IN SEARCH OF IDENTITY: OLYMPE DE GOUGES AND HER NOVEL MÉMOIRE DE MADAME DE VALMONT

Abstract

Mémoire de Mdame de Valmont written by Olympe de Gouges serves as a very goodillustration of using an epistolary novel to help the writer accomplish autobiographical motifs. Thebook alludes to the Enlightenment’s novel-writing tradition of exploiting the author’s life andexpressing it through the main protagonist. One can see there are fundamental issues resultingfrom autobiographical writing such as searching for identity, memories of the childhood, the roleand influence of the parent, etc.It should be also emphasized that Olympe de Gouges’s novel is universal in its character as itsheds new light on the difficult situation of women deciding to pursue a writing career at that time