Sophie's World

by Jostein Gaarder

‘One of those who fought hardest for the rights of women during the French Revolution was Olympe de Gouges. In 1791 – two years after the revolution – she published a declaration on the rights of women. The declaration on the rights of the citizen had not included any article on women’s natural rights. Olympe de Gouges now demanded all the same rights for women as for men.’ ‘What happened?’ ‘She was beheaded in 1793. And all political activity for women was banned.’ ‘How shameful!’ ‘It was not until the nineteenth century that feminism really got under way, not only in France but also in the rest of Europe. Little by little this struggle began to bear fruit. But in Norway, for example, women did not get the right to vote until 1913. And women in many parts of the world still have a lot to fight for.’