Olympe de Gouges was born into a bourgeois family in Montauban, France. She moved to Paris and began to write essays, manifestos, and socially conscious plays such as L'Esclavage des Negres (Negro Slavery). She also wrote on gender-related topics such as the right to divorce and sexual relations outside of marriage. Being quite a revolutionary spirit herself, she welcomed the French Revolution; however, she became disenchanted with the fact that the revolution was not being extended to women. She joined the "Cercle Social", an association with the goal of equal political and social rights for women in France, and formulated the idea "A woman has the right to mount the scaffold. She must possess equally the right to mount the speaker's platform." She is most famous for writing the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen in 1790. In response to the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen (1790) which was a universal proclamation espousing fundamental rights for all men without exception, de Gouges declared truly universal human rights by adding "women" where only "men" had been written. She also wrote Contrat Social (Social Contract) which proposed marriage based on gender equality. She continued her fight against injustice and famously said, "Male and female citizens, being equal in the eyes of the law, must be equally admitted to all honours, positions, and public employment according to their capacity and without other distinctions besides those of their virtues and talents." Her outspoken nature and drive for gender equality drew criticism however, as her views were very progressive for her time. French historian, Jules Michelet dismissed her, challenging, "She allowed herself to act and write about more than one affair that her weak head did not understand." Although de Gouges unfortunately was unable to see radical improvement during her lifetime, she left a legacy for future participants in the women's rights movement to admire and build upon.Picture: http://www.raffiniert.ch/images/gouges.jpg
3 comments:
nice post...i think...i can't read it in sky blue... ... ... but from what i could, it seems to me that Olympe de Gouges was important in the late 1700's, but who would be comparable to her during the 1900's?
There are many great women in history who are comparable to Olympe de Gouges, but probably the most notable (and recognizable) are those women who led the Suffrage Movement. Also, the women who made history as the first astronaut, first senator, and first CEO can be considered equally influential people.
As you continue to do this project, do you feel yourself having more respect for women and understanding the struggles they've faced in the past, as well as the struggles they are still facing today? And in response to your post, who were the first female astronaut, the first female senator, and the first female CEO? What type of projections would you make about the role women will play as we move forward towards the future? As a male, does the possibility of more involvement on the part of women in all aspects of society cause you to feel at all threatened? Have you researched any theories or assertions that declare powerful women emasculate males, and what are your thoughts on this? I guess my questions are directed more towards you, because I find it fascinating that a male has undertaken such a hard topic, especially since you have not and probably will not personally experience gender discrimination in your lifetime.
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