Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Woman-Citizen (1791) was written by Olympe de Gouges in response to the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (1789). In her Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Woman-Citizen, Olympe de Gouges denounced the practice of male authority and, essentially, male-female inequality, hoping to reveal the failures of the French Revolution in regards to the recognition of sex equality. Arguing not only for herself, but for women of France, Olympe de Gouges contended women possessed the capability to reason and establish moral decisions, thus, constituting women as equals to men. In her “postambule,” Olympe de Gouges stated, “women, rouse yourself,” incessantly summoning women to acknowledge this equality and to cease being blind to it. (27) Unlike the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which limited citizenship to men, each of the 17 articles of the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Woman-Citizen pertained to both women and men, as Olympe de Gouges strived for equality. To demonstrate this desire for equality, Article VII stated, “Women obey, just as men, this rigorous law.” (25)

Olympe de Gouges’ tone throughout the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Woman-Citizen was authoritative, confident, direct, and passionate. She emphasized “WOMAN”/”WOMEN” and “REVOLUTION” with the use of capitalization. The intensity of her tone resulted in me feeling as if I were being lectured when reading her “postambule,” where her tone suddenly changed to vexation and desperation. In Liberty or Death: Proclamation to the Inhabitants of “Hayti,“ Jean Jacques Dessalines portrayed similar emotion to that of Olympe de Gouges with his motto and rallying cry. (39) Edmund Burke, however, pacified himself in Reflections on the Revolution in France.

The Enlightenment began during the late seventeenth century, a period of great mayhem. Reason had guided thinkers to the conclusion that kings and queens were standard mortals, generating uncertainty. In A Dictionary of the English Language, Samuel Johnson’s definition of “enlighten” constituted “to furnish with encrease of knowledge” and “to illuminate with divine knowledge.” (104) Essentially, this definition encompassed the world view of Enlightenment thinkers, who aspired for individuals not to rely on external authorities and, instead, utilize their intelligence to critically think through potentially persuasive and misleading claims. Hence, these individuals would become independent and skeptical adults capable of utilizing reason as opposed to prejudice or habit to ultimately attain knowledge and freedom from conventional wisdom.

Immanuel Kant’s text, What Is Enlightenment?, resonated with me more than the texts of Johnson, Descartes, and Diderot & D’Alembert. Kant’s definition of “enlightenment” is “man’s release from his self-incurred tutelage,” which is an individual’s inability to utilize her/his understanding without direction from another individual. Kant credits lifelong tutelage of mankind to laziness and cowardice due to a dependence on guardians, generating “I need not think, if I can only pay” as a way of thinking. (105) Kant detested this immaturity, as he stated nothing is required for this enlightenment but the freedom to make public use of one’s reason. (106) Finally, I appreciate Kant’s distinction in regards to an “enlightened age,” which we are not, and an “age of enlightenment,” which we are, because I believe tutelage will continue to exist regardless of its gradual reduction. (108) In today’s age of social media, the bandwagon effect is visible, as it is desirable to agree than disagree with majority opinion.