»Darum fordre ich diese Freiheit für alle Frauen.« Louise Otto-Peters’ Forderungen im 19. Jahrhundert

This article examines the linguistic means used by Louise Otto-Peters, co-founder of the first German women’s movement, to formulate demands for the women’s movement in the 19^th century. The deontic strength of her demands is analysed on the basis of her texts in two journals that she (co-)edited. It is shown that Louise Otto-Peters used deontically stronger formulations in her earlier texts. In later texts, which were written under more restrictive conditions, she tended to use weaker patterns. This development is interpreted, among other things, as a consequence of the political circumstances of the time.