First published in 1792 in response to Talleyrand's report to the French National Assembly recommending that women only be given education in domestic matters, Mary Wollstonecraft's A Vindication of the Rights of Woman is a foundational text of European bourgeois feminism (although the term "feminism" had of course yet to be invented). This volume reproduces Wollstonecraft's pamphlet with some minor changes modernizing punctuation and spelling. It is introduced by socialist feminist Rowbotham (U. of Manchester, UK), who places the work and its author in historical and biographical context and traces the evolution of Wollstonecraft's reputation through history. Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)