Varshika Karthi

Philosophy Reflection
There were a lot of interesting readings throughout this semester that we have read over, but
the one that resonated with me is “The Subjection of Women” by John Stuart Mill. I would
like to believe that I have adopted a new feminist side ever since I was in college. It has been
more clear to me, as to why women need to advocate for themselves more. This reading
really highlighted different aspects of where women face subjection and how history also
plays a role in it. Some laws that have been made, have intentionally been created so that
women won’t have equal opportunities. It’s interesting to see how that plays out in the
modern day, with the number of problems that we have now. There is also a long history of
societal norms that restrict women's freedoms and that also goes back to times previous.
Women, even today are expected to conform to the traditional gender roles and are not seen
as the main breadwinners in a lot of situations. Today, there are some traditional boundaries
that women are starting to push, but it still isn’t seen as “normal”. There are a lot of
traditional views placed on women and they continue to be a staple part of societies all over
the world. When I got to college, I never understood what “feminism” was. I didn’t really
feel like I had experienced any prejudice like that. When I got to college I found out that was
far from the truth. Finally being in the real world without the shadow of my parents was the
first time I was able to see firsthand what kind of prejudice women go through. It was also
fascinating to see John Stuart Mill, a male, being able to speak accurately on prejudice
against women. He advocated for gender equality and how women should be granted the
same rights as men. He is able to put himself in the shoes of a woman and see how different a
man's and woman's life really is. In modern times, a lot of men don’t understand why
feminism exists and honestly see it as a problem because the “attention” is being placed on
how women deserve more and now the men's efforts aren’t being highlighted as much. For
example, when Mill talks about marriage he thinks that it should be an equal alliance and that
there should be no dominance between the couple. Mill highlights that once a woman is
married she is not “supreme” because her husband is. It’s like a hierarchy system, where the
husband is on top and the wife comes second when Mill believes it to be an equal alliance
with no hierarchical concept. Mill just wants a world where everyone is treated as equals and
no one is higher than the other. This concept will further help the overall well-being and
progress of society because this will get rid of the regressive thinking that has been instilled
in many minds. It was a really fascinating read and the biggest thing for me was accepting
the fact that a man wrote on this topic and actually made sense of everything. He perfectly
encapsulated the struggles of women and how that contrasts with how men handle them. This
essay can spark many future conversations around the idea of feminism and gender equality
and can also be used to understand many factors of gender that aren’t thought about on a
daily basis. It’s evident that there is something going on when it comes to how women are
being treated and what Mill said really puts into perspective that women struggle a lot more
than men because we have to break boundaries and societal expectations whereas men don’t
have to.