Men use spurious logic to maintain sexist views.
By saying that women are inferior and then "protecting" women by insulating them from experience, men are establishing a straw man argument. They are saying "Look how bad women are" without ever having given them the chance to seriously try at things to see if they really are bad. It's an argument from silence, and Mill challenges men to be scientific about their assumptions, and to not assume something until it has been proven with evidence. Therefore, women should be free to try anything, and if they are naturally inferior, nature itself will restrain them.
Empowering women is improving the community itself.
By allowing women to participate in trade and education and politics, people gain the expertise of an entire population—half the population in fact—thereby doubling their odds of discovering a cure, for example, or for solving a particularly difficult problem.
Wives should be viewed as friends, not as property.
Mill anticipates a response in his commentary about women being educated. The concern is this: If women are educated, will they be unbearable? But Mill observes that originally what a man hopes for in a marriage is companionship, and by allowing one's wife to be an educated, involved citizen, he can deepen their relationship. This just underscores Mill's first assumption that sexism is essentially hatred.
Women should be allowed to vote.
Mill understood that women's points of view were equally important and equally valid to men's opinions, but because of voting laws, women were not able to express these opinions in a politically meaningful way. Therefore, he felt that women should be given their basic right of voting.
