Photograph of George Sand.
George Sand

Overview

Amantine Aurore Lucile Dupin, Baronne Dudevant (July 1, 1804June 8, 1876), best known by her pseudonym George Sand, was a French novelist and feminist.

Early life and family

Sand's father was of aristocratic lineage (a granddaughter of Maurice, comte de Saxe and a distant relative of Louis XVI); her mother was a commoner. Sand was born in Paris but raised for much of her childhood by her grandmother at the family estate, Nohant, in the French region of Berry. She later used the setting in many of her novels. In 1822 she married Baron M. Casimir Dudevant (1795–1871), and they had two children: Maurice (1823–1889) and Solange (1828–1899). In 1835 Sand was legally separated from her husband, which prompted her lifelong search for true liberty and independence.

Contemporary perception

Her reputation was questioned when she began sporting menswear in public, the clothes being far sturdier and less expensive than a noble woman's dress. Also, she was one of the few female pipe smokers of her time. This male "disguise" also enabled Sand to circulate more freely about Paris, and gave her increased access to venues that might have been denied to a woman of her social standing. This was an exceptional practice for the 19th century, where social codes—especially in the upper class—were of the highest importance.

As a consequence Sand lost many of the privileges attached to being a Baroness. Ironically, the mores of this period allowed women of higher classes to live physically separated from their husbands without losing face, provided they did not show any blatant irregularity to the outer world.

The poet Charles Baudelaire is one example of a contemporary critic of George Sand: "She is stupid, heavy and garrulous. Her ideas on morals have the same depth of judgment and delicacy of feeling as those of janitresses and kept women... The fact that there are men who could become enamoured of this slut is indeed a proof of the abasement of the men of this generation."

Relationships

She was linked romantically with Alfred de Musset (summer 1833-March 1834), Franz Liszt and Frédéric Chopin (1837-1847). Later in life, she corresponded with Gustave Flaubert; despite their obvious differences in temperament and aesthetic preference, they eventually became close friends.

She was engaged in an intimate friendship with actress Marie Dorval, which led to widespread but unconfirmed rumors of a lesbian affair.

In Majorca one can still visit the (then abandoned) Carthusian monastery of Valldemossa, where she spent the winter of 1838–39 with Frédéric Chopin and her children. This trip to Mallorca was described by her in Un Hiver à Majorque ("A Winter in Mallorca"), published in 1855.

She left Chopin shortly before he died from tuberculosis.

Writing career

Her first published novel, Rose et Blanche (1831) was written in collaboration with Jules Sandeau, from whom she allegedly took her pen name, Sand. Drawing from her childhood experiences of the countryside, she wrote the rural novels La Mare au Diable (1846), François le Champi (1847–1848), La Petite Fadette (1849), and Les Beaux Messieurs Bois-Doré (1857). A Winter in Majorca described the period that she and Chopin spent on that island in 1838-9.

Her other novels include Indiana (1832), Lélia (1833), Mauprat (1837), Le Compagnon du Tour de France (1840), Consuelo (1842–1843), and Le Meunier d'Angibault (1845).

Further theatre pieces and autobiographical pieces include Histoire de ma vie (1855), Elle et Lui (1859) (about her affair with Musset), Journal Intime (posthumously published in 1926), and Correspondence. Sand often performed her theatrical works in her small private theatre at the Nohant estate.

In addition, Sand authored literary criticism and political texts. Her most widely used quote being, "There is only one happiness in life, to love and be loved."

She was known well in far reaches of the world, and her social practices, her writings and her beliefs prompted much commentary, often by other luminaries in the world of arts & letters. A few excerpts demonstrate much of what was often said about George Sand:

:"She was a thinking bosom and one who overpowered her young lovers, all Sybil — a Romantic." ::V.S. Pritchett (writer)

:"What a brave man she was, and what a good woman." ::Ivan Turgenev (novelist)

:"The most womanly woman." ::Alfred de Musset (poet)

Death

George Sand died at Nohant, near Châteauroux, in the Indre département of France on June 8, 1876 at the age of 72 and was buried in the grounds of her home there. In 2004, controversial plans were suggested to move her remains to the Panthéon in Paris.

Works

*Voyage En Auvergne (1827, Autobiographical sketch) *Compagnon Du Tour De France (1840) *La Petite Fadette (1848) *Chateau Des Désertes (1850) *Histoire De Ma Vie (1855, Autobiography up to the revolution of 1848)
Novels
*Indiana (1831) *Rose Et Blanche (1831, with Jules Sandeau) *Lélia (1833) *Andrea (1833) *Mattea (1833) *Jacques (1833) *Kourroglou| Epopee Persane (1833) *Leone Leoni (1833) *Simon (1835) *Mauprat (1837) *les Maîtres Mosaïtes (1837) *l'Oreo (1838) *l'Uscoque (1838) *Un Hiver À Majorque (1839) *Pauline (1839) *Horace (1840) *Consuelo (1842) *la Comtesse De Rudolstady (1843, a sequel to Consuelo) *Jeanne (1844) *Teverino (1845) *Pêche de M Antoine (1845) *Le Meunier D'Angibault (1845) *La Mare Au Diable (1846) *Lucrezia Floriani (1846) *François Le Champi (1847) *Les Maîtres Sonneurs (1853) *La Daniella (1857) *Elle Et Lui (1859) *Jean De La Roche (1859) *L'Homme De Neige (1859) *La ville Noire (1860) *Marquis De Villemer (1860) *Mademoiselle La Quintinie (1863) *Laura, Voyage Dans Le Cristal (1864) *Le Dernier Amour (1866, dedicated to Flaubert)
Plays
*Gabriel (1839) *François Le Champi (1849) *Claudie (1851) *Le Mariage De Victorine (1851) *Le Pressoir (1853, Play) *French Adaptation of As You Like It (1856) *Le Marquis De Villemer (1864) *L'Autre (1870, with Sarah Bernhardt)

