In a society where order is the watchword, women criminals embody the dark figure of evil and monstrosity; they are those who, by transgressing the forbidden, have distanced themselves from our civilised world. And yet, court cases from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries usually involve women struggling alone to cope with their suffering or malaise, sometimes overwhelmed by their own violence. Often victims, they one day became executioners, out of hatred, despair or madness.
Who are they and what is their profile? What is the image of the poisoner in particular? What specific crimes are they accused of, and what is the judicial response? These are just some of the questions that will be discussed.
Annick Le Douget, a former court clerk, is a research associate at the Centre de recherche bretonne et celtique de Brest (CRBC). She is the author of some fifteen books on the subject of justice and crime in Brittany, and is particularly interested in the status of rural women.
Who are they and what is their profile? What is the image of the poisoner in particular? What specific crimes are they accused of, and what is the judicial response? These are just some of the questions that will be discussed.
Annick Le Douget, a former court clerk, is a research associate at the Centre de recherche bretonne et celtique de Brest (CRBC). She is the author of some fifteen books on the subject of justice and crime in Brittany, and is particularly interested in the status of rural women.
