Stuff You Missed in History Class
Hosted by Holly Frey and Tracy V. Wilson
Written by a model from the transcript; not yet reviewed.
This episode explores the life and legacy of Olympe de Gouges, an 18th-century French activist and playwright best known for her 1791 pamphlet, Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Female Citizen. Born Marie Guz in Montauban in 1748, she moved to Paris following the death of her husband, adopted her new name, and immersed herself in literature and theater. Beyond her famous feminist writings, she wrote more than 40 plays—including the explicitly abolitionist work The Slavery of Negroes—and over 60 political pamphlets advocating for divorce rights, the abolition of the death penalty, and protections for children born out of wedlock. Although she supported the French Revolution, her vocal advocacy for a constitutional monarchy and her defense of Marie Antoinette eventually led to her arrest, trial, and execution by guillotine in November 1793.
Hosts welcome listeners and run through a series of product ads before launching into the episode.
The hosts discuss the murky origins of de Gouges, her birth name, and the conflicting accounts of her parents and childhood.
The conversation turns to de Gouges’s entry into Parisian literary circles, her early novels, and her prolific output of plays.
The episode details the charges against de Gouges, her courtroom defense, and her eventual guillotine execution.
The hosts discuss how de Gouges was vilified after death, her eventual recognition, and the modern reassessment of her contributions.
The hosts wrap up the episode, invite feedback, and provide contact information for listeners.
Hazy Early Lifeinsight
The early life of Marie Guz, later known as Olympe de Gouges, is full of contradictions and obscure details, including conflicting accounts of her parentage and whether she brought her son with her to Paris.
Name Change and Move to Parisstory
After her husband died following a river flood, Marie Guz refused to remarry and moved to Paris in 1767, changing her name to Olympe de Gouges using parts of her parents' names.
Monopoly of Comédie Françaisedata
During the 18th century, the Comédie Française held a monopoly on professional public theater in Paris, maintaining massive backlogs that left new playwrights entirely at the mercy of the company's whims.
Scant Representation for Womendata
Between 1761 and 1789, the Comédie Française accepted only nine plays written by women, making up a tiny fraction of the theater's overall repertoire despite royal regulations requiring dozens of new productions per year.
The First Abolitionist Playinsight
De Gouges's play originally titled Zemmour and Mirza was eventually performed as The Slavery of Negroes, marking the first explicitly abolitionist play in France told from the viewpoint of enslaved people.
Declaration of Rights of Womanstrategy
Published in September 1791, De Gouges's famous declaration mirrored the structure of the Rights of Man point by point while explicitly inserting women into equal citizenship and legal rights.
Arrest for Federalism Proposalstory
In July 1793, De Gouges proposed that each French department govern itself, an act of federalism that ultimately led to her arrest amid the escalating violence and centralization of the Reign of Terror.
Trial and Executionstory
Denied legal representation at her trial, De Gouges was convicted of writing works that advocated the re-establishment of royalty and was executed by guillotine on November 3, 1793.
“They look very different in writing, but they're pronounced a little similarly.”
“We do know that she was born Marie Guz on May 7, 1748, in Montauban, which is north of Toulouse in southern France.”
“She may have also meant her new name is sort of a racy joke, because at the time, 'Gouge' was a slang term for body women.”
“She framed this book as a real correspondence, with only the names changed to protect the reputations of the people involved.”
“Olympe de Gouges wrote one other novel during her lifetime, but she was a lot more prolific when it came to writing plays.”
This 2021 episode covers Olympe de Gouges, known primarily for her 1791 pamphlet “Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Citizen.” But her writing and political activity went far beyond that one pamphlet. See omnystudio.com/listener https://omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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