The Wicked Queen - The Origins of the Myth of Marie-Antoinette (Paperback, Revised)

Chantal Thomas presents the history of the mythification of one of the most infamous queens in all history, whose execution still fascinates us today. In The Wicked Queen, Chantal Thomas presents the history of the mythification of one of the most infamous queens in all history, whose execution still fascinates us today. Almost as soon as Marie-Antoinette, archduchess of Austria, was brought to France as the bride of Louis XVI in 1771, she was smothered in images. In a monarchy increasingly under assault, the charm and horror of her feminine body and her political power as a foreign intruder turned Marie-Antoinette into an alien other. Marie-Antoinette's mythification, argues Thomas, must be interpreted as the misogynist demonization of women's power and authority in revolutionary France.In a series of pamphlets written from the 1770s until her death in 1793, Marie-Antoinette is portrayed as a spendthrift, a libertine, an orgiastic lesbian, and a poisoner and infant murderess. In her analyses of these pamphlets, seven of which appear here in translation for the first time, Thomas reconstructs how the mounting hallucinatory and libelous discourse culminated in the inevitable destruction of what had become the counterrevolutionary symbol par excellence. The Wicked Queen exposes the elaborate process by which the myth of Marie-Antoinette emerged as a crucial element in the successful staging of the French Revolution.

General

Imprint:	Zone Books
Country of origin:	United States
Release date:	October 2001
First published:	1999
Authors:	Chantal. Thomas
Dimensions:	228 x 152 x 20mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback - Trade
Pages:	256
Edition:	Revised
ISBN-13:	978-0-942299-40-3
Categories:	Books > Language & Literature > Biography & autobiography > Historical, political & military Books > Humanities > History > World history > 1750 to 1900 Books > Humanities > History > European history > General Books > Social sciences > Sociology, social studies > Gender studies > General Books > Social sciences > Politics & government > Political activism > Revolutions & coups Books > Humanities > History > History of specific subjects > Genealogy, heraldry, names and honours > General Books > History > European history > General Books > History > History of specific subjects > Genealogy, heraldry, names and honours > General Books > History > World history > 1750 to 1900 Books > Biography > Historical, political & military
LSN:	0-942299-40-X
Barcode:	9780942299403

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