Bypassing, Cooperating or Competing with the ‘Men in White’?

Bypassing, Cooperating or Competing with the ‘Men in White’? Examples of Networks Developed by the First Women Doctors in Switzerland and France (1870–1940)

Abstract

At the end of the nineteenth century, France and Switzerland were known for their ‘medical feminism’, which however remained confined to the academic level. Women were admitted to medical faculties in both countries as early as 1867, several years before the rest of Western Europe. As a result, many young women from all over the world studied medicine in Switzerland and France. But on entering the professional world, they encountered many barriers to career advancement. To overcome them, women used their networks. Their strategies were varied, ranging from integration into men’s networks, creation of a feminine ‘inner self’ and underground alliances. Far from reproducing a model, women doctors opened up new paths and different ways of doing things. It is this feminine agency that this article examines.