Tomas Garrigue Masaryk in the context of gender thinking

Masaryk once said in his talk with Karel Capek: "I think men and women are equal in their abilities." Although the ancient philosophers Aristotle and Plato, whom Masaryk admired since his youth, argued among other things for the superiority of masculinity over femininity, his own experience proved that it was not so. Throughout his life, he knew a number of strong women such as his mother, his wife and many others who accomplished a lot in different fields. Literary works created by women writers would sometimes influence his own life. Masaryk's appraisal of female characters in Dostoyevsky's and Tolstoy's books shows his negative attitude to sexism and aspiration for the fair treatment of both sexes. He argued against asymmetry in social status of men and women and approved of the feminist movement in Austria-Hungary. When Czechoslovakia was formed, Masaryk in every possible way supported the democratization of gender roles in the new state.