The Workers' Union

At last, my third writing has been published! I must say that I am rather proud of this one. Not only does it contain all of my well-thought-out thoughts on the proletariat situation, but it also has a place for women in it. Yes, that is correct! I have put the spot light on the connection between the freedom of the working class and the delivery of women’s rights. I have put all the knowledge that I have gathered over the years from various other socialists and rolled them all into one ball with my ideas and created this masterpiece! In this essay I recognize that the working class has had no success for many years and I propose that they should come together in order to make themselves stronger. Combining their forces would render them stronger because they have numbers on their side, and numbers mean a great deal. Also, it is necessary to liberate women in order to complete the emancipation of the working class because if they are not, then technically, the proletariat class would not be united, it would just be the working guys and over there are the working girls. In addition, the liberation of women would benefit the greatest amount of people. Although women may be able to see the benefits of liberating women, for men it is not as easy. Therefore, I included a series of benefits to men that would persuade them to think equally of women. I am sure that this is a great plan and it will definitely succeed.

How people saw me.

“When I saw her for the first time, she was wonderfully attractive… Elegant and lithe in stature, with a proud and animated appearance, her eyes brimming with the fires of the Orient, long black hair which might have served as a cloak, dark complexion, that fine olive tome that shimmers vividly, when youth and emotion mingle on that cheek aflame with a consuming fire [;] fine, attractive, even teeth, considerable grace in her bearing, firmness in her step, austerity in her dress… [U]nhappy not to be queen somewhere, if not to be queen everywhere, she was a very disturbing and very curious subject of study; you were afraid to meet her, and that fear was mixed with a certain joy.”

Works Cited: Flora Tristan: Life Stories by Susan K. Grogan; (quote from a person who met Flora Tristan)

O. M. G.

Oh. My. Goodness! I cannot believe what just happened. I have just been shot. Yes, I will repeat once more. I have just been shot….. What is going on?! Apparently my EX-husband has been stalking me! Oh my dear lord! You have got to be kidding me! I had no idea! I did not even know such creeps even existed! I mean, I knew my husband was extremely angry when I decided to leave him, but I did not know that he would stalk me! I view myself as a strong woman and knew that I would face many hardships once I left him, but this, this I was not prepared for. How am I supposed to cope with the fact that all this time I thought my children and I were safe when really we have been watched continuously by the very man we were trying to get away from?! I am beyond shock. Not only am I shocked, but I am also wounded! Now I am going to have to sit out of work for some time until my wound heals. This is bad because I still have to provide for my children, but I cannot do that if I cannot even work! It amazes me how just one person could totally ruin your life forever. Thank goodness he has been sent to do harsh labor for twenty years.

My first published work!

I am so excited! Finally, I have been noticed for my writing instead of a woman who is a disgrace! My first published work, Peregrinations of a Pariah! Not only will this book earn me money, but it will also reveal the struggles that so many unfortunate women go through daily. In this diary, I have described my struggles as a wife with that devil Andre-Francois Chazal, my journeys to Peru in search of my family and money, and my hardships financially as a single mother with three kids to look after. Not only should this diary be able to affect the hearts of many women and possibly men, it shall also wake up the women that have faced the same hardships as I have and encourage them to stand up and fight back! I believe that women should be equal with men and should be able to stand up for themselves if desired. No women should be subjected to the abusive qualities of men and the financial destitute that could happen to them at any moment if their husband suddenly died. Also, no women should have to face the painful decision of whether or not to take her children away from a stable income or to save them from a disgusting father. Although it seems so obvious to choose the latter, I have to argue that the idea that maybe your child could have a fairly decent life is very tempting to a mother. All in all, this diary definitely confronts women’s struggles for equality and I am proud of it.

I CANNOT STAND MY HUSBAND.

That is it! I am done with this man! I hate him so much I want to shred him to pieces with my own teeth! Yes, I am talking about my absolutely horrible husband, Andre-Francois Chazal. Not only is he disgustingly rude towards me, he is also ridiculously overbearing. I cannot stand him any longer than I already have. Although I have two children and am pregnant with a third, I am going to leave him! I feel sad for my children. They will lose a father and a stable income. However, I think that it is safer not only for me, but also for them, to get away from this horrible man. If I do not protect them from him, what kind of woman would I be?  Although I am looked at as a disgraceful woman for leaving my husband, what would I be if I kept my children near him? The answer is a despicable person who should not be allowed to live. So, I choose to ignore the normal role of a woman as a behaved wife who does whatever her husband tells her to do. I choose to live my life independently. I choose to save myself from the horrible abuse and to save my children from horrible nightmares. And although it may seem like I am making a bad choice simply because I am still unfortunately, financially desperate, I believe that I am making the right choice as a mother and a woman.

What I looked like back in the day.

Introduction to Flora Tristan!

Hello! I am Flora Tristan! I am a Peruvian socialist writer and activist and also a feminist. I wrote several works, but my best known are Peregrinations of a Pariah, Promenades in London, and The Workers’ Union. My father was Mariano Tristan y Moscoso, a Peruvian colonel of the Spanish Navy, and my mother was Anne-Pierre Laisney, a French woman. I was born on 7 April 1803 in Paris, France. After my father died when I was four, my mother’s, brother’s and my life changed considerably from the high-class standards we were used to. My father’s debt was very high and my mother had little money. In my father’s will, he denied us any money, so we were forced to live in poverty. Although we were left with little money, my mother was able to make some money with various jobs and was eventually able to pay off my father’s debt. We then moved to the countryside. When I was fifteen, my mother and I both moved to Paris to find more work. I was poorly educated, unable to support myself, and had no one to marry. Not only did this set me apart from all the other girls my age, but it also forced me into a relationship I did not care for. It all began when I found my love for art. I had begun taking dancing lessons and working as a porcelain painter, but I could not earn enough money to support myself. This forced me to find another job. I was then employed by an engraver who owned a workshop named Andre Chazal. I was able to work mostly at home and could take a few lessons from him at his workshop. However, because of my continued financial instability, I had no choice, but to marry Chazal. For the next four years, I lived with Chazal and had two children, but when I became pregnant with the third child, I could not handle Chazal any longer; he was abusive and unforgiving. So, I left him although I was pregnant and still financially desperate. Because of this decision, I was looked at with disgrace and seen as an improper woman. I soon took up a job as a maid, where I would discover the poor working conditions and the mistreatment of women. Throughout all those years, I had kept a diary that was later published as Peregrinations of a Pariah. This was the start of my famous socialist and feminist career. I then began to write about the poor working conditions in France and started a lecturing tour in France about my philosophies on utopian socialism. I traveled because I wanted to form committees that would continue my work to organize a universal workers union. It was during these times that I wrote an essay titled The Workers’ Union. Throughout my travels, I learned much about myself and the struggles of other women. I continued to vouch for women’s rights and travel for a while, but I died while I was on my tour on 14 November 1844 in Bordeaux, France.

Works Consulted: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flora_Tristan; http://www.womeninworldhistory.com/imow-Tristan.pdf