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By Rachilde
In 1884, the French novelist Rachilde scandalized Paris with Monsieur Vénus, her story of a woman who seduces a florist and makes him her “mistress,” in a reversal of gender roles.
And yet, decades later, Rachilde wrote this provocatively titled essay Why I Am Not a Feminist (1928). In it, she voices her opposition to the burgeoning feminist movement, while at the same time identifying the era’s sexism. She skewers cocktail-guzzling flappers in their mimicry of masculine vices, while delving into the fraught family experiences—with her distant mother and soft-hearted grandmother—that led to her distrust of other women. So, despite Rachilde’s good literary citizenship as a salonnière—and friendships with other authors, such as Oscar Wilde, Jean Lorrain, and Alfred Jarry—this essay raises questions about her assumed allegiances.
Translated here into English for the first time by Jennifer Higgins, Why I Am Not a Feminist is a central document for Rachilde scholars, a key to understanding Rachilde’s beliefs and work. An individualist to the last, unconcerned with public opinion, Rachilde’s outspokenness still inspires today.
AVAILABLE:
Buy on Amazon
By Rachilde
In 1884, the French novelist Rachilde scandalized Paris with Monsieur Vénus, her story of a woman who seduces a florist and makes him her “mistress,” in a reversal of gender roles.
And yet, decades later, Rachilde wrote this provocatively titled essay Why I Am Not a Feminist (1928). In it, she voices her opposition to the burgeoning feminist movement, while at the same time identifying the era’s sexism. She skewers cocktail-guzzling flappers in their mimicry of masculine vices, while delving into the fraught family experiences—with her distant mother and soft-hearted grandmother—that led to her distrust of other women. So, despite Rachilde’s good literary citizenship as a salonnière—and friendships with other authors, such as Oscar Wilde, Jean Lorrain, and Alfred Jarry—this essay raises questions about her assumed allegiances.
Translated here into English for the first time by Jennifer Higgins, Why I Am Not a Feminist is a central document for Rachilde scholars, a key to understanding Rachilde’s beliefs and work. An individualist to the last, unconcerned with public opinion, Rachilde’s outspokenness still inspires today.
AVAILABLE:
Buy on Amazon