About
Concepción Arenal (1820-1893) was a Spanish writer and social reformer, a pioneer of feminism. She was the first woman to attend university in Spain, disguising herself as a man to study law in Madrid. Her essay 'La mujer del porvenir' (1869) refuted theories of women's biological inferiority and demanded equal access to education. She was the first woman to receive a prize from the Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences (1860). Appointed visitor of women's prisons in 1863, she denounced prison conditions in numerous writings. She founded the periodical 'La Voz de la Caridad' and served as secretary general of the Spanish Red Cross.
* 1820-01-28 — † 1893-02-04
Major works
- La mujer del porvenir (1869)essay
- Cartas a los delincuentes (1865)essay
- El visitador del pobre (1863)essay
- Estudios penitenciarios (1877)essay
- El visitador del preso (1891)essay
Key milestones
- 1842First woman to attend university in Spain, disguised as a man, at the Faculty of Law in Madrid.
- 1860First woman to receive a prize from the Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences.
- 1863Appointed visitor of women's prisons by Isabella II.
Themes
FeminismPrison reformSocial justiceEducationCharity
Sources: accioncultural.es · europeana.eu