There is no female Mozart because there is no female Jack the Ripper

[claire]

I would say though that genius is an appellation applied retroactively by society in thanks for services rendered. I think Maria Mozart obviously doesn't fit that category, as everyone knows her primarily as "Mozart's sister". I'm a great fan of Mozart's music, and I had to go look her name up.

Again you are making the mistake of assuming equal opportunity. Was she allowed as much access to the piano as her brother? Was it socially acceptable for her to perform her own works? Were "nice" women allowed to perform in public? Was she taken as seriously and given the same kind of encouragement her brother was? I don't know the answer to any of these questions. You can never safely assume that because two children grew up in the same household, they were given the same opportunity, especially when they were of different genders.

[Virulent]

You can never safely assume that because two children grew up in the same household, they were given the same opportunity, especially when they were of different genders.

Correct. Neither can you assume that someone not well-known for her musical accomplishments is a musical genius.

Is your argument that because we have an incomplete data set, we should prefer your thesis? Or that no conclusion is possible? I'm not sure I follow. Either line of reasoning is of course equally applicable to almost any argument, whether its in astronomy or anthropology.

[claire]

Correct. Neither can you assume that someone not well-known for her musical accomplishments is a musical genius.

Is your argument that because we have an incomplete data set, we should prefer your thesis? Or that no conclusion is possible? I'm not sure I follow. Either line of reasoning is of course equally applicable to almost any argument, whether its in astronomy or anthropology.

My knowledge of history led me to believe that if she was acknowledged at all for her ability, it was highly likely she was very very good at what she did. However, I did not have access to the facts.

Elizabeth does have the facts though, which bear out the conclusions I had drawn.

I do agree with Claire, however, because she was, in all likelihood, not allowed as much access to a piano, she was forced to stop playing to be married... and the second her brother showed any sort of exceptional apptitude, he was the only one their father booked on tours. In the beginning, she was just as famous as he was... their father just chose to use her as "side dish" to Wolfgang's compositions. If she had lived 250 years later, I think it is very possible that she could have been considered just as much of a genius as her brother.

Virulent, your conclusions also do not follow logically. Neither can you assume that someone not well-known for her musical accomplishments is a not a musical genius.