 The emotions did, however, play a special role for some philosophers who defended women’s intellectual aptitude. Feminist philosophers such as François Poulain de la Barre and Mary Astell appealed to the emotions both to explain sexist prejudice and to make their case for women’s pursuit of philosophy. Poulain de la Barre traces misogynist ridicule to surprise at the unfamiliar in his On the Equality of the Two Sexes (1673), while his On the Education of Ladies (1674) illustrates how women can develop the assurance and self-trust needed for the intellectual life. Astell posits the cultivation of the intellect, along with the development of “generosity” and “to be passionately in Love with Truth” (2002, 165) as the most important means to regulate the passions. In contrast, she often pairs “prejudices” and “irregular passions” as the obstacles for persons generally and women in particular that her serious proposals seek to overcome.