Alexandre Dumas (2) (1824–1895)

This famous novel doesn't quite stand up on its own. It's goosed, so to speak, by having being based on a titillating real-life affair between the author and a notorious but upper-demimonde courtesan, one widely admired in the Paris of the time for her unearthly beauty and impeccable style. The novel also stands in the shadow of Manon Lescaut by Abbé Prévost, which is one of the most famous tragic romances in all literature and which happens to play a considerable rôle in this one.

Anyone interested in sample this short, florid tale is highly recommended to read Manon first. You won't be disappointed! Having enjoyed that masterpiece, one of my all-time favorite books, I predict you will then find this one a tasty bonbon.… (mais)

A view into the life of a sex worker in Paris in the 19th century. Her lifestyle required $100,000 francs a year to support; you can imagine the balancing act she had to keep up. She was 20 years old, beautiful, intelligent, but sick with tuberculosis, and a young man of modest means wanted her all to himself. The sh*thead never realized the sacrifice she made for him. Ah well.
Dumas fils writes so descriptively of Marguerite; what is hard to take is the attitude on the part of men that she is somehow less than her non-sex-worker counterparts. Shades of Sor Juana...Why do they create this job in society yet want to blame the woman who fills it?… (mais)