Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen
This document was conceptualized by parliament of France during the French Revolution (Anderson, 1908, p.59). The document was categorical that men were born in freedom and deserved equal treatment. The document maintained that the rulers of government had a duty to protect and safeguard these natural rights.
The declaration stated that any form of political mandate was derived from the masses. Members of the French National Assembly appreciated the need to uphold and safeguard rights of man (Anderson, 1908, p.59). The declaration contained a list of natural and inalienable rights and privileges of man (Anderson, 1908, p.59).
However, the declaration was categorical that all rights and privileges demanded a sense of duty and responsibility.
This declaration ensured that the actions of the executive and legislative arm of government upheld the rights and dignity of man (Anderson, 1908, p.59). The declaration ensured that all citizens lived in harmony and in absolute respect for constitutional provisions regarding natural rights.
The declaration had provisions regarding the rights of man and the citizen. All men were born in equality and freedom. According to the declaration, any political undertaking should be geared towards preservation of rights of man. Those rights include: freedom, riches, and agitation for rights.
The nation was declared to be the sole owner of all sovereign powers and all individual power was to be derived from the sovereign entity (Anderson, 1908, p.60). Liberty was defined as the ability to do anything that does not contravene the rights of man.
The law was granted the ability to stop any actions that posed danger to the rights of men (Anderson, 1908, p.60). Law was meant to protect all people. All had a right to participate in making laws. Man could only be arrested or held in isolation after the law granted such provision (Anderson, 1908, p.60). The law allowed punishment for wrongdoing.
This was to be carried out in accordance to established legal guidelines. Under the law, every man was held as innocent unless guilt was proven in a court of law. The declaration granted man the right to express opinion on condition that the opinion did not contravene law and order.
The right to opinion was considered a basic right of every man (Anderson, 1908, p.61). The rights of man were to be checked and maintained by an institution for the good of all.
Citizens were granted a right to remit taxes to the government at will, and for the common good. Society had to guarantee the rights of man and uphold them in accordance with the constitution. The declaration was clear on the right of man to hold and manage private property (Anderson, 1908, p.61).
Declaration of the rights of woman and the female citizen
This document was authored by Olympe De Gouges in 1791. She argued that in the Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen, the rights of women were not catered for (Levy, Applewhite, and Johnson, 1980, p.87).
She was concerned that women were not granted a right to vote, right to hold legislative office, and other fundamental rights that were granted to men.
Of importance to her, was the fact that women were not granted a right to education (Levy, et al., 1980, p.87). She argued that the Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen did not cater for the welfare of women. This reality prompted her to write the Declaration of the Rights of Woman.
She wondered why men were conspiring to deny women their rights (Levy, et al., 1980, p89). She felt that men were acting inappropriately and had no right to oppress women. She argued that men had no right to control women since women were intellectually equal to men.
She demanded that women be allowed the right to hold public office. She argued that discrimination against women was the fundamental cause for wickedness in leadership (Levy, et al., 1980, p.91). She argued that women had rights and privileges that were natural and God-given.
The document held that woman was born in freedom and equal to man. Woman was also guaranteed the right to engage in political association. The document was very categorical that woman was entitled to equal treatment as man (Levy, et al., 1980, p.94).
Differences between the two declarations
The two documents were different in terms of authorship and intent. One was authored to safeguard the rights of man. It was constituted by individuals who had the sole aim of propagating patriarchy. The Declaration for Rights of Man was concerned with the welfare of man.
Its contents were insensitive to gender concerns. The document propagated the view that men were superior to women. Women were not entitled to hold any form of power. Women were meant to remain at home. Women had no right to hold or manage property.
On the other hand, the Declaration for the Rights of Woman was authored by an individual who was disappointed by the contents of the Declaration for the Rights of Man. she protested the unfair treatment that was directed towards woman. She argued that all persons were born equal in freedom.
She felt woman was entitled to equal rights as man. Essentially, the declaration for rights of man was about the rights of man, while the declaration for rights of woman was meant to protest on the unfair treatment that was visited upon woman.
References
Anderson, F. (1908). The Constitution and Other Select Documents Illustrative of the History of France, 1789-1907. New York: Russell and Russell.
Levy, D., Applewhite, H., and Johnson, M. (1980). Women in Revolutionary Paris, 1789- 1795. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.