Confronting Modernity in Fin-de-Siècle France: Bodies, Minds and Gender

274 Pages·2010·1.25 MB·English

by  Christopher E. Forth, Elinor Accampo (eds.)

GendersandSexualitiesinHistory
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PalgraveMacmillan’sseries,GendersandSexualitiesinHistory,aimstoaccommodate
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interconnectedthemesofgenders,sexualities,religions/religiosity,civilsociety,class
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Historical studies of gender and sexuality have often been treated as disconnected
fields, while in recent years historical analyses in these two areas have synthesized,
creating new departures in historiography. By linking genders and sexualities with
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ConfrontingModernityinFin-de-SiècleFrancesituatesthebodyandsexualityattheheart
ofwhatitmeanttobe‘French’.Profoundlysensitivetopoweranditsdeployment,the
volumecontributestoourunderstandingofthesenseofnationalcrisisthatemerged
duringtheThirdRepublic.Masculinityisasrigorouslyexploredasfemininity.Central
themesincludethegenderednatureofrepublicanism,relationsofauthoritybetween
physicians(includingpsychiatrists)andclerics,andconflictinginterpretationsofbour-
geoiscodesofhonour.TheeffectisareinterpretationofthisperiodofFrenchhistory
thatalsohasresonanceforthehistoryoftherestofEurope.
Titlesinclude
MatthewCook
QUEERDOMESTICITIES
HomosexualityandHomeLifeinTwentieth-CenturyLondon
JenniferEvans
RECONSTRUCTIONSITES
SpacesofSexualEncounterinColdWarBerlin
ChristopherE.ForthandElinorAccampo(editors)
CONFRONTINGMODERNITYINFIN-DE-SIÈCLEFRANCE
Bodies,MindsandGender
DagmarHerzog(editor)
BRUTALITYANDDESIRE
WarandSexualityinEurope’sTwentiethCentury
JessicaMeyer
MENOFWAR
MasculinityandtheFirstWorldWarinBritain
JenniferD.Thibodeaux(editor)
NEGOTIATINGCLERICALIDENTITIES
Priests,MonksandMasculinityintheMiddleAges
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Confronting Modernity in
Fin-de-Siècle France
Bodies, Minds and Gender
Editedby
Christopher E. Forth
HowardProfessorofHumanities&WesternCivilization,UniversityofKansas
Elinor Accampo
ProfessorofHistory,UniversityofSouthernCalifornia
Editorialmatterandselection©ChristopherE.ForthandElinorAccampo2010
Introduction©ElinorAccampoandChristopherE.Forth2010
Allremainingchapters©theirrespectiveauthors2010
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2010 978-0-230-22099-7
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This book is dedicated to Robert A. Nye
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Contents
Acknowledgements ix
NotesonContributors x
Introduction:ConfrontingModernityinFin-de-SiècleFrance 1
ElinorAccampoandChristopherE.Forth
PartI Gender,Citizenship,andRepublicanism 15
1. RevisingtheSexualContract:Women’sCitizenshipand
RepublicanisminFrance,1789–1944 19
CharlesSowerwine
2. Isthe‘WomanQuestion’Reallythe‘ManProblem’? 43
KarenOffen
PartII Bodies,Minds,andSpirit 63
3. Fromaliéné todégénéré:MoralAgencyandthePsychiatric
ImaginationinNineteenth-CenturyFrance 67
MattT.Reed
4. GastronomyandtheDiagnosisofAnorexiain
Fin-de-SiècleFrance 90
ElizabethA.Williams
5. PapustheMisogynist:Honor,Gender,andtheOccultin
Fin-de-SiècleFrance 112
JamesSmithAllen
PartIII Morality,Honor,andMasculinity 131
6. SocialControlinLateNineteenth-CenturyFrance:Protestant
CampaignsforStrictPublicMorality 135
StevenC.Hause
7. Paternity,Progeny,andProperty:FamilyHonorinthe
LateNineteenthCentury 150
RachelG.Fuchs
vii
viii Contents
8. ShamingMen:FeministHonorandtheSexualDouble
StandardinBelleÉpoqueFrance 169
AndreaMansker
9. ‘CappedwithHope,CladinYouth,ShodinCourage’:
MasculinityandMarginalityinFin-de-SiècleParis 192
MichaelL.Wilson
PartIV GenderandtheDreyfusAffair 213
10. FromDevil’sIslandtothePantheon?AlfredDreyfus,the
Anti-Hero 217
VenitaDatta
11. TwoSalonnièresduringtheDreyfusAffair:theMarquise
ArconatiViscontiandGyp 235
RuthHarris
Conclusion 250
ElinorAccampoandChristopherE.Forth
Index 259
Acknowledgements
Thisvolumeistheworkofanumberofconfidants,conspiratorsandaccom-
plices, anditwasonlyamatteroftimebeforetheguiltyoneswerenamed.
Michael Wilson helped hatch the original plan, Mark Micale offered some
usefultipsonhowtopullitoff,andMaryJoNyewasourinsideagentfrom
thebeginning. HoweveritwasEdBerensonwhofirstproposedshowcasing
thesechaptersasconferencepapers.Thisishowmanycontributorsendedup
presentingtheirworkintwospecialsessionsorganizedforthe23rdAnnual
MeetingoftheSocietyforFrenchHistoricalStudies,heldinHouston,Texas
(15–17March2007).WeaccuseSarahFishmanandtheotherSFHSorganiz-
ers of very generously accommodating our unconventional proposal, and
AngusMcLarenofofferingconstructivecommentsononeofthepanels.Of
courseitwouldn’thavebeenpossiblewithoutarogue’sgalleryofhardened
contributorswhowereinonitfromthestartandwhopatientlyputupwith
numerous delays and editorial queries. The spotlight must also be turned
on Michael Strang and Ruth Ireland at Palgrave for supporting the project
andshepherdingittocompletion,andtheanonymousreaderswhosecom-
mentsimprovedthewhole.BythetimeBarbaraSlaterfinishedherexcellent
copyeditingwewereintheclear.
Theguiltiestparty,however,remainsRobertA.Nye.Withouthismentor-
ing,friendship,example,andinspirationnoneofuswouldhavebothered.
ix