Women’s celebrity in the 19th century: between challenge and obstacle

Interview with Damien Zanone

Abstract

In the 19th century, a time when gender norms were very clearly defined and strictly enforced, the asymmetry in the prospects of celebrity for men and women became acutely apparent. Germaine de Staël, at the start of the century, summarised the factors that stood in the way. George Sand, later on, managed to embody the exception that proved the rule, but at the cost of making concessions: she had to accept, at times, being presented as a sort of social hermaphrodite, and at other times play the part of what might be called a ‘Female Code’.