These were the leading figures in a century that featured dramatic knowledge advances in science, mathematics, philosophy, arts and letters and spawned the demand for individual liberty and natural rights, inspiring the American and French Revolutions.
If you are paying attention, you will notice that all the members of the above list are men, as if half the population were devoid of talent or ideas. Throughout most of recorded history artists, authors, scientists have been men. In order to get their work published, 18th and 19th century women authors resorted using male pseudonyms - George Sand aka Amantine Dupin; George Eliot aka Mary Ann Evans; Currier, Acton & Eliot Bell aka Anne, Charlotte & Emily Bronte; 'By a Lady' aka Jane Austen. Women of science during the Enlightenment are even more rare. Ada Lovelace and Marie Currie are the only names that come to mind. The trail blazer for women's rights advocacy was Mary Wollstonecraft, who in 1792 wrote 'A Vindication of the Rights of Women'.
But it was not until the Women's Suffrage Movement got rolling in the mid 1800's that women started to break out of the stereotype lives they had been forced to assume, a world of cooking, cleaning, quilts, samplers, rugs, child bearing and occasionally teaching or nursing.
In the US, the push for women's rights and the right to vote was launched in 1848 in Seneca Falls N.Y. , the site of the first women's rights convention, which featured Elizabeth Cady Stanton's Declaration of Rights and Sentiments. After the Civil War, Susan B Anthony & Elizabeth Cady Stanton led a decades long campaign to amend the Constitution, culminating with the passing of the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote - in 1920! Neither woman lived to see it. Along the way a number of states demonstrated some enlightenment by granting women the right to vote, Wyoming being the first in 1869, followed by 14 others prior to the adoption of the 19th Amendment. This was an international movement. England granted women (over age of 30) the right to vote in 1918. Australia 1902. Finland was the first European country 1906. France 1945. Saudi women 2015.
A right, believe it or not, that has recently come under fire from American right wing and Christian Nationalist elements who advocate "household voting" - one family, one vote by the head of household.
Equal rights? People seem to accept that all is well. Not so fast.
In fact, in today's world, oppression of women is common. Women are subjected to prejudice every day, both overt and covert, not to mention being subjected to frequent violence and domestic abuse. Hiring bias, lower pay, harassment - directly and online and a glaring example - female journalists being attacked and ridiculed by the name calling POTUS, Misogynist in Chief. (For the record, I dislike the word misogynist. People just disassociate when they don't know a word's meaning so just say prejudice against women.)
A glass ceiling continues to exist in business, politics, science and academia. Women represent roughly 10% of the CEO positions, 28% of Congress are women, 44% of college faculties, 30% of college presidencies, 39% of doctors (but women are in the majority in med schools, so the medical field is ahead of most fields). 35% of Evangelical Lutheran pastors are women with the first ordained in 1970 (other Lutheran flavors and many other denominations still have male-only clergy). The WNBA is very popular but is under attack constantly by the haters. Two women have been nominated for the presidency, both of of whom I contend, held superior qualifications for the office, but were defeated mainly because they were women.
Age of Enlightenment? After 300 years, we've still got a ways to go.
Men. Your mothers, sisters, wives, daughters and granddaughters are watching.
Copyright © 2026 Dave Hoplin
