Quotes
The word “salon” was first used in France in the 17th century, derived from the Italian salone , meaning “large hall.” Catherine de Vivonne, the marquise de Rambouillet (1588–1665), was one of the first women to establish a salon, located at her Paris home in a room that became known as the Chambre bleu (Blue Room).
However, “feminism” as a concept did not emerge until 1837, when Frenchman Charles Fourier first used the term féminisme .
“It was exciting to learn facts about our bodies, but it was even more exciting to talk about how we felt about our bodies.”
Our Bodies, Ourselves
The premier London salon was held in the Mayfair home of Elizabeth Montagu, who had married into a rich family of coal mine and estate owners. Around 1750, she and a number of like-minded women, in particular the wealthy Irish intellectual Elizabeth Vesey, established the Blue Stockings Society. The name derived from the preference among men for blue worsted over black silk for daytime stockings. Its name symbolized a less formal occasion than a courtly gathering.
Salons provided a respectable space in which women could exhibit their intellectual curiosity. At first, they featured discussions about literary works, then drew both men and women into discourse about political thought and scientific ideas.