François Poullain de la Barre
Encyclopedia
François Poulain de la Barre (born 1647 in Paris
, France
, died 1725 in Geneva
, Switzerland
), was a writer, Cartesian and feminist
philosopher.
, Poulain de la Barre adopted the philosophy of Descartes
. He became a priest in the Champagne
area before converting to Protestantism
. After the Edict of Fontainebleau
revoked the Edict of Nantes
, he was exiled in Geneva.
He applied Cartesian principles to the question of women and wrote many texts of social philosophy
which denounced injustice against woman
and by the inequality of the female condition. Supporting the discrimination
they experienced and as one of the champions of social equality
between women and men, he is a precursor of the feminists
.
In 1673, he published anonymously, "equality of the two sexes, speech physical and moral where it is seen the importance to demolish itself prejudge" showing that the inequality and the treatment that women undergo does not have a natural base, but proceeds from cultural prejudice. He recommends that women receive a true education and also says all the careers should be open to them, including scientific careers.
In another work, again anonymous, "Of the education of the ladies for the control of the spirit in sciences and manners", Poulain de la Barre continues reflection on the education of the women, but, a few years later, he defends a completely opposite point of view, "Of the excellence of the men against the equality of the sexes" and refutes in a systematic way his own arguments. Pierre Bayle
has advanced the theory that Poulain would have refuted his own thesis because he felt threatened, but the arguments antifeminists advanced are doubtful of this refutation. Also, the place of Poulain de la Barre in the history of feminism varies considerably from one author to another.
Simone de Beauvoir
, quoting Poulain de la Barre, wrote in an epigraph to The Second Sex
in 1949: "All that has been written about women by men should be
suspect, for the men are at once judge and party to the lawsuit".
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, died 1725 in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
), was a writer, Cartesian and feminist
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
philosopher.
Life
Initially studying theologyTheology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
, Poulain de la Barre adopted the philosophy of Descartes
René Descartes
René Descartes ; was a French philosopher and writer who spent most of his adult life in the Dutch Republic. He has been dubbed the 'Father of Modern Philosophy', and much subsequent Western philosophy is a response to his writings, which are studied closely to this day...
. He became a priest in the Champagne
Champagne, France
Champagne is a historic province in the northeast of France, now best known for the sparkling white wine that bears its name.Formerly ruled by the counts of Champagne, its western edge is about 100 miles east of Paris. The cities of Troyes, Reims, and Épernay are the commercial centers of the area...
area before converting to Protestantism
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
. After the Edict of Fontainebleau
Edict of Fontainebleau
The Edict of Fontainebleau was an edict issued by Louis XIV of France, also known as the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes. The Edict of Nantes of 1598, had granted the Huguenots the right to practice their religion without persecution from the state...
revoked the Edict of Nantes
Edict of Nantes
The Edict of Nantes, issued on 13 April 1598, by Henry IV of France, granted the Calvinist Protestants of France substantial rights in a nation still considered essentially Catholic. In the Edict, Henry aimed primarily to promote civil unity...
, he was exiled in Geneva.
He applied Cartesian principles to the question of women and wrote many texts of social philosophy
Social philosophy
Social philosophy is the philosophical study of questions about social behavior . Social philosophy addresses a wide range of subjects, from individual meanings to legitimacy of laws, from the social contract to criteria for revolution, from the functions of everyday actions to the effects of...
which denounced injustice against woman
Woman
A woman , pl: women is a female human. The term woman is usually reserved for an adult, with the term girl being the usual term for a female child or adolescent...
and by the inequality of the female condition. Supporting the discrimination
Discrimination
Discrimination is the prejudicial treatment of an individual based on their membership in a certain group or category. It involves the actual behaviors towards groups such as excluding or restricting members of one group from opportunities that are available to another group. The term began to be...
they experienced and as one of the champions of social equality
Social equality
Social equality is a social state of affairs in which all people within a specific society or isolated group have the same status in a certain respect. At the very least, social equality includes equal rights under the law, such as security, voting rights, freedom of speech and assembly, and the...
between women and men, he is a precursor of the feminists
Feminism
Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...
