Feminism? International Women's Rights Congresses at the Paris
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‘International’ Feminism? International Women’s Rights Congresses at the Paris World Exhibitions, 1878 – 1900 By Lauren Stephens Submitted to the department of Gender Studies Central European University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of European Master in Women’s and Gender History Supervisor: Francisca de Haan, Central European University Second Reader: Marianne Thivend, Université Lumière Lyon 2 Budapest, Hungary 2014 CEU eTD Collection Lauren Stephens „International‟ Feminism? MA Matilda: Women‟s and Gender History Supervisor: Francisca de Haan Abstract The 1878 International Congress of the Rights of Women, the 1889 French and International Congress of the Rights of Women and the 1900 International Congress of the Condition and Rights of Women took place during the third, fourth and fifth World Exhibitions held in Paris. Their organisers combined a trend for international social movements with a new way to address the priorities of the French women‟s movement. This thesis is based upon a close analytical reading of the discussions and resolutions of each of these congresses and their reports in contemporary newspapers Le Figaro, Le Gaulois, Journal des Débats Politiques et Littéraires and La Presse. It seeks to interpret the feminism articulated by contributors and organisers of these congresses within their context as features of a new internationalist fashion during the last quarter of the nineteenth century. This thesis argues, firstly, that the organisers of these events sought to use the new fashion for international social movements to highlight the validity of their claims for women‟s rights. This was intended to help convince French politicians, intellectuals and writers of the need for legal changes in women‟s status. Secondly, in discussing women in an international context, they based their views upon a universal image of „woman‟, which was largely race- and class-blind, and used their superiority as Western, middle-class campaigners to make claims on behalf of the whole world. Finally, the French participants also made a case for CEU eTD Collection feminism in France on the basis of a nationalist discourse, which asserted that France had a natural and historical affinity with human rights. ii Lauren Stephens „International‟ Feminism? MA Matilda: Women‟s and Gender History Supervisor: Francisca de Haan Acknowledgements I would like to thank my supervisor, Francisca de Haan, for her guidance, advice and, above all, her patience in supporting and directing me over the last two years. I am also grateful to the staff and students at the faculties of both Central European University and Université Lumière Lyon 2, for the opportunities and environment that allowed me to progress in my studies. I am forever thankful for my wonderful family, who not only accepted my sudden decision to head to Budapest and study women‟s history for two years but also actively supported it. And last but certainly not least, my thanks go to the wonderful friends I have been fortunate enough to know, wherever they have landed, for all of their love and support. For their help with editing and proofreading this thesis, I am especially indebted to Saskia, Rose, Sarah, Elli and Alex. CEU eTD Collection iii Lauren Stephens „International‟ Feminism? MA Matilda: Women‟s and Gender History Supervisor: Francisca de Haan Table of Contents Abstract ..................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................. iii List of tables............................................................................................................................. vi 1: Introduction ..........................................................................................................................1 1.1 The Paris international women‟s rights congresses of 1878, 1889 and 1900 ...................2 1.2 Women‟s international organising ....................................................................................5 1.3 Main characters .................................................................................................................7 1.4 What was „feminism‟? ....................................................................................................10 1.5 Sources and methodology ...............................................................................................12 1.6 Outline.............................................................................................................................13 1.7 Main arguments ..............................................................................................................14 2: Literature review and methodological frameworks ........................................................15 2.1 Contexts ..........................................................................................................................16 2.1.1 Approaches to women‟s rights congresses ..............................................................16 2.1.2 French feminism in the nineteenth century ..............................................................17 2.1.3 Work on international women‟s movements ...........................................................20 2.1.4 World Exhibitions ....................................................................................................23 2.2 Theoretical frameworks ..................................................................................................25 2.2.1 Feminism..................................................................................................................25 2.2.2 International social movements ...............................................................................27 2.2.3 Colonialism ..............................................................................................................27 2.3 Drawing the threads together ..........................................................................................29 3: The women’s rights congresses of the Paris World Exhibitions in a French context, 1878 - 1900 ...............................................................................................................................31 3.1 Women‟s rights congresses at the Paris Exhibitions and the „woman question‟ in the Third Republic ......................................................................................................................32 3.2 The relationship between women‟s rights congresses and parliamentary politics .........39 3.3 French feminism and its „paradoxes‟ ..............................................................................43 4: The Paris World Exhibitions’ international women’s rights congresses, 1878 – 1900: topics of discussion ..................................................................................................................48 4.1 Political rights .................................................................................................................50 4.2 Sexual and marital freedoms ...........................................................................................53 4.3 Educational responses to women‟s inequality ................................................................58 4.4 Women and work rights ..................................................................................................61 5: The 1878, 1889 and 1900 Paris women’s rights congresses: some ‘international’ aspects ......................................................................................................................................67 CEU eTD Collection 5.1 Internationalism by the numbers in 1878, 1889 and 1900 ..............................................68 5.2 Interpretations of the „international‟ at the „first‟ congress of its kind: 1878 .................76 5.3 Interpretations of the „international‟ at the centenary of the French Revolution: 1889 ..80 5.4 Interpretations of the „international‟ at an „official‟ congress: 1900 ..............................87 5.5 Notions of „international‟ across three congresses: 1878, 1889 and 1900 .....................89 6: Colonialism within the Paris World Exhibitions women’s rights congresses, 1878 – 1900...........................................................................................................................................92 6.1 Universalism at the Paris World Exhibitions‟ women‟s rights congresses, 1878 – 190095 iv Lauren Stephens „International‟ Feminism? MA Matilda: Women‟s and Gender History Supervisor: Francisca de Haan 6.2 Presenting non-Western nations during the Paris World Exhibition women‟s rights congresses, 1878 – 1900 .....................................................................................................101 6.3 Assuming and presenting Western superiority at the Paris World Exhibition women‟s rights congresses, 1878 – 1900 ...........................................................................................106 7: Women’s rights congresses, Parisian World Exhibition culture and French ‘international’ nationalism, 1878 - 1900 .............................................................................110 7.1 International women‟s rights congresses and the granting of „official‟ status .............111 7.2 The (self-)representation of France and the nation within World Exhibitions and women‟s rights