"Anarchy has become my religion, because it is what raised me up and made me
become a man", this is what François Déjoux declared in front of the judge in1883. Activism, political support and construction of gender identity are fullyenshrined in this statement. ---- This is the subject of Clara Schildnecht'sstudy: to study anarchist groups over the period from 1871 to 1920, under theprism of gender in order to update "the mechanisms of construction of gendernorms at work in libertarian movements. ---- Concerning the anarchists of theso-called "Belle Époque", this question comes down to asking whether thesepolitical activists who radically question the bourgeois order, construct "newcategories other than class and age virilities".Starting from the militant writings that flourished at that time, crossed withother sources: generalist press and police archives in particular, the authorreports not only on the mechanisms of construction of gender norms within theanarchist movement, but also on their evolution. over this period.Clara Schildnecht analyzes in turn the relationship to virility and often"heroized" violence and questions, with regard to the values of emancipationcarried by libertarians, the common traits of these groups: communists orindividualists.The space-time of the trial is thus particularly conducive to highlighting thismasculinity, which is all the more exacerbated and staged as it is taken up bythe newspapers and fully participates in the construction of the anarchistidentity. The "nerve", the "panache" are signs visible to everyone, and inparticular to other activists, and which, like the fact of assuming one'sanarchist convictions, participate just as much in the demonstration of virilemasculinity than the strength of militant quality.The author also focuses on the question of the place of women both in theanarchist movement and in anarchist historiography. On this particular point shecomes up against two difficulties: apart from a few famous names, women arealmost absent, invisible both in militant writings and also in police reports.The libertarian movement of the Belle Époque was extremely critical of feminism,accused of reformism, and saw the liberation of women possible only in anarchism.If "the anarchism of the Belle Époque wanted to bear the banner of femaleemancipation", this liberation was conceived only in relation to the norms ofbourgeois society of the time. The radicalism of the discourse against the familyand marriage was not accompanied by "critical reflection on the place[that theanarchists]granted to women in militant bodies".Yet women are often summoned in the militant press, more for "political ends","as objects, supports of anarchist propaganda" than "to raise questions about the'feminine condition' or to promote social and mentalist progress in society orthe militant world".The anarchists from this point of view reproduce an essentializing vision, thatof the "nature of woman", mobilized certainly in a political way but whichrestricts women to the role of childbirth. The author sees in this a marker ofthe proximity of anarchists to the scientific and medical discourses of the time.This fascinating and stimulating book, which brings us into contact with thegreat figures of anarchism of that time, makes it possible to deal with aquestion that has not been broached much - and which will often resonate asfamiliar to today's activists - and to take a look new and singularly enriched ona period that is already historiographically rich.David (UCL Chambery)Clara Schildnecht, Bold, companions ! Anarchist masculinities and virility in theBelle Epoque, Libertalia, February 2023, 252 pages, 10 euros.https://www.unioncommunistelibertaire.org/?Lire-Clara-Schildnecht-Hardi-compagnons-Masculinite-et-virilite-anarchistes-a_________________________________________A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C EBy, For, and About AnarchistsSend news reports to A-infos-en mailing listA-infos-en@ainfos.ca
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