Forgotten No More: The Female Authoress Madame Germaine de Staël

Anyone heard of the great Romanticism authors Lord Byron or Johann Wolfgang von Goethe? How about Romanticism painters like J.M. William Turner or Caspar David Friedrich? What about Romanticism musicians like Schubert, Liszt or Beethoven? Probably a resounding YES to all of those famous and talented men who are considered geniuses in their fields because they pushed boundaries and invented new techniques and ideas in their art. Romanticism is not about being lovey-dovey romantic at all, but more about the power and majesty of man in relation to the awe-inspiring grandeur of the natural world. To be considered a genius your artistic creations have to build off the established to produce new definitions of what is great. We should continue to give kudos to all artistic geniuses where they are due! But let’s not forget the women during the same time period who can likewise be considered and especially those who establish women characters as geniuses. 

Ever heard of the famous and talented authoress Madame Germaine de Staël? I’m not surprised if your answer is no. Napoleon Bonaparte really hated her so she was exiled from her beloved Paris, and unfortunately she was written out of the history books and out of literary anthologies (for the most part.) Her novel CORINNE, OR ITALY is one of my all time favorites so I was saddened, but not entirely shocked, to learn that the library didn’t own a copy. We now own a copy of CORINNE, OR ITALY (by Staël, Madame de (Anne-Louise-Germaine), 1766-1817., published 1805)- find it here!

Madame de Staël should be remembered and read because she was an influential writer and thinker, who proved that opposition can be inspiration. After being exiled from Paris, Staël set up a renowned and thriving salon in her home at Coppet, Switzerland. This became a locus for the great philosophical minds and writers of the Romanticism movement. Staël wrote novels, poems, philosophical treatises and started a female authorship trend that continued throughout the 1800s with great female authors like George Sand, Jane Austen, the Bronte sisters, George Eliot, Louisa May Alcott, Mary Elizabeth Braddon, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Frances Hodgson Burnett, Emily Dickinson, Elizabeth Gaskell,  Anne Radcliffe, and Christina Rossetti, to name just a few. Staël’s bestselling novel CORINNE, OR ITALY, was a subtle critique of Napoleon’s oppressive regime as he passed civil codes restricting the freedoms women previously gained during the French revolution. This novel pushed a radical proposition that a woman could be a genius on the stage, anticipating the prima donna figure, while tying in autobiographical references. This novel should be read alongside other French literature classics as she helped establish the genre and tradition of great female authors. 

(Warning! Spoilers below!)

Raise your hand if you’ve ever been dumped by someone you were head over heels for, where you thought it was totally perfect and you’d live happily ever after? Well (spoiler alert!) Corinne was dumped by Oswald. And then he chooses to marry Corinne’s much younger half-sister who couldn’t be more different than Corinne.  Completely distraught, she settles into a depressed melancholic state because of it… and then she overcomes the melancholy and helps teach and guide another talented young girl to take her place on the stage. Corinne’s voice and fire is not stolen by a small inconsequential man, but instead her voice is channeled into a matriarchal lineage of talented women. If there was ever a “how to get over a dumb man” novel, this is the ultimate classics edition. I happened to be fully immersed in Corinne studies when a similar break up happened to me and the irony was so apparent. I needed to pick myself back up and find my voice again. Staël’s work helped me be able to do so! 

I respect and revere this female author and the way she set up future women’s writing achievements. She totally was a feminist in her day! Her novel CORINNE is a classic in my book and an overall great novel. 

God, please bless America

I am a daughter of God, a sister, a friend, a daughter of two loving parents, a feminist, a librarian, a yoga teacher, a relief society teacher, art enthusiast, an avid learner, an American citizen and supporter of The Constitution. Here are a few things that I believe.

I believe:

• Every citizen should vote for who they think would make the best president, not casting a vote for someone because they hate the other candidate options
• God loves all his children and gave them the gift of agency to choose between right and wrong. Spiritual laws and natural laws are indisputable and we will be held accountable for how we apply them. 
• All people are created equal no matter race, gender, religion, party affiliation, economic status, or sexual orientation. No matter who they are each person should be treated with respect and dignity because they are a fellow human. 
• Racism in any form is unacceptable. Many so called Christians have dominated the world with evil and hate, Grouping people based on race and then demeaning or threatening that group is not right. I am the kind of person that will hide those who need refuge in my home, God forbid it ever comes to that. 
• Sexism is any form is completely wrong. Men and women are created equally and yet men continue to control, abuse, and manipulate women and their bodies. Any sort of violence against women is a form of sexism. Rape, domestic abuse, assault, groping, molesting or even suggesting or joking about these horrific acts is blatant sexism. Silent bystanders reinforce this misogynistic culture. Ingrained misogyny is in our culture, language and relationships and needs to be stopped via education and awareness on an individual and national level. 
• America was originally founded as a refuge for those wanting freedoms that were not granted in their previous homes. This should continue to be a place of safe gathering and acceptance. The statue of Liberty says "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" America should carefully and abundantly help refugees and those seeking immigration. 
• Abortion is morally wrong, however there are exceptions to this. If the child is a product of rape, incest, or is a life-threatening or emotionally-threatening problem to the mother then abortion is admissible. In these cases a woman should have safe, healthy and affordable access to medical professionals for the abortion procedures. 
• Each person has right to their own body. Rape and sexual assault are direct violation of this. Each woman needs to be able to choose what happens with her body. Many women choose to have abortions as a form of birth control and this is not appropriate. Birth control access and education needs to be available to every woman as to prevent abortions being used as such.  
• America should be leading the way in climate change reforms. Climate change has been an issue for decades. Only recently did the US join the squad of world leaders trying to do something about it. We are meant to be stewards of this earth and our individual bodies. 
• I believe in the right to bear arms, mostly. If someone knows how to safely operate and defend themselves and others with a gun then that's great for them. I don't want that kind of responsibility for myself. I am not comfortable shooting a gun. It's high time for universal background checks and closing loopholes that let the wrong people carry a gun. Sometime those wrong people with a gun are mentally ill. America needs to become much more aware and helpful in treating people with mental illnesses. Those people should not have access to guns, nor should anyone with terrorist ties.
• There needs to be reform and careful examination of our law enforcement officers. There have been too many shootings of black citizens to sweep this under the rug. Speaking out for civil rights is a wonderful thing; however, when those protests become violent it is not accomplishing anything, only stirring up more evil. 
• Education reform in America is needed across the board. We are undoubtedly the dumbest world power.  Kids are not given enough play and curious time, instead focusing on standardized tests. Common core is NOT the answer to fix the school system. We need to pay our teachers like we pay our celebrities and sports figures. They are shaping lives and building the future leaders of America. Take the focus away from tests and jobs and instead emphasize more on character building, exploration, analytical thought and apply it into all the subjects. Any emphasis on languages, the arts and music has been completely lost. Proper brain development needs all of it. Having a balance between school, rest and play is very important. The bulk of a child's formal learning should be in the classroom and at home, NOT in doing homework. 
• ISIS and terrorism are real and scary parts of this modern world. America needs to humble themselves to get along with other countries so that we can strategically fight against ISIS.
• There needs to be less taxes for lower and middle classes. Big corporations shouldn't have sway with laws, lobbyists or political parties. Wealthy individuals and corporations should be taxed much heavier. New jobs need to be created around building infrastructure and clean energy.
• America was established with the help of God and I believe we as a nation need to come back to trusting in God. As individuals we need to strive for this in our families and then hopefully it can trickle up to the nation as a whole. God, please bless America. We need all the help we can get right now.