Parité!: Sexual Equality and the Crisis of French UniversalismFrance today is in the throes of a crisis about whether to represent social differences within its political system and, if so, how. It is a crisis defined by the rhetoric of a universalism that takes the abstract individual to be the representative not only of citizens but also of the nation. In Parité! Joan Wallach Scott shows how the requirement for abstraction has led to the exclusion of women from French politics. During the 1990s, le mouvement pour la parité successfully campaigned for women's inclusion in elective office with an argument that is unprecedented in the annals of feminism. The paritaristes insisted that if the abstract individual were thought of as sexed, then sexual difference would no longer be a relevant consideration in politics. Scott insists that this argument was neither essentialist nor separatist; it was not about women's special qualities or interests. Instead, parité was rigorously universalist—and for that reason was both misunderstood and a source of heated debate. |
Contents
1 The Crisis of Representation | 10 |
2 The Rejection of Quotas | 34 |
3 The Dilemma of Difference | 50 |
4 The Campaign for Parite | 74 |
5 The Discourse of the Couple | 100 |
6 The Power of the Law | 124 |
Conclusion | 146 |
Notes | 152 |
Index | 182 |
Other editions - View all
Parité!: Sexual Equality and the Crisis of French Universalism Joan Wallach Scott No preview available - 2005 |
Parité!: Sexual Equality and the Crisis of French Universalism Joan Wallach Scott No preview available - 2005 |
Common terms and phrases
abstract individualism activists Agacinski Alain Juppé anatomical duality argued arguments Badinter campaign candidates Catherine Tasca Cited citizens citizenship civil society Claude Servan-Schreiber cohabiting concrete constitution council critics cultural debate democracy deputies difference of sex discrimination elective office Elisabeth Elisabeth Badinter Elisabeth Guigou ence endorsed equality Eric Fassin Etienne Balibar European female feminism feminists France Françoise Gaspard French political gender Geneviève Fraisse Gisèle Halimi heterosexual heterosexual couple homosexual Hubertine Auclert Ibid identity immigrants increasing the numbers insisted issue Jospin June Juppé L'Express la parité legislative elections Lionel Jospin male March masculine mayors Mitterrand Monde National Assembly North African numbers of women Observatoire PaCS Paris paritaristes parité law parité movement Parité-Infos political parties politicians positions pouvoir citoyennes principle question quotas recognition representatives Republic republicanists Rosanvallon Roselyne Bachelot seats Senate sexual difference Sineau Slavoj Žižek socialist symbolic Théry tion universalism vote voters woman women in politics