.
In 1673, he published anonymously, "equality of the two sexes, speech physical and moral where it is seen the importance to demolish itself prejudge" showing that the inequality and the treatment that women undergo does not have a natural base, but proceeds from cultural prejudice. He recommends that women receive a true education and also says all the careers should be open to them, including scientific careers.
In another work, again anonymous, "Of the education of the ladies for the control of the spirit in sciences and manners", Poulain de la Barre continues reflection on the education of the women, but, a few years later, he defends a completely opposite point of view, "Of the excellence of the men against the equality of the sexes" and refutes in a systematic way his own arguments. Pierre Bayle
Pierre Bayle
Pierre Bayle was a French philosopher and writer best known for his seminal work the Historical and Critical Dictionary, published beginning in 1695....
has advanced the theory that Poulain would have refuted his own thesis because he felt threatened, but the arguments antifeminists advanced are doubtful of this refutation. Also, the place of Poulain de la Barre in the history of feminism varies considerably from one author to another.
Simone de Beauvoir
Simone de Beauvoir
Simone-Ernestine-Lucie-Marie Bertrand de Beauvoir, often shortened to Simone de Beauvoir , was a French existentialist philosopher, public intellectual, and social theorist. She wrote novels, essays, biographies, an autobiography in several volumes, and monographs on philosophy, politics, and...
, quoting Poulain de la Barre, wrote in an epigraph to The Second Sex
The Second Sex
The Second Sex is one of the best-known works of the French existentialist Simone de Beauvoir. It is a work on the treatment of women throughout history and often regarded as a major work of feminist literature and the starting point of second-wave feminism. Beauvoir researched and wrote the book...
in 1949: "All that has been written about women by men should be
suspect, for the men are at once judge and party to the lawsuit".
Works
- De l’Éducation des dames pour la conduite de l’esprit dans les sciences et dans les mœurs, Paris, J. Du Puis, 1674
- De l’Égalité des deux sexes, discours physique et moral où l’on voit l’importance de se défaire des préjugez, Paris, J. Du Puis, 1676
- De l’Égalité des deux sexes, discours physique et moral où l’on voit l’importance de se défaire des préjugez, 2nd edition, Paris, 1679 (annotated transcript in modern French spelling)
- De l’Excellence des hommes contre l’égalité des sexes Paris, J. Du Puis, 1675
Studies and biographies
- Madeleine Alcover, Poullain de la Barre : une aventure philosophique, Paris ; Seattle, Papers on French seventeenth century literature, 1981.
- Elsa Dorlin, L’Évidence de l’égalité des sexes. Une philosophie oubliée du XVIIe, Paris L’Harmattan, 2001 ISBN 9782747500166.
- Christine Fauré, Poullain de la Barre, sociologue et libre penseur, Corpus n° 1, 1985 pp. 43–51.
- Geneviève FraisseGeneviève FraisseGeneviève Fraisse is a French philosopher.She was born within Murs blancs , a community founded by Emmanuel Mounier at Châtenay-Malabry. Her parents, Paul Fraisse and Simone Fraisse , were both professors at the Sorbonne...
, Poullain de la Barre, ou le procès des préjugés, Corpus n° 1, 1985 pp. 27–41. Siep Stuurman, Social Cartesianism : François Poulain de la Barre and the origins of the enlightenment, Journal of the history of ideas, 1997, vol. 58, no4, pp. 617–640. Siep Stuurman, François Poulain de la Barre and the Invention of Modern Equality, Cambridge (Mass.), Harvard University Press, 2004 ISBN 9780674011854.
External links
- Siep STUURMAN: François Poulain de la Barre and the Invention of Modern Equality. Cambridge (Mass.), Harvard University Press, 2004, X-361 pages, [a book review] by Marie-Frédérique Pellegrin and Nicole Pellegrin
- XVIIIème siècle: La femme entre nature et société on Thucydide