Women and the French Revolution

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how the period of the French Revolution saw some of the important women politicians of the day fight for their ideas alongside men and often die for their ideals. The paper also shows, however, how while women in France had always been politically active, the society was still a profoundly masculine one. The paper concludes that, despite the fact that women played an incredibly important role on all levels, starting with the political life and ending with simple, everyday duties, they were still under the shadow of their spouses or of the important manly figures of those times.

From the Paper:

"The French Revolution equalized responsibilities and obligations for women, even if in terms of rights they were often trailing men. However, this period saw some of the important women politicians of the day fight for their ideas alongside men and often die for these. Madame Roland is probably just one of the examples of a politician who fought with the Gironde until she was guillotined. Others defended their husbands and were condemned with them to the guillotine, such as was the case with Camille Desmoulins's wife and Hebert's wife. When it came to historical recognition, they would, however, always be under the shadow of their spouses or of the important manly figures of those times."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Women and the French Revolution. On the Internet at http://www.pinn.net/~sunshine/whm2003/fr_rev_wmn.html. Last retrieved on March 25, 2008
• Clark, Jennifer. Women in the French Revolution: the failure of the Parisian Women's Movement in relation to the other theories of feminism of Rousseau and Condorcet. The Concorde Review. 1992. Page 116.
• Abbott, Jacob. Madame Roland. Harper and Brothers. 1902. Page 116.

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