Before Trans (eBook)

Three Gender Stories from Nineteenth-Century France

Rachel Mesch (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2023
360 Seiten
Stanford University Press (Verlag)
978-1-5036-1235-8 (ISBN)

Infos

"e;This thoughtful academic treatise . . . explores the lives of three famous gender nonconformists in fin-de-siecle Paris."e; -Publishers Weekly Before the term "e;transgender"e; existed, there were those who experienced their gender in complex ways. Before Trans examines the lives and writings of Jane Dieulafoy (1850 1916), Rachilde (1860 1953), and Marc de Montifaud (1845 1912), three French writers whose gender expression did not conform to nineteenth-century notions of femininity. Dieulafoy fought alongside her husband in the Franco-Prussian War; later she wrote novels about girls becoming boys and enjoyed being photographed in her signature men's suits. Rachilde became famous in the 1880s for her controversial gender-bending novel Monsieur Venus, published around the same time that she started using a calling card that read "e;Rachilde, Man of Letters."e; Montifaud turned to erotic writings, for which she was repeatedly charged with "e;offense to public decency"e;; she wore tailored men's suits and a short haircut and went by masculine pronouns among certain friends. Dieulafoy, Rachilde, and Montifaud established themselves as fixtures in the literary world of fin-de-siecle Paris at the same time as French writers, scientists, and doctors were becoming fascinated with sexuality and sexual difference. Even so, the concept of gender identity as separate from sexual identity did not yet exist. Before Trans explores these three figures' efforts to articulate a sense of selfhood that did not align with the conventional gender roles of their day. Their personal stories provide vital historical context for our own efforts to understand the nature of gender identity. "e;A fresh and original take on trans history."e; Jack Halberstam, author of The Queer Art of Failure

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 25.5.2023
• Zusatzinfo: 58 photographs
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Biografien / Erfahrungsberichte
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Romane / Erzählungen
• Themenwelt: Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Geschichte / Politik
• Themenwelt: Geisteswissenschaften ► Geschichte ► Regional- / Ländergeschichte
• Themenwelt: Sozialwissenschaften ► Soziologie ► Gender Studies
• Schlagworte: Biography • Feminism • France • Gender • History • Jane Dieulafoy • Marc de Montifaud • Nineteenth century • photography • Rachilde • Transgender
• ISBN-10: 1-5036-1235-X / 150361235X
• ISBN-13: 978-1-5036-1235-8 / 9781503612358