Daughters of 1968
Redefining French Feminism and the Women's Liberation Movement
Format:Hardback
Publisher:University of Nebraska Press
Published:1st Jan '19
Should be back in stock very soon
Daughters of 1968 is the story of French feminism between 1944 and 1981, when feminism played a central political role in the history of France. The key women during this epoch were often leftists committed to a materialist critique of society and were part of a postwar tradition that produced widespread social change, revamping the workplace and laws governing everything from abortion to marriage.
The May 1968 events—with their embrace of radical individualism and antiauthoritarianism—triggered a break from the past, and the women’s movement split into two strands. One became universalist and intensely activist, the other particularist and less activist, distancing itself from contemporary feminism. This theoretical debate manifested itself in battles between women and organizations on the streets and in the courts.
The history of French feminism is the history of women’s claims to individualism and citizenship that had been granted their male counterparts, at least in principle, in 1789. Yet French women have more often donned the mantle of particularism, advancing their contributions as mothers to prove their worth as citizens, than they have thrown it off, claiming absolute equality. The few exceptions, such as Simone de Beauvoir or the 1970s activists, illustrate the diversity and tensions within French feminism, as France moved from a corporatist and tradition-minded country to one marked by individualism and modernity.
“‘Femininity and womanhood had long been expressions of women’s power and the root of their identity in French society,’ writes Lisa Greenwald. Her lively, smart, and thoroughly researched book shows how those terms—and the power arrangements and identities they stood for—were revised, reinterpreted, and repudiated. . . . The fiftieth anniversary of May ’68 will direct new attention to its powerful aftershocks. Feminism was one of those aftershocks, and Greenwald’s book will be part of our reappraisal of this historical moment.”In an entanglement of opinions and assumptions, Greenwald thoroughly iterates the principal arguments and struggles of this time and any scholar researching feminism, or perhaps simply a curious reader, would do well to pick up this book. Judith G. Coffin, associate professor of history at the University of Texas at Austin
“Lisa Greenwald introduces anglophone audiences to the breadth and depth of second-wave feminism in France. Her bold analysis encompasses much more than theory by restoring to us the complexity of the activist components of the Mouvement de Libération des Femmes.”—Karen Offen, senior scholar, Michelle R. Clayman Institute for Gender Research at Stanford University
“Finally! In her remarkable book on the history of French feminism after World War II, Lisa Greenwald restores overlooked feminist activists of the 1950s and 1960s to their rightful place. Embedding them in their changing historical context, Greenwald follows feminism through upheaval and fracture after 1968, exploring both the unresolved dilemmas and the profound changes feminists brought about.”—Sarah Fishman, associate dean for undergraduate studies, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences at the University of Houston
“A solid and well-documented investigation into the Women’s Liberation Movement in France: its actions, its components, its relations with previous generations, and its painful internal conflicts. It reveals the very important role played by radical and materialist feminists. It is an effective antidote against the invention of ‘French feminism’ by some American scholars.”—Sylvie Chaperon, professor of contemporary and gender history at the University of Toulouse Jean Jaurès, Laboratory FRAMESPA
“This is the book you need in order to grasp the complex history of French Second-Wave Feminism.”—Bibia Pavard, senior lecturer in history, Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Analysis of Media (CARISM) at the University Paris II
ISBN: 9781496207555
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: unknown
426 pages