The Fourth Estate in Petticoats

The Feminist Marguerite Durand Library’s archives (BMD) in Paris include the work of two significant journalists: Marguerite Durand and Jane Misme, who both founded newspapers (La Fronde—1897, referred to as “Le Temps en jupon” (“Le Temps in petticoats”) and La Française—1912) and published articles by or about some of the first women lawyers, doctors, scientists, suffragists, artists, and literary critics. Durand and Misme understood the importance of giving voice and recognition to women who could finally compete with male peers in professions that were opening to them. They were influential in shaping the image of the “new woman” of the Belle Époque. Their manuscripts richly reflect France’s Belle Époque, its institutionalized misogyny, and their daily fight to dispel it.