Emily Thomas on Victorian Lady Travellers, Unfeminine Philosophical Women, and Mary Wollstonecraft

Lists of great Western philosophers and travellers are dominated by beardy men. But plenty of women have been involved in these activities too.

In ‘The Meaning of Travel’, Emily Thomas explores the relationship between philosophy and travel, focusing in this talk on the work of eighteenth-century philosopher-traveller Mary Wollstonecraft. She shows there are deep parallels between society’s treatment of women travellers and women philosophers, arguing that the reception of Wollstonecraft's work can help us understand the marginalisation of women in history of philosophy, and a puzzle in the history of feminism.

This author talk was originally live-streamed on CrowdCast and on Facebook on 25 March 2021. It can also be viewed at each of those locations:

Emily Thomas is Associate Professor in Philosophy at Durham University and the author of ‘The Meaning of Travel’ (Oxford University Press, 2020). She has published extensively on the philosophy of space and time, as well as philosophical issues in travel. She has also spent a lot of time by herself getting lost around the world.

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