Woman, Church, and State

First published in 1893, Woman, Church, and State is one of the most radical and thought-provoking works of early American feminism. Matilda Joslyn Gage—activist, thinker, and pioneering advocate for women’s rights—examines the long and complex relationship between religious authority, political power, and the oppression of women. Drawing on history, law, religion, and social customs, Gage exposes the ways in which ecclesiastical and civil institutions have restricted women’s freedom, independence, and dignity across the centuries. From the persecution of so-called witches to marriage, property rights, education, and political participation, she challenges the cultural foundations of a society built upon male authority.  A bold and controversial classic of emancipatory thought, and the enduring testimony of one of the most fearless voices in the struggle for women’s equality.Matilda Joslyn Gage (1826–1898) was an American writer, abolitionist, suffragist, and one of the most radical voices of the nineteenth-century women’s rights movement. A close associate of Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, she campaigned for women’s suffrage, legal equality, and religious freedom. Gage was particularly critical of the role played by organized religion in the historical oppression of women, a theme she explored in her major work, Woman, Church, and State (1893). Her ideas on gender, power, and social justice made her an important pioneer of modern feminist thought.