What is the basic meaning of this quote, and why was it written?Excerpt from "The Laws of Manu," the Rig Vedas, 100 B.C.E.-200 C.E. 74. A man...

These particular quotations from the Book of Manu are
complex.  I think that a literal interpretation of the verses carries with it the idea
that there is a strict hierarchy of men over women in the religious thought of
Hinduism.  It does not take much to reflect and understand this.  There is a dominant
force in all of these quotes that reflects women being secondary to men.  Yet, I think
that some further analysis is needed to not justify this read, but rather expand on it. 
While the quotes here do show women's freedom being curtailed, I think that such a
reality applies to all people in the Book of Manu.  As the lone survivor of the flood,
and the recipient of Vishnu's help as the Matsya avatar, Manu codifies a way of living
that locks everyone in stratified roles.  Men were not allowed to do what they wished,
as they were limited by their caste and their condition of being in the world.  The
caste in which they lived, into which they were born, was the caste in which they died. 
Such a reality reflects the fact that everyone, men and women, were denied freedom. 
Yet, one cannot stray from the fact that such a reading as rendered in the quotes above
do tend to reflect a harsher condition of women.

I think
that modern analysis and thought has shown that some of these ideas as reflected in the
Book of Manu, a book written by humans and intended for humans, tend to go against some
of the basic and most elemental fibers of Hindu thought.  For example, these quotes have
to be aligned with the fact that one of the strongest forces of divinity are female ones
in the Hindu pantheon.  For instance, the Goddesses Lakshmi or Parvati occupy powerful
roles in Hindu thought.  The same goes for the goddesses Durga and Kali.  It seems
inconceivable that a religion which stresses so much power in its female gods would be
so vindictive to its women.  Like other religions, the theory and the true fiber of the
religion have been subject to human approval and some in the position of power, such as
men, have used this to their advantage to consolidate control.  This is not a reflection
of the religion, as much as the people, particularly men, who fail to live up to
it.

A great resource of this, and the way in which the
modern setting forces one to reassess the codes in the Book of Manu or religion in
general within a modern frame, is Deepa Mehta's film, "Water."  If these quotes can be
reconciled against a modern vision of them, this film will be an excellent source for
you.