Ellen Key

Ellen Key (1849-1926), Swedish educator, philosopher, and women’s rights advocate. Key’s theories of early childhood education inspired widespread reforms in instructional methods. Key was born in Småland, Sweden, the daughter of wealthy landowner and politician Emil Key. She received her early education at home from German, French, and Swedish tutors.

In 1872 Key embarked on the first of a number of journeys to cities in Europe—including Paris and Rome—where she studied history, literature, and aesthetics. When Key was 30 years old her family lost its fortune, which forced her to find work. In 1880 she became an instructor at a school in Stockholm, teaching history and literature. From 1883 to 1903 Key also delivered weekly lectures on feminism, social reform, and educational issues at the People’s Institute, the educational branch of the Social Democratic Party, and became known as one of Sweden’s most outspoken social critics.

In 1899 Key retired from teaching to devote more time to writing, where she gained international recognition for her essays and books on the education and welfare of children. In Barnets århundrade (published in 1900; translated as The Century of the Child in1909), Key argued that young children require flexible and creative instruction that responds to each child’s individual needs and talents. She maintained that students who are encouraged to develop their own interests will more easily achieve their academic and creative potential. She also argued that both girls and boys should have equal and unrestricted access to all areas of education. At that time some subjects were reserved only for male students.

Key also gained recognition for her support of women’s rights in education, business, and politics. In Kvinnorörelsen (1909; The Woman Movement, 1912), she surveyed writings about feminism and called for a more unified effort to advance the rights of women. She was particularly well known for her controversial views on sexual ethics and for her defense of women’s property rights in Sweden. In Love and Marriage (1911), Key celebrated motherhood but attacked conventional expectations of marriage and sex roles as belittling to women.