Revolution and Education in Late Nineteenth Century France: The Early Career of Paul Robin.

TLDR: In this paper, the authors illustrate the links that bound together the sexual, political and educational concerns of the libertarian left and show how deeply rooted in the past century are the current debates regarding the education of women and workers.

Abstract: IN THE ORTHODOX, "Whig" interpretations of the history of education of nineteenth-century France the focus of attention has traditionally been on the triumph of free, obligatory and secular education. (1) In recent years historians have attempted to provide a more balanced picture by also chronicling the activities of the "losers" in this confrontation - the defenders of religious education. (2) But one group has been left out of both accounts-the propagandists for a working-class education free of the interference of both the Catholic Church and the capitalist state. Of this latter group of thinkers the most interesting was Paul Robin, not simply because his views were the most radical, but because for over a decade this educational anarchist controlled an institution in which he could test his theories in practice. The purpose of the following account of Robin's work is first to illustrate the links that bound together the sexual, political and educational concerns of the libertarian left and secondly to show how deeply rooted in the past century are the current debates regarding the education of women and workers.