Women During The French Revolution

Women, like other groups such as the lower class, middle class and the different races had a large and significant effect in the occurrences of French Revolution. Women’s presence in multiple small revolutions before and after the year 1789 and long after the revolution had taken place are considered major aspects of the participation of the French Revolution. However, the ‘March to Versailles’ and the signing of ‘The Declaration of the Rights of the Man’ is thought of as the most significant event that marked the conclusion of the revolution. Furthermore, women were participating in the revolution directly by using propaganda tactics and promoting many different ideals through social classes, journals, and speeches. Consequently, it can be …show more content…
Women had little to no political rights before the French Revolution; they could not vote for any political office position or hold any political office place. A woman’s education, from birth, often consisted of learning to be a good woman, mother, and wife; as a result most women were not typically involved in politics, because their role in society was to raise children: Europe’s future citizens. There were economic and social problems as well that greater divided the social classes. Things like shortage of food, non-equal pay, and other things were all problems different classes of women faced. Each class faced its own differences. For example, women belonging to the lower and peasantry class had problems such as food prices rising, job loss, and shortage of food. It was these women from the lower classes who revolted when it came to the economic aspect of the revolution. Women belonging to middle and higher classes worried more about having political rights and being men's equals. They wanted equal pay for equal work. This was a major change for women of the 18th century. They started asserting themselves and even began working jobs. They had careers such as sewing, teaching, writing, etc all depending on their class and role in …show more content…
This had been during the time whenever the ideas and major aspects of the Enlightenment seemed to have been gaining in popularity during this period. Two women famously known in the middle class were Madame d’Epinay and Madame Geoffin. They were feminists at the time who were influenced by many philosophers and other key writers of previous times. They wrote books, articles, etc regarding ideas of equality that quickly spread among other women and some men. I personally agree with their beliefs of rights of women, as do most in the 21st