Olympe De Gouges

The Presses Universitaires de France and Frémeaux & Associés offer this biography of Olympe de Gouges by Cécile Berly, a historian specializing in women in the 18th century. Olympe de Gouges is considered the first "feminist" in history. Marie Gouze, "bastard" from Montauban, calls herself Olympe de Gouges and will become a woman of letters in Paris. She imposed herself in an essentially male environment and campaigned through her plays and texts for the rights of women, children and the poorest. She is the first female voice to denounce the slavery of blacks and to link their cause to that of women. In short, she is a progressive who intends to take advantage of the French Revolution to defend her ideas. In 1791, she wrote and distributed the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and Citizen. However, like all women involved in the Revolution, she will remain a citizen without citizenship. For several decades, Olympe de Gouges has been rediscovered as one of the great women of history.