The Androgyne in Early Modern France

"Rothstein has written a masterful pre-history of the woman sovereign who could also act as a man by tracing the enabling figure of the classical and biblical androgyne through multiple strands of Renaissance culture. A magnificent feat of sleuthing that uncovers unsuspected wealth behind a recurring motif, this work tackles a real problem and makes a much-needed intervention in the topic of early modern gender. Written in confident and elegant prose, and laced with touches of wry humor, her book beautifully demonstrates how the Greek and Christian traditions continued to pollinate each other to create a surprising potential for action in the early modern world." - George Hoffman, Professor of French, University of Michigan, USA "The Androgyne in Early Modern France is a fascinating, erudite, and engagingly written study of the hermaphrodite's more fortunate twin. Rothstein elucidates with acumen the figure's origins in Classical and Jewish sources and offers a compelling demonstration of the range and importance of the artistic, literary, and political ends to which it was deployed in the French Renaissance." - Gary Ferguson, Douglas Huntly Gordon Distinguished Professor of French, University of Virginia, USA

Based on sources in Genesis and Plato's Symposium , the androygyne during Early Modern France was a means of expressing the full potential of humans made in the image of God. This book documents and comments on the range of references to the androgyne in the writings of poets, philosophers, courtiers, and women in positions of political power.Based on sources in Genesis and Plato's Symposium , the androygyne during Early Modern France was a means of expressing the full potential of humans made in the image of God. This book documents and comments on the range of references to the androgyne in the writings of poets, philosophers, courtiers, and women in positions of political power.