Author: Berlanstein, Lenard R.

Source: French Politics, Culture & Society, Volume 27, Number 1, Spring 2009 , pp. 1-22(22)

Abstract:

This essay uses readers' opinion surveys in Femina, a unique, high-circulation fashion magazine that championed women's rights, to study the reception of feminist ideas. The readers were fashion-conscious and well-off provincial bourgeoises, a group that might have had conservative attitudes on gender roles. Yet, the many thousands of responses reveal a profound desire to expand women's identities beyond domesticity. About a third of the readers were even indignant that women lacked the freedoms of men. Most others looked forward to a future when society would offer women more opportunities to utilize their talents while reaffirming the satisfactions of familial roles. The surveys show that Frenchwomen were redefining femininity in a more individualistic direction though national emergencies as 1914 approached would make them hesitant about pressing their cause.

Keywords: WOMEN'S ROLES; OPINION SURVEYS; BELLE EPOQUE; WOMEN'S MAGAZINES; FEMINISM

DOI: 10.3167/fpcs.2009.270101

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