Love and Sexuality: New Approaches in French Studies

Abstract

As is often the case with edited volumes arising from conference proceedings (in this case the Leeds Graduate Conference in 2002), the broad themes of love and sexuality in the title bind together a seemingly disparate collection of topics, covering everything from eighteenth-century illustration to contemporary theatre and film. However the fine selection of pieces brought together by the editors illustrates precisely why such compilations are worthwhile. Divided into two parts, the first addressing the workings of the couple, the second exploring sex and sexuality, the volume succeeds in offering a productive investigation of its themes. Some of the essays set out primarily to illuminate texts, for example Donachie's chapter on Stendhal's Lamiel and Julie Summers's discussion of Koltès's concept of ‘the Deal’, while others offer a more theoretical exploration, in particular Alistair Swiffen's excellent discussion of ‘modern Erotics’ through the writing of Apollinaire and Desnos. However fruitful resonances play across the chapters, providing a stimulating portrait of current modes of thinking about love and sexuality in French studies. It is rewarding, though perhaps unsurprising nowadays, to discover that feminist and ethical questions recur persistently in the essays. More striking, perhaps, is the insistent search for models of love and sexuality in art. With varying levels of acuity and subtlety, close readings are frequently pursued by the contributors in order to discern whether the text can give its reader (and sometimes its author) new ways of thinking about love, dealing with relationships, or undermining patriarchy. Sarah Hartshorn even suggests that Marie Cardinal's œuvre can be seen to work towards a ‘recipe for success’ in the heterosexual couple, while Nicole Fayard's well-written and persuasive study of sex in Virginie Despentes's work asks whether her ‘Sadeian sisters’ provide models of female sexual autonomy. Such reading practices often manifest a desire for subversion in art. Interestingly, the art in question is often found wanting: Lamiel remains incomplete because the discursive frameworks of the period are irreconcilable with Stendhal's initial project to create a liberated female character, making a readable plot unthinkable. In Elizabeth Newton's lucid, erudite and genuinely insightful discussion of the phenomenological aspects of Robbe-Grillet's work, she concludes that he fails to offer a truly subversive alternative to the dominant order of sexuality he attacks. While the degree of sensitivity to the theoretical and thematic implications of texts varies across the volume, taken together the essays demonstrate a commendable attention to the intricate relations between text, context and reception. In summary this is a thoughtfully conceived anthology containing constructive contributions to a range of fields, with essays frequently touching upon lesser-known works or under-explored areas. In addition the book is smartly and legibly presented, and the referencing clear (although an index would have been useful). It is heartening to see the dissemination of the work of bright young scholars in a form valuable to researchers and students alike.