A Heroine of Liberty
Kenneth R. Gregg has a very fine post at Liberty & Power on the birthday of Harriet Martineau, one of the finest campaigners for liberty of the 19th century. (Her Society in America is quite a classic and full of insights into Ameican life, including the sytem of slavery.)
Thank you for your kind thoughts, Tom.
I have always been a fan of Martineau, and she was always insightful. In many respects, she was a sociologist who keenly listened to people that she spoke with and wrote about. Her life was a testament to those who do not have an easy life, who struggle with physical disability and bigotry. Even today, the deaf (many of her pictures show her with a hand cupped around an ear) are separate from most of society, just as those who live in a wheelchair are ignored or avoided.
To accomplish all that she did during her life is an example of a great talent that refused to be left behind. Even today, when you read her, she is contemporary in her thought.
There is much to be admired in her accomplishments.
Just a thought.
Just Ken
kgregglv@cox.net
If you read the biographies, you’ll see that Martineau had a considerable impact on one of the greatest 19th century liberals–Herbert Spencer.