Jocelyne François
Encyclopedia
Jocelyne François is a French writer. She is the author of five lesbian novels
, and winner of the Prix Femina
.
in the 1960s. François and Pichaud lived in Saumane-de-Vaucluse
for twenty-five years before moving to Paris
in 1985, amid health problems.
Her first novel was Les Bonheurs, published in 1970 with Laffont
and republished in 1982 with Mercure de France
, which publishes all her work. She received the Prix Femina
for Joue-nous "España" in 1980 and the Erckmann-Chatrian prize for Portrait d’homme au crépuscule in 2001.
Besides novels, she also writes poetry and experimental prose. She began publishing her diaries; in 2009, the fourth volume (covering 2001-2007) was released.
, François's work and success is said to testify to the viability and strength of gay and lesbian literature, and adds to the corpus of a feminist, radical lesbian literature begun by Violette Leduc
, Monique Wittig
, and Christiane Rochefort
. Her winning the Prix Femina helped signal that literature's "institutional consecration." Alongside Jeanne Galzy
and Mireille Best
, she is credited with creating "images of lesbians [which] challenge both the dominant heterosexist ideology and the limiting idea of the lesbian novel as manifesto in order to offer new visions of sexual identity." Love, or the "ardeur [de l'amour] qui structure les jours," is an overarching theme in all her work, poetry or prose.
Les Bonheurs (1970) is the first of a series of five partly autobiographical novel
s (even a "lesbian memoir") that explore lesbianism, relationships, marriage, and love. It is "a study of love in a hostile context, of lesbian love in a heterosexual world, trying to survive alongside religious belief dictated by a homophobic church." The novel's main characters, Sarah and Anne, have loved each other since they met, at age 16, but Anne breaks off their relationship after being told to do so by her priest. Both have relationships with men as well: Sarah marries, and Anne has an affair with a married man. After ten years the two get back together again.
Les Amantes (1978) picks up a few years after Les Bonheurs left off. Sarah (a painter
) lives with the unnamed narrator (a poet) in Provence
. Both are also potters
. There is a child, and two other children visit for school holidays. A male friend offsets this balance, but the narrator's devotion to Sarah is absolute. The man's desire, however, leaves no room for anyone else, and destroys the relationship.
In Joue-nous "España" (1980), "based on the author's childhood and adolescence," François investigates the influence of a strict Catholic education on a child's understanding of religion, love, and the world. The novel was translated into English
as Play Us España, and referred to as an "[excellent] young lesbian's autobiography."
Histoire de Volubilis (1986), like Les Amantes, features a writer and a painter, Cécile and Elisabeth. Their relationship is threatened by the machinations of a psychologist and her husband, and rendered even more difficult by the mental problems experienced by Cécile's (grown) children.
La femme sans tombe (1995) is the last of the five novels; its publication was apparently delayed because of a sickness on the part of the author. Some of the autobiographical aspects have been clarified by the intermediate publication of Le Cahier vert, 1961-1989 (1990), a journal of the author's childhood, which includes an account of her long relationship with a Marie-Claire Pichaud--a painter and a potter--versions of whom inhabit the novels.
Lesbian fiction
Lesbian fiction is a subgenre of fiction that involves one or more primary female homosexual character and lesbian themes. Novels that fall into this category may be of any genres, such as, but not limited to, historical fiction, science fiction, fantasy, horror, and romance.-History:The first...
, and winner of the Prix Femina
Prix Femina
The Prix Femina is a French literary prize created in 1904 by 22 writers for the magazine La Vie heureuse . The prize is decided each year by an exclusively female jury, although the authors of the winning works do not have to be women...
.
Career
François was born in Nancy as the eldest of three children; early on in her schooling she gave evidence of great memory and a gift for writing. After six years in Catholic boarding school, where she met her future partner Marie-Claire Pichaud, she studied philosophy in Nancy and married, more or less for convenience: the two oldest children of this marriage were raised by their father, the youngest by François and her partner. Her partner is a painter, whose artistic sensitivities greatly influenced François, who embarked on a career as a writer. A turning moment was meeting poet René CharRené Char
René Char was a 20th century French poet.-Biography:Char was born in L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue in the Vaucluse department of France, the youngest of four children of Emile Char and Marie-Therese Rouget, where his father was mayor and managing director of the Vaucluse plasterworks...
in the 1960s. François and Pichaud lived in Saumane-de-Vaucluse
Saumane-de-Vaucluse
Saumane-de-Vaucluse is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.-References:*...
for twenty-five years before moving to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1985, amid health problems.
Her first novel was Les Bonheurs, published in 1970 with Laffont
Éditions Robert Laffont
Éditions Robert Laffont is a book publishing company in France founded in 1941 by Robert Laffont. Its publications are distributed in almost all francophone countries, but mainly in France, Canada and in Belgium....
and republished in 1982 with Mercure de France
Mercure de France
The Mercure de France was originally a French gazette and literary magazine first published in the 17th century, but after several incarnations has evolved as a publisher, and is now part of the Éditions Gallimard publishing group....
