Jimerson 1

Carleshia Jimerson
3/25/2015
HIS:3051

The historical question this paper seeks to answer: How did women use the French
Revolution to become more openly political? The answer to this question is women used the
Revolution to start and be part of protests and riots, write and publish politically, and dress
radically to show their political alliances.
Primary Sources
Alexandre, Charles-A.. Parisian Women Protest Via Taxation Populaire In February, 1792.
In Women in Revolutionary Paris 1789-1795, edited by Darline Gay Levy, Harriet
Branson Applewhite, and Mary Durham Johnson, 115-18. Chicago: University of
Chicago Press, 1979.
Charles-A. Alexandre was charged with the running of the Monnery House where sugar and
other goods were stored during the Sugar Riots of 1792. The document is a memoir that focuses
on his involvement as a hero in the Sugar Riots protecting the house from mobs. The document
details womens involvement in the riots in stirring up trouble and being a vocal part of the mob,
which is essential to my arguments focus on women in protests.
DAelders, Etta Palm. A Call for an End to Sexual Discrimination. In Women in
Revolutionary Paris 1789-1795, edited by Darline Gay Levy, Harriet Branson

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Applewhite, and Mary Durham Johnson, 75-7. Chicago: University of Chicago Press,
1979.
Etta Palm DAelders was a vocal advocate for womens rights in the French Revolution releasing
many political writings and documents revealing her views. This document argues for the
legislation of equality by the National Assembly in all aspects from divorce laws to moral
education for girls as well as boys. The petition is useful to my argument because it demonstrates
what women wrote about politically and what the political aims were for women like DAelders.
It also demonstrates the tactics used by women in petitions to the government like guilt tripping,
and logic while remaining respectful and feminine.
Boula, Silvain Guillaume. Commissaires Report on Events of February 24, 25, 26, 1793. In
Women In Revolutionary Paris 1789-1795, edited by Darline Gay Levy, Harriet
Branson
Chicago Press,

Applewhite, and Mary Durham Johnson, 137-141. Chicago: University of

1979.

Guillaume Silvaine Guillaume was part of the commissaire de police during rioting and protest.
This document is a police report filed detailing the events of the end of February 1793. The main
focus of the document is on the way the people paid for goods at the prices they deemed fair and
their condemnation of hoarders of goods. The document is relevant because many of the
important figures in his report are women both as instigators and moderators of the mob.
de Gouges, Olympe. Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Citizeness. In
The French Revolution and Napoleon: A Sourcebook, edited by Philip G. Dwyer
and

Peter McPhee, 39-42. New York: Routledge, 2002.

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Olympe de Gouges was a revolutionary writer/activist who produced many published political
works. The document is a direct response to the Declaration of Man and Citizen which excluded
women from the equation of politics and equality. The Declaration of Woman and Citizeness
displayed Olympes views before a wide audience. This document is relevant to my argument
because it is an example of how women resisted what they deemed unfair, and in this case
Olympe was resisting the male oriented Declaration.

Petition from the Revolutionary Republican Women to the National Convention on the
Leadership of the Armies and the Law of Suspects. In The French Revolution: A
Document Collection, edited by Laura Mason and Tracey Rizzo, 206-8. New York:
Houghton Mifflin Company, 1999.
The Society for Revolutionary Republican Women was a group established in 1793 that allowed
women to have a strong political club of their own for the first time. The document was created
by the society as a petition to prosecute noblemen who are suspects of criminal action and not let
them be above the law simply because they are noble. They encompass removing all noble titles
or at least those who are suspect, and removing ambition from the government as the people
want action instead of flowery words after four years. The document speaks of the valor of the
patriots and suggests they replace ambitious generals. The petition is useful to my argument as it
not only shows political views but it also demonstrates how strong of a body the society was that
they could speak to the Convention iin such a way.
Secondary Sources

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Desanti, Dominique. Flora Tristan: Rebel Daughter of the Revolution. In Rebel Daughters,
edited by Sara E. Melzer and Leslie W. Rabine, 273-286. New York: Oxford University Press,
1992.
Dominique Desanti, a French history professor created a work that centers on the writings and
life of Flora Tristan. The works main theme is Floras life and the life she brought into her
characters. Floras works demonstrate how life was different for French women after the
revolution but only better if the woman was wealthy in contrast to being a bastard peasant on the
run from her husband. The work wraps up my argument because it is on the other side of the
historiography than my argument which will end with evidence that suggests an increase in
quality of life for women post-revolution.
Garrioch, David. The Making of Revolutionary Paris. Berkeley: University of California Press,
2002.
David Garrioch, a professor of European history at Monash University, released a work centering
on the origins of the French Revolution on a social level. The book focuses on the people and
their role in the Revolution with a focus on the reasons the people would revolt in a history that
stretches back generations. This work is important to my argument as it brings the Revolution
down to the social level with bread riots and anger in the streets which women were part of.
Hesse, Carla Alison. The Other Enlightenment: How French Women Became Modern. Princeton,
N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2001.
Carla Hess, a prominent French historian who teaches at the University of California, Berkeley
created a work challenging the role of women in the Revolution and the common thought on how
the Revolution effected women. The work argues that during the Revolution instead of being

