Lucrezia Marinella (1571–1653) was a poet, writer, philosopher, polemicist, and women's rights advocate from the Republic of Venice. She is best known for her polemical treatise The Nobility and Excellence of Women and the Defects and Vices of Men (1600). Her works have been noted for bringing women into the philosophical and scientific community during the late Renaissance.

Lucrezia Marinella was the daughter of a physician and natural philosopher, Giovanni Marinelli, who wrote novels, some of which were on women’s well-being, hygiene and beauty. Although her father was not from Venice, Lucrezia and her family were "cittadinaza." Her brother, Curzo Marinella, was also a physician and Lucrezia married the physician Girolamo Vacca. None of her children seem to have been born in Venice. Her father might have been the vital link between her private studies and the writing and the wider world of Venetian literary circles, including the Accademia de’ Desiosi.

Marinella had a close relationship with Giovanni Nicoló Doglioni, one of the founders of the Venetian academy. She was supported by her peers and influential in the formation of the 'new' Venetian academy because of her powerful writing style and insight into women's rights. Marinella helped other female writers publish their works, a rarity at a time when women suffered countless restrictions. Female writers began to dispute claims made by male writers, such as Giuseppe Passi, author of the misogynist tract Dei donneschi difetti (On Women's Faults), showcasing their intelligence and rhetorical writing skills. Unlike other academies, women had institutional support from some male professors and peers, allowing them to negate prejudice about female inferiority.

In this era, many women entered convents or became courtesans (like the famous Veronica Franco). Entering a convent meant that a woman was not obligated to be married and could pursue education and spiritual development. But, at the same time the Roman Catholic Church maintained rigid theories of gender and expectations of women’s place and nature. However, Lucrezia Marinella did not enter the convent and wasn't pressured into marriage. She came from a professional family that very much encouraged her studies, and her father was extremely supportive. Although Marinella received support from her peers to delay marriage and further her education, she still had many barriers preventing her from writing. She lived during the Counter-Reformation, one of the most difficult periods in Italian history. The country was under Spanish domination, which led the Catholic church to dominate political liberty and impose new restrictions. These scrupulous religious, economic, social, and literary changes were put into effect when Marinella began her writing career. These restrictions limited her writing, but she was encouraged to persevere from emerging ideas from Christian Neoplatonists. They believed that for a perfect human mind, people must diverge from known gender differences to become a unisex being.

Although Lucrezia’s writing brought her fame, she lived her life in seclusion. It is believed that her solitary life is what allowed her to write so much so soon. But a life of seclusion was typical for women of her social rank in sixteenth-century Italy. She did not travel, except to local shrines, there is no evidence she gathered with other authors for discussions, and there is no record of her even attending meetings held in academies outside.

Women’s rights and the equality of women were a major focus of Marinella's writings. In the late Middle Ages and early Renaissance era in Italy, women were largely wives and mothers. Many women who wanted to pursue knowledge either had to be of elite standing, enter convents, or become courtesans. Women were normally not a part of political conversations and had to be extraordinary to be fully recognized in literature. Marinella talks in her writings about the tradition of female inequality that has persisted throughout Western culture and is rooted in Hebrew, Greek, Roman, and Christian ideals.

Although Marinella was one of the best recognized female writers of the time, which included Moderata Fonte, Arcangela Tarabotti and Veronica Franco. Marinella’s works mostly dealt with women’s rights and she even asserted that women were superior to men, which was a popular argument in that time for polemical and philosophical works. She does so through her work, La nobiltà et l'eccellenza delle donne co' diffetti et mancamenti de gli uomini. In response to anti-feminist writings by Passi, she notes that she is unimpressed with the thinking of men. Her writings often pursue root causes of anti-feminist thoughts.

In La nobiltà et l'eccellenza delle donne co' diffetti et mancamenti de gli uomini, she notes the root of anti-feminist thoughts potentially being attributed to the influence of Aristotle. She refuses to accept the idea of an imperfect woman, as suggested by Aristotelians. Marinella argued with their belief that women's cold humoral temperaments are inherently different, making them inferior to men. She does, however, use Aristotle's statements for support in her other arguments.