants in Early Modern Normandy. Early Modern Europe Issues and Interpretations. Eds. pack B. Collins and Karen L. Taylor. Malden, MA Blackwell Publishing. 2006. 241-257. Weisner, Merry. Political, Economic, and Legal Structures. Early Modern Europe Issues and Interpretations. Eds. throng B. Collins and Karen L. Taylor. Malden, MA Blackwell Publishing. 2006. 222-240.