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Literary
Representations
Hugo
Balzac
Lorettes and society
Lower
Class Prostitutes and the Law
Representations in Les Miserables
Realities of Authority in Paris
Brothels and Streetwalkers
The Privileged Class: Courtesans
Defining the courtesan
Visual representations
Courtesans in reality
Bibliogrpahy
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Portrait of
Honore de Balzac, Louis Boulanger
Rollover image, Before the Mirror, Edouard
Manet, 1876
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Portrait of
Victor Hugo by Gaspard-Félix
Tournachon
Rollover image, Fantine,
from an illustrated edition of Les Miserables
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On
the surface, the work of Hugo and Balzac
is seemingly similar. Both are works of 19th century France with
a moralistic tone, designed to enlighten the reader to overlooked
shortcomings in their society. However, Hugo and Balzac's political
and moral views vary greatly, resulting in dramtically different
representations of the less favored members of society, like prostitutes
and courtesans.
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Hugo's
politics and morals were significantly more liberal than Balzac's,
and this is clear in their depictions of both criminals and the underworld,
and the varying degrees of prostitutes.
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Balzac
was a moralist firmly against the decadence and materialism
he saw in society, especially Parisian society, and courtesans
represented much of what Balzac believed was responsible for
what he saw as the downturn of society at large.
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Hugo's
perspective was a sympathetic one, corresponding with his liberal
democratic views. His belief was that the circumstances of the
undesirable classes, prositutes and criminals, was due to lack
of education and that they were not to be shunned, but that
they should be aided and enlightened in order to better their
lives.
Hugo and Balzac each
depicted primarily one class of prostitute in order to make their
points more effectively.
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Hugo
focused primarily on the Fantine's of the world; fallen women
who were forced by dire circumstances to turn to a life as a
streetwalker.
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Balzac
chose to depict the well kept, expensive courtesans, with their
decadent, luxurious lifestyles and their materialistic tendencies.
Hugo and Balzac
both were influenced in their depictions of prositutes by their
own life experiences.
- Hugo had
numerous mistresses and was known to associate with the lower
classes, including streetwalkers and criminals.
- Balzac was
part of a higly moral "good bourgeosie"
family and had a generally negative view of society at large,
seeing it as decadent and materialistic, especially the less moral
bourgeosie and the upper class, almost all of whom would have
had mistresses, either lorettes or courtesans.
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In
exploring the representations of this varied class of women in literature,
it is important to understand the political, moral, and social aspects
of their lives and the lives of the authors depicting them. The
representations and realities together are what make up the historical
truth.
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Read
on for information on Hugo and Balzac,
their political views, and representations of prostitution in their
works.
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