Feminist approach to the allegory of liberty

Includes bibliographical references (pages [99]-101)This thesis began as a study of images of women used in representation of strong, masculine, abstract ideals. It was narrowed to discuss images of Liberty in France during the nineteenth century. The research questioned why strongly masculine ideals such as liberty were represented with female figures during an era when the feminine half of humanity was considered at best second class and at worst nonexistent. French politics, culture, art, and literature were studied to form an idea of the pervasive views existing during that century. The thesis looked at two prevailing archetypes of female imagery that existed in nineteenth-century French art and literature, the Virgin Mary/Mother and the Temptress Eve/Whore. The thesis examined these two archetypes in terms of their various characteristics and discussed their use throughout the era. Then, a comparison was made between these archetypes and the allegorical images of Liberty. Also, the idea and use of allegory was studied throughout history. This allowed for a more accurate view of allegorical use during that time. Finally, the image of Liberty itself, in all its various forms, both twodimensional and three-dimensional as well as live representation, was extensively researched. Many variations exist and were popular during the nineteenth century. For the thesis itself, several examples were noted and two main artistic renderings were studied in depth. These were Eugene Delacroix's painting Liberty Leading the People and Francois Rude's sculptural relief Departure of the Volunteers.M.A. (Master of Arts