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Revolution and Rights

A number of male and female revolutionary leaders tried to advance the case for full political rights for women. However, women never gained full political rights during the French Revolution. They did obtain a number of civil rights with the implementation of the Napoleonic Codes. The prejudice against granting political rights to women would prove to be the most difficult obstacle to overcome. The view that women were unsuited to political life by their very nature was the most deeply rooted prejudiced of all.

This prejudice greatly influenced any effort to gain political rights for women. The issue of women's right to education had been raised by a number of thinkers before the revolution. The right to vote was enjoyed by very few men and prior to the revolution was not considered an issue for women or men in France. The interest in the rights of slaves, Calvinists, Jews and non-land owners was more prevalent than the interest in women. This lack of interest in women's political rights was the result in part of the view that women were not a persecuted group.

Most of the women in France were either wives and mothers or shopkeepers, laundresses, and other menial laborers. Women's property rights and financial independence were severely restricted under French law and custom. Most men and women agreed with Rousseau and other enlightenment thinkers that women belonged in the private sphere of the home and, therefore, had no role to play in public affairs.

The opportunity to change this perception presented itself when the monarchy faced one of its financial crises in the 1780s. Unable to meet loan payments and facing bankruptcy, Louis XVI called a meeting of the clergy, nobles and everyone who was not a cleric or noble. This group of deputies devoted considerable time and effort to drawing up lists of grievances. The king had not invited women to meet as women to draft their grievances or name delegates,...

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Revolution and Rights. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 08:14, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1707310.html