Women's Rights in the French Revolution

Many women were involved in the uncertainty of women's rights during the French Revolution between the years of 1789 and 1804. Exploration of the unfolding struggles of France managed to turn my head in the direction of woman's rights more than once in my discovery. Perhaps because of the persistence of the women during this time period and their straight forwardness in their mission, was I so determined to see a positive progression in the fulfillment of their needs. "Even during a revolutionary time like this, equal rights for women seemed out of reach. Women had to struggle for a position in the revolution" (Ajaibu 2001, 1).
One of the main women involved in the French Revolution was Olympe de Gouges. Olympe de Gouges is how one would recognize her, but her birth name was Olympe Gouze. Gouze, the daughter of a butcher, and a part of the lower class found prostitution as her occupation. Gouze was very bright and her enlightened views were bound to change the future, which they seemed to. She continued prostitution until she was thirty-six and respectfully became a playwright. After the death of her husband, Gouze moved to Paris and changed her name to Olympe de Gouges. Upon arrival, de Gouges proposed a new French theater that would only show women's plays (Ajaibu 2001, 1). "In 1788 Olympe started creating her pamphlets and petitions that were pro-woman and anti-monarchy" (Ajaibu 2001, 1). About a year after de Gouges produced her petitions and pamphlets the National Assembly of France created "The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen" (de Lafayette 2001, 1). This declaration was created for the working class in order for them to receive rights and freedoms. However, 2 the declaration was not applicable to all people; this document excluded women. Within the next two years Olympe de Gouges began creating her own version of a declaration. She called it "The Declaration of the Rights of Women and the Citizen"