Get out the microscope, because we’re going through this poem line-by-line.
Lines 17-20
Try all that wit and art suggest to bend
Of thy imperial foe the stubborn knee;
Make treacherous Man thy subject, not thy friend;
Thou mayst command, but never canst be free.
- The speaker tells women to use everything they can come up with—either through their own intelligence ("wit") or sneakiness ("art") to make men, their enemies, bow down to them.
- Back in the late 18th century, it was considered an insult to call a woman "artful"—"artful," here doesn't mean artistic. It describes someone who is willing to fake it 'til they make it. So it seems weird for the speaker to encourage women to use "art" to get what they want.
- Since guys are, according to the speaker, so likely to betray women, the speaker warns them that they can rule over men, but can't be friends with them.
- Women can command men, but can't ever be truly "free"—women will always have to be watching their backs to make sure men don't betray them.
- This female world domination scheme doesn't sound like as much fun anymore, that's for sure.
Lines 21-24
Awe the licentious, and restrain the rude;
Soften the sullen, clear the cloudy brow:
Be, more than princes' gifts, thy favours sued;-
She hazards all, who will the least allow.
- The speaker tells women how to deal with problematic men.
- "Licentious" means immoral or overstepping the rules. Those "licentious" guys need to be put in their place and made to fear the women who now rule them. The rude guys just need to get held back.
- She also says that the sulky guys need to be softened, or comforted, and the grumpy, cloudy guys need to get cleared up. Wait—so women are supposed to try to make these guys feel better? What happened to straight-up world domination? Since when are women supposed to comfort the guys they've conquered?
- Watch out—the sentence structure is really wacky here. She advises women to make their favors and good opinions as difficult to come by as "princes' gifts." Men should have to beg ("sue") for every little thing.
- A woman who allows a man the "least" little thing is risking ("hazarding") everything.
- This doesn't sound all that fun—women are always going to have to be on their guard in order to stay at the top, we guess.