, which publishes all her work. She received the Prix Femina
Prix Femina
The Prix Femina is a French literary prize created in 1904 by 22 writers for the magazine La Vie heureuse . The prize is decided each year by an exclusively female jury, although the authors of the winning works do not have to be women...
for Joue-nous "España" in 1980 and the Erckmann-Chatrian prize for Portrait d’homme au crépuscule in 2001.
Besides novels, she also writes poetry and experimental prose. She began publishing her diaries; in 2009, the fourth volume (covering 2001-2007) was released.
Themes and evaluation
In the French canonFrench literature
French literature is, generally speaking, literature written in the French language, particularly by citizens of France; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of France other than French. Literature written in French language, by citizens...
, François's work and success is said to testify to the viability and strength of gay and lesbian literature, and adds to the corpus of a feminist, radical lesbian literature begun by Violette Leduc
Violette Leduc
Violette Leduc was a French author.She was born in Arras, Pas de Calais, France, the illegitimate daughter of a servant girl, Berthe. In Valenciennes, the young Violette spent most of her childhood suffering from poor self-esteem, exacerbated by her mother's hostility and overprotectiveness...
, Monique Wittig
Monique Wittig
Monique Wittig was a French author and feminist theorist who wrote about overcoming socially enforced gender roles and who coined the phrase "heterosexual contract". She published her first novel, L'Opoponax, in 1964...
, and Christiane Rochefort
Christiane Rochefort
Christiane Rochefort was a French feminist writer. She was born into a left-wing working class Parisian family; her father joined the International Brigades during the Spanish Civil War...
. Her winning the Prix Femina helped signal that literature's "institutional consecration." Alongside Jeanne Galzy
Jeanne Galzy
Jeanne Galzy , born Louise Jeanne Baraduc, was a French novelist and biographer from Montpellier. She was a member of the jury for the Prix Femina...
and Mireille Best
Mireille Best
Mireille Best was a French writer born in Le Havre, Seine-Maritime.Her book Les Mots de hasard contains five short stories. Le Méchant Petit Jeune Homme contains three short stories....
, she is credited with creating "images of lesbians [which] challenge both the dominant heterosexist ideology and the limiting idea of the lesbian novel as manifesto in order to offer new visions of sexual identity." Love, or the "ardeur [de l'amour] qui structure les jours," is an overarching theme in all her work, poetry or prose.
Les Bonheurs (1970) is the first of a series of five partly autobiographical novel
Autobiographical novel
An autobiographical novel is a form of novel using autofiction techniques, or the merging of autobiographical and fiction elements. The literary technique is distinguished from an autobiography or memoir by the stipulation of being fiction...
s (even a "lesbian memoir") that explore lesbianism, relationships, marriage, and love. It is "a study of love in a hostile context, of lesbian love in a heterosexual world, trying to survive alongside religious belief dictated by a homophobic church." The novel's main characters, Sarah and Anne, have loved each other since they met, at age 16, but Anne breaks off their relationship after being told to do so by her priest. Both have relationships with men as well: Sarah marries, and Anne has an affair with a married man. After ten years the two get back together again.
Les Amantes (1978) picks up a few years after Les Bonheurs left off. Sarah (a painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
) lives with the unnamed narrator (a poet) in Provence
Provence
Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
. Both are also potters
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
. There is a child, and two other children visit for school holidays. A male friend offsets this balance, but the narrator's devotion to Sarah is absolute. The man's desire, however, leaves no room for anyone else, and destroys the relationship.
In Joue-nous "España" (1980), "based on the author's childhood and adolescence," François investigates the influence of a strict Catholic education on a child's understanding of religion, love, and the world. The novel was translated into English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
as Play Us España, and referred to as an "[excellent] young lesbian's autobiography."
Histoire de Volubilis (1986), like Les Amantes, features a writer and a painter, Cécile and Elisabeth. Their relationship is threatened by the machinations of a psychologist and her husband, and rendered even more difficult by the mental problems experienced by Cécile's (grown) children.
La femme sans tombe (1995) is the last of the five novels; its publication was apparently delayed because of a sickness on the part of the author. Some of the autobiographical aspects have been clarified by the intermediate publication of Le Cahier vert, 1961-1989 (1990), a journal of the author's childhood, which includes an account of her long relationship with a Marie-Claire Pichaud--a painter and a potter--versions of whom inhabit the novels.
Novels
- Les Bonheurs (1970, republished 1982)
- Les Amantes (1978)
- Joue-nous "España" (1980)
- Histoire de Volubilis (1986)
- La femme sans tombe (1995)
- Les Amantes ou tombeau de C. (1998)
- Portrait d'homme au crépuscule (2001)
Diaries
- Le Cahier vert, 1961-1989 (1990)
- Journal 1990-2000, une vie d’écrivain (2001)
- Le Solstice d'hiver: journal 2001-2007 (2009)