Analysis Of 'Modern Woman' By Emma Goldman

Being an anarchist causes controversy on suffrage because of what they believe in. An anarchist is one who believes that there should be no government or at least a government that has little to no power. This causes their views on suffrage to be controversial because voting deals with the governing of a population, whom they believe should not have to be governed. Though she is an anarchist, Emma Goldman is a “Modern Woman” because she does support the women’s movement, but it different from the other suffragists because she does not advocate the right to vote. Being an anarchist, Goldman views suffrage differently because of what she sees suffrage as. Goldman views the idea of suffrage as a way for the government to create burdens for the …show more content…
Goldman emphasizes her views that the people should be self-governing rather than a government that controls all the power and what happens to the people. She specifically states however that her views mean she does not support nor support the idea that women should be able to vote. Though in support of women’s suffrage for equality, Goldman argues that the few states and countries that have women voting or in government positions, there has not been a distinguishable change for women and men in the country. She notes that the only change within the states in the country is that women have the right to own property, which to her is not enough to convince her why women need the right, or to her a burden, the vote. Looking at several different cases throughout the world, Goldman argues that there are many other problems that need to be solved including labor laws in the United States and giving women the right to vote would not secure that the problems will be solved. She clarifies her point by stating that women could be the solution to the problem, but there is no clear evidence that they will be able to solve what men could not, meaning that whether women do or do not vote the problems that are present in society would still be there. This makes Goldman separate from the suffragists, such as Susan B. Anthony, because though Goldman is in support have giving women the right to vote, she sees no reason why there should be voting for women, let alone voting at all. Though for clarification, Goldman can be described as a modern woman, but not an activist for women’s right for universal suffrage. So even if Goldman does argue that women should have the vote, she does not believe that there should be a need to vote for