Honors Theses
Date of Award
Spring 5-2026
Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Department
Philosophy and Religion
First Advisor
Timothy Yenter
Second Advisor
Katherine Moses
Third Advisor
Alex Lindgren-Gibson
Relational Format
Dissertation/Thesis
Abstract
Mary Astell is frequently interpreting through competing frameworks: as either a feminist advocate of women’s rational autonomy or a religious conservative committed to Anglican orthodoxy. This division reflects a broader tendency in Astell scholarship to separate her intellectual, moral, and theological commitments into distinct and often conflicting domains. This paper argues that such fragmentation is not grounded in Astell’s own philosophy but is instead the result of interpretive assumptions—particularly the view that intellectual autonomy and religious obedience are incompatible. By examining Astell’s account of reason, education for women, and spiritual development, this paper demonstrates that these elements form an integrated philosophical system in which intellectual, moral, and religious formation are mutually dependent. Her proposal for a women’s academy, often read as either a place of feminist liberation or religious discipline, is better understood as a unified project aimed at the proper cultivation of the rational self in relation to divine truth. Through critical analysis of both feminist and religious interpretations, this paper shows that each captures important aspects of Astell’s thought but ultimately obscures its coherence. A more adequate reading recognizes that Astell’s commitments to reason, virtue, and devotion are not competing aims, but interconnected components of a single philosophical framework.
Recommended Citation
Brown, Hannah E., "Neither Academy Nor Convent: Reconciling Religious and Feminist Readings of Mary Astell" (2026). Honors Theses. 3568.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/3568
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