Women, Revolution and Violence in Modern World History
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THREE ASSASSINS: WOMEN, REVOLUTION AND VIOLENCE IN MODERN WORLD HISTORY by Ashleah Zigmond A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of The Wilkes Honors College in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences with a Concentration in History Wilkes Honors College of Florida Atlantic University Jupiter, Florida December 2011 Three Assassins: Women, Revolution and Violence in Modern History by Ashleah Zigmond This thesis was prepared under the direction of the candidate’s thesis advisor, Dr. Christopher Ely , and has been approved by the members of her/his supervisory committee. It was submitted to the faculty of The Honors College and was accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences. SUPERVISORY COMMITTEE: ____________________________ Dr. Christopher Ely ____________________________ Dr. Douglas McGetchin ____________________________ Dean, Wilkes Honors College ____________________________ Date ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I owe an enormous debt to my advisor Dr. Christopher Ely for all the advice, time, and encouragement he gave me. Without his help, I would not have been able to start over my thesis from scratch and be able to complete it in less than a semester. I know I frustrated him beyond words at times with all my questions and the time constraints, but never once did he lack reassuring comments. Special thanks goes out to Dr. Douglas McGetchin who came to my need during the last few weeks of the semester to read through my thesis and provide me with constructive comments. And to the entire library staff who jumped through hoops trying to get all my books through interlibrary loan. My friends and family have been extremely supportive throughout this process. I would like to thank my best friend, Bobby, for taking all my late night calls and talking me ‘off the edge.’ To all my friends at the Honors College, especially Sean, for looking after me when I did not have time to look after my physical, mental, and emotional health. Lastly, I would like to thank my family for giving me the optimism that I lacked often in the process and the support I needed to get through weeks of nearly sleepless nights. I owe many thanks to my mother who bore the brunt of my breakdowns during the semester: Thank You for allowing me to pick your brain when my own decided to stop working from lack of sleep and for keeping me sane throughout the semester. To my father: Thank You for listening to me as I worked through the different topics and providing me with emotional and intellectual support throughout the process. And to my brother, Zachary, thank you for always being there for me when I needed any help and encouragement. Ultimately, I want to thank those who have been there for me throughout this chaotic process and for everyone who has cheered me on along the way. iii ABSTRACT Author: Ashleah Zigmond Title: Three Assassins: Women, Revolution and Violence in Modern World History Institution: Wilkes Honors College of Florida Atlantic University Thesis Advisor: Dr. Christopher Ely Degree: Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences Concentration: History Year: 2011 This thesis examines three women who committed the unprecedented crime of attempting to assassinate a key male figure in three separate times and places. It involves the government’s and society’s reaction and implications about the role of gender in the violent deeds transforming society at times of revolutionary upheaval. The women examined are Charlotte Corday from eighteenth century France, Vera Zasulich from nineteenth century Russia, and Shi Jianqiao from twentieth century China. These women shared numerous qualities that, when combined, provided the women with the ability to see themselves as equals in the patriarchal societies in which they lived, allowing them to participate in the typically male dominated public sphere. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Illustrations .......................................................................................... vi Introduction ..................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1: Charlotte Corday ........................................................................... 3 Chapter 2: Vera Zasulich ................................................................................ 29 Chapter 3: Shi Jianqiao ................................................................................... 57 Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 85 Bibliography ................................................................................................... 89 v LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure 1: Charlotte Corday painted by Jean-Jacques Hauer in her cell……………… 20 Figure 2: Vera Zasulich in her early twenties.……………………………………….. 42 Figure 3: Shi Jianqiao in jail, 1936…………………………………………………... 74 vi INTRODUCTION In times of revolution, chaos and crisis sweep over nations and people are caught up in the revolutionary fervor of the moment. It is in these moments that people become politically active, even those otherwise inactive in times of peace. As social norms typically dictate the exclusion of women from most politics and the public sphere, women often lack access to the male dominated world outside the household. The extraordinary circumstances of revolution, though, sometimes allow women to escape from their solely traditional role of domesticity and enter the supposedly masculine public sphere. Despite their subordinate position, women have transcended traditional gender roles in times of revolution, which provided them with a new purpose to work towards the advancement and betterment of society. This thesis examines the effect of certain women who committed unprecedented ‘masculine’ and violent acts against key male figures, and its impact on the society. Modernization was crucial in enabling women to step into the public sphere. Women with both money and a desire to change their status in life now were able to take on employment outside of the house and pursue higher education. Education was indispensable if women were to achieve economic independence and intellectual equality with men. With increasing education, women began to think along political lines. Through communication with other educated females, some began to realize their capacity for action. These women, above all others, had the means and opportunity to engage in social and political activities. In the eyes of men, the concerns educated women rose, at times, were deemed extremely radical because they went against the female’s normative place in society and broke with long established traditions. The 1 fixation by the majority of their society made the acts, successful or not, committed by female assassins shocking, frightening and scandalous. This thesis examines the assassination of Jean-Paul Marat by Charlotte Corday in eighteenth century France, the attempted assassination of Fedor Trepov by Vera Zasulich in nineteenth century Russia, and the assassination of Sun Chuanfang by Shi Jianqiao in twentieth century China. While there have been numerous historical incidents in which women used violence against powerful political male leaders, I selected these women and their crimes to examine because their actions occurred in societies undergoing political and social revolution in which women had begun to establish greater freedoms for themselves, including a presence in the public sphere and increased educational opportunities. Each woman seized the opportunity to act according to her conviction she could better society through the elimination of a male that represented, to her, the main flaws present in the political and social structure of her time. The extent to which these women crossed the gender boundaries and surpassed gender expectations gave them and their acts, and the social reaction to them, a different weight and meaning, resulting in unforeseen social and political possibilities and consequences. Though these three women committed their ‘masculine’ acts of violence in order to bring to light problems within society, in some cases they also inadvertently caused greater strife through a forcible return to traditional values by patriarchal governments. This return to tradition resulted in the oppression of society as a whole, but focused on the submission, seclusion and destruction of the ‘threat’ of ‘masculinized’ women that the patriarchy feared. 2 CHAPTER 1: CHARLOTTE CORDAY “Intelligent and well read, passionate and idealistic, courageous and generous, [Charlotte Corday] nonetheless lacked any political sophistication, naively believing that her single grand gesture could resolve France’s profound problems and restore peace. To her, it all seemed so simple.” 1 - Gelbart By the end of the first year of revolution in France in 1789, the revolution had started down a radical path. The storming of the Bastille, a symbol of the power of the monarchy, signified the starting point for a rapid succession of changes in French society. Parisian delegates could not get along with the irrational autocracy and called for a change. They had determined “authority was no longer deemed to derive from God, nor was it vested in the king [instead] it resided with the people and was entrusted to representatives of the nation.” 2 The radical press gained ground in 1789 with the abolition of censorship. Many of the revolutionaries believed that