La Garçonne
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| Author | Victor Margueritte |
|---|---|
| Country | France |
| Language | French |
| Publisher | |
| Released | 1922 |
La Garçonne is a novel by Victor Margueritte first published in 1922. It deals with the life of a young woman who, upon learning that her fiancé is cheating on her, decides to live life freely and on her own terms. Amongst other things, this included having multiple sexual partners. The title is somewhat difficult to translate -- it means "the boy", but boy has a feminine suffix on it. (Garçon means boy). The title addresses the somewhat ambiguous realm between definite gender roles, e.g. where a Judeo-Christian patriarchal society might place a free-thinking, free-living woman in its social strata.
Although the theme is not particularly shocking in the present day, at the time it was considered quite scandalous; it even caused Victor Margueritte to lose his Légion d'honneur.
[edit] See also
NB 'Garçonne' is synonymous for the English 'Flapper' (women's fashion of the 1920s epitomised by the 'bob' haircut).
