1780s: In the mid-1780s, France is a monarchy ruled by King Louis XVI. The king holds absolute power.

Today: France is a republic headed by a president who is elected by popular vote for a seven-year term.

1780s: French women lack the same rights as men. For instance, the father is the absolute authority of the family and males usually supersede females in inheritance rights.

Today: Although laws guarantee women political, economic, and social rights equal to men, French women still are discriminated against. For example, they earn on average twenty percent less than men and make up less than five percent of senior managers in France's two hundred largest companies. An unequal division of labor still exists at home, where women complete eighty percent of domestic tasks and working women spend two hours more each day on such tasks than working men...