Practically ignored for over two hundred years, Mary Astell's writing returned to prominence in the latter part of the twentieth century in a celebrated biography by Ruth Perry. Self-educated, Astell was an avid political thinker, philosopher, educationist, and early feminist. Until recently, little attention has been paid to her importance and skill in rhetoric, where she is known as both a practitioner and theorist. Astell's work is remarkable for an intellectual depth that does not compromise accessibility and for a style that is forcefully persuasive yet grounded in the rhythms of conversation. Widely respected for her participation in public discourse on politics and philosophy, she was well ahead of her time in the development of the rhetoric of care, an approach later echoed by twentieth-century feminists in their battle for equality. Drawing inspiration both from ancient theories and models and from early Enlightenment philosophy, Astell's thought has a timelessness that allows her to instruct and inspire us still.