Clémence Royer, the first woman in the Société d’Anthropologie

Of the 19th-century women in science "Clémence Royer was a self-taught French scholar who lectured and wrote on economics, philosophy, science and feminism" and, according to Wikipedia, "is best known for her controversial 1862 French translation of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species."  Royer was also the first woman to be accepted as a full member to the Société d’Anthropologie (1870–85). 

I didn't know about her at all. Until yesterday.

Or of her statue in Paree where she obviously agrees (in bronze) with my less pants is more philosophy and added a lap blanket and book for maximum badassery. Vive la Clémence! 

 Bronze exposé au Salon des Artistes Français de 1912, Henri Godet.

Or of her Doctrine de la Vie:

Should I Duolingo all the high school French I forgot so I can read this?

Non. I'm requesting the dourly-named, Uneasy Careers and Intimate Lives: Women in Science 1789-1979 (below) from interlibrary loan.  The best things about civilization are central heating, drinkable water, sewage treatment, and interlibrary loan. 

A review of the book included this gem: "furthermore the editors should be heartily applauded for avoiding the temptation to slip (i.e. feminist) [italics mine] ideology into the text." 

Duh, reviewer, the feminist commentary is RIGHT THERE IN THE TITLE. Both life and careers were uneasy.

Photo credits:

Caricature of Clémence Royer from Les Hommes d'aujourd'hui published in 1881