Women's Participation In Science Dbq Essay

Could you imagine a world where women, who practice sciences, are looked down upon and neglected no matter what their ideas and discoveries are simply due to their gender? Well, in the 17th and 18th centuries women practiced in scientific research in many different fields, including, chemistry, astronomy, biology, etc. But, they were not treated with respect or acknowledged due to their gender. Most European universities and academies of science excluded women entirely, some did indeed allow women to hold professorships in science in math, but it was a very slim numbered compared to how many women were neglected and not given these opportunities. Women during this time translated scientific works on physics, astronomy, anatomy, etc.; they also held scientific discussions in salons. There are two main viewpoints pertaining women’s participation in the sciences during the 17th and 18th centuries included positive and negative attitudes of this concept and also positive and negative reactions to this idea. One of the main attitudes of women participating in science in the17th and 18th centuries was actually a positive view. People held an optimistic view of women working in this …show more content…
Other people had negative reactions for women practicing this field of study and treated the with disgust. In Document 7, a letter is written by the secretary to the Berlin Academy of Science, Johann Theodor Jablonski, to the Academy president opposing Maria Winkelmann’s application for membership in the Academy. He states that he doesn’t believe Winkelmann should work on the Academy’s official calendar of observations and feels that the Academy was ridiculed because it’s calendar was prepared by a woman. This letter shows a negative reaction with disgust towards women and them practicing Science simply because of their gender and how they feel ridiculed to be associated with a