Thierry Nootens

Thierry Nootens, « “Des privations ne peuvent pas constituer une fortune” : les droits financiers des femmes mariées de la bourgeoisie québécoise face au marché?, 1900-1930 », Revue d’histoire de l’Amérique française, vol. 65, n° 1, 2011, p. 59-96.

The history of women and feminism has shown that from the late 19th century onward, married women in Quebec were at a disadvantage in comparison to those in the rest of Canada because of legal restrictions imposed upon them by the Civil Code. What were the consequences of this judicial inferiority for married women apart from property ownership when they were sometimes privileged or protected by their marriage contract? In his article, “‘Des privations ne peuvent pas constituer une fortune.’ Les droits financiers des femmes mariées de la bourgeoisie québécoise face au marché, 1900-1930,” Thierry Nootens analyzes 71 legal cases to understand better the experiences of these women. Going far beyond a study of the law, his research reveals the difficulties and constraints weighing upon them, as well as the ambiguities and loopholes found in marriage contracts. He demonstrates that while some women managed to assert their rights in the event of conflict, others were victims of their husband’s unwise transactions, unenforceable clauses and misappropriation of funds. The article unveils the wives’ fragile situation and exposes the difference between that which the law permits or requires, the decisions made by husbands, the constraints imposed by economic hardship and the difficulty of upholding the rights of wives in a market economy.