In this pictorial illustrustion, Phillis Wheatley displays herself with the upmost care and thought. She expertly protrays her persona by exhibiting certain characteristics that directly address the very stringent stereotype that she was dealt in her society.  By dressing in a demur civilized manner Wheatley contradicts the negative image of barbaric, unintelligent, lacking knowledge of morals and the soul, and being a woman of ill repute.  Instead Wheatley is forcing her audience to acknowledge that her writings are valid and came directly from the cervices of her mind.  She places a book by her while she is scribing some literature on a piece of paper which indicates that Wheatley possesses the level of education that enables her to both read and write on a level superior to the standard that society dictates about her. She is focused on her work while addressing topics of morality and religious content. Refusing to come across as ignorant of her status, Wheatley addresses her master in a respectful way that only adds to her charm as a young woman of intelligence, modesty, and civilized manners. 

I am obnoxious to each carping tongue Who says my hand a needle better fits, A Poets pen all scorn I should thus wrong, For such despite they cast on Female wits: If what I do prove well, it won't advance,They'l say it's stoln, or else it was by chance —Anne Bradstreet, 1678

When Anne Bradstreet wrote these immortal words she penetrated to the heart of society and its standards. She addressed the issue of her feminality with a cunning poise that only a woman of excelled intellect could deliver. Realizing the obstacles and resistance she would face, Bradstreet did not beat around the bush but rather found the loop holes and walked right through them with grace. A society ruled by men influenced her boundaries of writing to the point where she felt pressed to say that she knows her literary works would be questioned about their validity, that her knowledge of words would be doubted, and most of all she would be judged and challenged about stepping over the line that defined her sphere of influence.  Her writings were vast and varied with subjects of the home, passionate love, God, nature, and so much more.  This opened the door for women, she pioneered for her fellow women to show them the beautiful world their God had created to be explored.  Yet, despite all her courageous acts in writing the times still required a man's approval to succeed.  Luckily for Bradstreet she acquired just that from various men who felt her works were worth supporting, which is what we see on this cover.  A man boasts of her accomplishments before revealing it is a collection of works from a gentle woman that has been deceased.  It is simultaneously encouraging and frustrating yet our country has come a long way to increase the recognition of women writers today.

 

Susan B. Anthony exemplifies the strength that women writers needed to be successful in the 19th century.  She was an economically independent woman who refused to remain silent in a male dominant society that told her women were not capable of having voice that mattered in politics because it was not their place to have an opinion in such matters because one must possess a mind that can reason beyond the boundaries of the home.  Anthony stood up for the things that mattered to her and proposed agruments that demanded mindful consideration from her male counterparts.  She defied the odds and it lead her to become a renowned speaker for causes like anti-slavery, women's suffrage, and the temperance movement all of which resulted in change due to the collective efforts of women like Anthony and the male supporters.  Not allowing the chains of society's mold for women to bind her down, Anthony emerged a woman who chose to be resilent from the blows she was dealt and lead a national movement.  I believe that due to the time period Anthony grew up in she was able to break out from the oppression in a more obvious manner than her earlier female writers which is most likely why we see larger results of her works.