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pushed to the side like some historians believe, women actually used the freedoms made in the
press and publication to make strides toward equality. This work is critical in my argument as it
directly relates the Revolutions impact on women and how they practiced politics.
Hunt, Lynn. Politics, Culture, and Class in the French Revolution. Berkeley: University of
California Press, 1984.
Lynn Hunt, a professor at the University of California Los Angeles with a focus on revolutionary
French history, created a work focusing on the language and iconography of the Revolution as
well as relationships between people. The main argument of the book is the social causes for the
revolution and the way the relationships between culture, people, and concepts effected the
Revolution. The work supports my argument by providing background on the way the revolution
affected both men and women and the social structure of France at the time.
Hunt, Lynn. The Family Romance of the French Revolution. Berkeley: University of California
Press, 1992.
Lynn Hunt, a professor at the University of California Los Angeles with a focus on revolutionary
French history, created a work focusing on family interactions during the Revolution. This
works argument centers on how the traditional gender and family roles created tensions that was
one of the causes of the Revolution, or how the Revolution took shape. The work is important to
my argument because it demonstrates what happens when the tradition roles arent filled and
demonstrates the opposition to women leaving their respective roles.
Levy, Darline Gay and Harriet B. Applewhite. Women and Militant Citizenship in
Revolutionary Paris. In Rebel Daughters, edited by Sara E. Melzer and Leslie W.
Rabine, 79-101. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.

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Harriet B. Applewhite, a professor of political science at the Southern Connecticut State
University, and Darline Gay Levy is a professor of history at the University of New York,
produced this short work detailing how women faced the challenge of citizenship and politics
with militant actions. The main argument of the piece is focused on the image portrayed by the
women mentioned as militants and extremely revolutionary in order to reaffirm their citizenship
and their participation in the Revolution. The article is relevant to my argument because it
discusses women and their desire for the same level of political power and recognition.
McMillan, James F. France and Women 1789-1914 Gender, Society and Politics. London:
Routledge, 2002.
James Mc Millan was the head of the History Department of Strathclyde University and a
Professor of History at Edinburgh University. His work France and Women 1789-1914 focuses
on the womans role in society and its constant evolution. His first part focuses on the French
revolution and the shift from women being sexually devious to a more public political woman.
The first part of his work will be useful to my argument because it not only describes the female
condition and struggles at the time but it also provides background of why women were
becoming more political.
Orr, Linda. Outspoken Women and the Rightful Daughter of the Revolution: Madame de
Stals Considrations sur la Rvolution Franaise In Rebel Daughters, edited by Sara
E. Melzer and Leslie W. Rabine, 121-136. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.
Linda Orr, a professor at Duke University with a PhD from Yale, produced a work with a heavy
focus on Madame de Stal and her ideas of family romance in the revolution. The works main
theme is the relationship between herself and the government and society in parts as a family e.g.

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the police as the step brother, and the mother as talk. The relevance of this work to my argument
is it contrasts with Lynn Hunts book and it shows the family romance from a primary
perspective.
Ribeiro, Aileen. Fashion in the French Revolution. New York: Holmes & Meier, 1988.
Aileen Ribeiro is a professor on the history of fashion at the Courtauld institute of art with a PhD
in the History of Dress. Her work Fashion in the French Revolution places a heavy focus on the
styles of dress in a wide spectrum. She analyses how the fashion changed because of the
revolution but also how the revolution was influenced by fashion, e.g. the tricolour. This work is
important to my argument because it delves in detail to what the people were wearing, especially
women during the revolution.
Scott, Joan. Only Paradoxes to Offer. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 1996.
Joan Scott, a Professor at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton New Jersey with a PhD
in history, created a work on the struggle of political women in the French Revolution. The work
focuses on the paradox women encountered when they argued for equality and that instead of
being discouraged by it, were pushed harder to overcome it. The work is important to my
argument as it describes how women went about being openly political in the intellectual and
social sense.