John Stuart Mill, The Subjection of Women (1869), ch. 1
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All men, except the most brutish, desire to have, in the woman most nearly connected with them, not a forced slave but a willing one, not a slave merely, but a favourite. They have therefore put everything in practice to enslave their minds. The masters of all other slaves rely, for maintaining obedience, on fear; either fear of themselves, or religious fears. The masters of women wanted more than simple obedience, and they turned the whole force of education to effect their purpose.

— Women

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "All men, except the most brutish, desire to have, in the woman most nearly connected with them, not a forced slave but a willing one, not a slave merely, but a favourite. They have therefore put everything in practice to enslave their minds. The masters of all other slaves rely, for maintaining obedience, on fear; either fear of themselves, or religious fears. The masters of women wanted more than simple obedience, and they turned the whole force of education to effect their purpose." in the context of "John Stuart Mill, The Subjection of Women (1869), ch. 1" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

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Source: Wikiquote: "Women" (M) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Women

About Women

Women are adult human females. Before adulthood, a female child or adolescent is referred to as a girl.