StudentsofUnitedStateshistory,seekingtoidentifythecircumstancesthatencouragedtheemergenceoffeministmovements,havethoroughlyinvestigatedthemid-nineteenth-centuryAmericaneconomicandsocialconditionsthataffectedthestatusofwomen.Thesehistorians,however,haveanalyzedlessfullythedevelopmentofspecificallyfeministideasandactivitiesduringthesameperiod.Furthermore,theideologicaloriginsoffeminismintheUnitedStateshavebeenobscuredbecause,evenwhenhistoriansdidtakeintoaccountthosefeministideasandactivitiesoccurringwithintheUnitedStates,theyfailedtorecognizethatfeminismwasthenatrulyinternationalmovementactuallycenteredinEurope.Americanfeministactivistswhohavebeendescribedas“solitary”and“individualtheorists”wereinrealityconnectedtoamovement—utopiansocialism—whichwasalreadypopularizingfeministideasinEuropeduringthetwodecadesthatcachinnatedinthefirstwomen’srightsconferenceheldatSenecaFalls,NewYork,in1848.Thus,acompleteunderstandingoftheoriginsanddevelopmentofnineteenth-centuryfeminismintheUnitedStatesrequiresthatthegeographicalfocusbewidenedtoincludeEuropeandthatthedetailedstudyalreadymadeofsocialconditionsbeexpandedtoincludetheideologicaldevelopmentoffeminism. TheearliestandmostpopularoftheutopiansocialistsweretheSaint-Simonians.ThespecificallyfeministpartofSaint-Simonianismhas,however,beenlessstudiedthanthegroup’scontributiontoearlysocialism.Thisisregrettableontwoaccounts.By1832feminismwasthecentralconcernofSaint-Simonianismandentirelyabsorbeditsadherents’energy;hence,byignoringitsfeminism,EuropeanhistorianshavemisunderstoodSaint-Simonianism.Moreover,sincemanyfeministideascanbetracedtoSaint-Simonianism,Europeanhistorians’appreciationoflaterfeminisminFranceandtheUnitedStatesremainedlimited. Saint-Simon’sfollowers,manyofwhomwerewomen,basedtheirfeminismonaninterpretationofhisprojecttoreorganizetheglobebyreplacingbruteforcewiththeruleofspiritualpowers.Thenewworldorderwouldberuledtogetherbyamale,torepresentreflection,andafemale,torepresentsentiment.Thiscomplementarityreflectsthefactthat,whiletheSaint-Simoniansdidnotrejectthebeliefthattherewereinnatedifferencesbetweenmenandwomen,theyneverthelessforesawanequallyimportantsocialandpoliticalroleforbothsexesintheirUtopia. OnlyafewSaint-Simoniansopposedadefinitionofsexualequalitybasedongenderdistinction.Thisminoritybelievedthatindividualsofbothsexeswerebornsimilarincapacityandcharacter,andtheyascribedmale-femaledifferencestosocializationandeducation.Theenvisionedresultofbothcurrentsofthought,however,wasthatwomenwouldenterpubliclifeinthenewageandthatsexualequalitywouldrewardmenaswellaswomenwithanimprovedwayoflife. ItcanbeinferredthattheauthorconsidersthosehistorianswhodescribeearlyfeministsintheUnratedStatesas“solitary”tobe_____.
A.insufficiently familiar with the international origins of nineteenth-century American feminist thought B.overly concerned with the regional diversity of feminist ideas in the period before 1848 C.not focused narrowly enough in their geo-graphical scope D.insufficiently aware of the ideological consequences of the Seneca Falls conference正确答案A
