Josephine Butler

Josephine Elizabeth Butler (1828–1906) was a prominent English feminist who was best known for her controversial campaigns concerning the welfare and civil rights of prostitutes. In 1869 she became the leader of the campaign to limit the extension of the Contagious Diseases Acts. These Acts aimed to control the spread of venereal diseases in the armed forces through mandatory internal examinations and imprisonment for women accused of prostitution. Butler's campaign was instrumental in having the Acts repealed in 1886. In this volume of 1871, Butler denounces the Acts for denying accused women their civil rights, and discusses how repeal, together with universal suffrage and constitutional reform, would prevent this situation from recurring. Butler was one of the first feminists to frame her arguments explicitly through female experiences, and this volume illustrates her approach. For more information on this author, see http://orlando.cambridge.org/public/svPeople?person_id=butljo

First published in 1869, this influential volume contains a compilation of essays written by prominent Victorian feminists and their supporters, both men and women, discussing a variety of issues which were considered of importance to the early feminist movement. Edited by campaigner Josephine Butler (1828–1906), the contributions from activists and supporters including Frances Power Cobbe (1822–1904) and Sophia Jex-Blake (1840–1912) challenge the widespread assumption that 'women's sphere is the home', through discussion of the contemporary attitude to and condition of women. Various aspects of the inequality which women experienced, including the need for female suffrage, the ending of women's legal non-existence, and the right of women to access higher education and careers including medicine and science, are explored and advocated, illustrating the central concerns of the early feminist movement and the areas in which the movement had success in later years.