Mary Daly facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mary Daly
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Daly c. 1970
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| Born | October 16, 1928 Schenectady, New York, US
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| Died | January 3, 2010 (aged 81) Gardner, Massachusetts, US
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Notable work
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| Institutions | Boston College |
| Doctoral students | Janice Raymond |
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Mary Daly (October 16, 1928 – January 3, 2010) was an American philosopher and theologian. She was known for her ideas about radical feminism. Daly taught at Boston College for 33 years. She started as a Roman Catholic but later changed her views on Christianity. Daly retired from Boston College in 1999. This happened after she refused to let male students into her advanced women's studies classes. She did allow male students in her beginner classes. She also tutored male students who wanted to take advanced courses.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Mary Daly was born in Schenectady, New York, on October 16, 1928. She was the only child in her family. Her mother stayed at home, and her father was a traveling salesman. Daly grew up in a Catholic family. Both her parents were Irish Catholics. She went to Catholic schools when she was a girl. Early in her life, Daly felt a special connection to nature.
Before getting her two doctorates, she earned several degrees. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the College of Saint Rose. She then got a Master of Arts degree in English from the Catholic University of America. She also earned a doctorate in religion from Saint Mary's College. Later, she earned two doctorates in sacred theology and philosophy from the University of Fribourg, in Switzerland.
Career and Teaching
Daly taught at Boston College from 1967 to 1999. Her courses included theology, feminist ethics, and patriarchy.
She faced a threat of losing her job after her first book came out. The book was called The Church and the Second Sex (1968). She was given a temporary contract. However, students and the public supported her. Because of this support, Daly was given tenure. This meant she had a permanent teaching position.
Daly's refusal to let male students into some of her classes caused problems. She believed that male students made it harder for women to speak freely in class. Boston College disagreed. They said her actions went against Title IX. This is a federal law that says colleges cannot exclude anyone based on sex. It also went against the university's own rules. These rules said all courses must be open to both male and female students.
In 1989, Daly became part of the Women's Institute for Freedom of the Press.
In 1998, two male students filed a complaint against the college. A group called the Center for Individual Rights supported them. Daly then stopped teaching her classes rather than admit the male students. Boston College took away her tenure rights. They said she had agreed to retire. Daly sued the college, saying her rights were violated. She claimed she was forced to leave. However, a judge denied her request to stop the college's actions.
They later reached a private agreement outside of court. The college said Daly agreed to retire. Others said she was forced out. Daly believed Boston College was wrong. She felt they harmed her students by not letting her teach only women. She wrote about these events in her 2006 book, Amazon Grace: Recalling the Courage to Sin Big.
Daly also spoke out against Condoleezza Rice giving a speech at Boston College. She gave talks at many universities in the United States and other countries.
Mary Daly passed away on January 3, 2010, in Gardner, Massachusetts.
Major Works
Daly wrote several important books. Her second book, Beyond God the Father (1973), is one of her most famous. In this book, Daly explored her ideas about theology. She aimed to explain and challenge the male-centered views in Western religion. The book is known for its unique writing style. It tried to make "God-talk" meaningful for the women's liberation movement.
Papers and Collections
After her death, Mary Daly's writings and documents were given to the Sophia Smith Collection. This is a special collection of women's history at Smith College.
Mary Daly's Views
On Religion
When she first started her career, Daly was a practicing Roman Catholic.
In her early book, The Church and the Second Sex, Daly argued that religion and equality for women could exist together. She wanted to change religion from within. She called for the church to address unfairness and make changes for women. As she wrote more, her views on religion changed. By the time she wrote Beyond God the Father, she no longer supported the Christian faith. She believed that organized religion was unfair to women. In 1975, she called herself a "post-Christian feminist."
Daly eventually moved away from studying theology. She felt it was too focused on male views. Instead, she focused on philosophical feminism. She saw the Catholic Church as deeply flawed. However, her Catholic background and education were important. They helped start her career and shaped her later work. Even after she stopped studying religion, her ideas continued to inspire many feminist thinkers.
On Feminism
In her book Gyn/Ecology (1978), Daly questioned the idea of "Equal Rights" feminism. Many feminist thinkers believe that focusing only on "equality" means trying to fit into existing systems. Daly argued that this focus could distract women. She felt it kept them from the bigger goal of changing or ending patriarchy. She believed that small reforms might give women legal equality. But they would leave the larger male-dominated systems in place. This could make women vulnerable. She also thought that focusing on "equality" could make women less central to feminist thought. This happens when women try to fit into groups or places mainly run by men.
See also
In Spanish: Mary Daly para niños