Legacy

In literature
Frequent literary references to George Sand can be found in "Possession," by A.S. Byatt. The great American poet Walt Whitman cited her novel Consuelo as a personal favorite and the sequel to this novel La Comtesse De Rudolstady contains a at least a couple of passages that appears to have had a very direct influence on him. Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861), English poet, produced two poems entitled " To George Sand: A Desire" and "To George Sand: A Recognition."
In music, film and television
* A Song to Remember (1945), directed by Charles Vidor, starring Cornel Wilde as Chopin and Merle Oberon as George Sand. *Notorious Woman (1974), a 7-part BBC miniseries starring Rosemary Harris as George Sand and George Chakiris as Chopin. * In 1976, the band Ambrosia recorded the song "Danse With Me, George (Chopin's Plea)", based on Sand and Chopin's romance. It appeared on Ambrosia's Album "Somewhere I've Never Travelled." *Impromptu (1991), starring Judy Davis as George Sand and Hugh Grant as Chopin. *Les Enfants du siècle (1999), starring Juliette Binoche as George Sand and Benoît Magimel as Alfred de Musset *Chopin (2002), directed by Jerzy Antczak starring Danuta Stenka as George Sand and Piotr Adamczyk as Chopin.

* In 2007, Céline Dion recorded a song based on a love letter sent from George Sand to Alfred de Musset for her album D'Elles. * Mona Marshall provides the voice for Sand in the fantasy game Eternal Sonata.

References

Notes
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General references
*Correspondence (letters) by George Sand and her contemporaries (see "Writings by George Sand" link below — some of these letters are available in English translation); Autobiographical writings as mentioned above (several of these also available from Gutenberg website). * * In French: ** ** **Dictionnaire Encyclopédique de la Langue Française 3ième édition

See also

*Gustave Flaubert, by whom she was befriended, leading to an intimate correspondence. *Saint-Benoît-du-Sault

External links

* *Works by George Sand at Internet Archive * The International Foundation Can Mossenya Friends of Jorge Luis Borges, celebrating the ethic and critical spirit of George Sand in Majorca
Who is George Sand connected to?
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This biography says:

...The great American poet Walt Whitman cited her novel Consuelo as a personal favorite and the sequel to this novel La Comtesse De Rudolstady contains a at least a couple of passages that appears to have had a very direct influence on him. Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861), English poet, produced two poems entitled " To George Sand: A Desire" and "To George Sand: A Recognition."

That biography says:

...Her verse-novel, Aurora Leigh, in nine books is set in Florence, England and Paris, using in it her knowledge from childhood of the Bible in Hebrew, Homer, Aeschylus, Sophocles, Apuleius, Dante, Langland, Madame de Stael, and George Sand....

That biography says:

...Czar Of Russia Nadar.jpg|Alexander III of Russia Image:Charles Baudelaire.jpg|Charles Baudelaire Image:Nadar 1.jpg|Sarah Bernhardt Image:Georges Boulanger Nadar.jpg|Georges Boulanger Image:Georges Clemenceau Nadar.jpg|Georges Clemenceau Image:Camille_Corot-Nadar_corrected.jpg|Camille Corot Image:Gustave Courbet.jpg|Gustave Courbet Image:Charles francois daubigny.jpg|Charles-François Daubigny Image:Eugene Delacroix-Nadar.jpg|Eugène Delacroix Image:Jules Favre 1865 Nadar.jpg|Jules Favre in 1865 Image:Léon Gambetta 1870 Nadar.jpg|Léon Gambetta in 1870 Image:Paul Gustave Dore by Felix Nadar 1855-1859.jpg|Gustave Doré (1859) Image:Alexandre Dumas Nadar.jpg|Alexandre Dumas, père Image:Ilja Iljitsch Metschnikow Nadar.jpg|Ilja Iljitsch Metschnikow Image:Jean-FrancoisMillet(Nadar).jpg|Jean-François Millet Image:Kropotkin Nadar.jpg|Peter Kropotkin Image:Franz Liszt photo.jpg|Franz Liszt Image:Gerard de nerval.jpg|Gérard de Nerval Image:Henri Rochefort Nadar.jpg|Henri Rochefort Image:Sand-Nadar.png|George Sand (1864) Image:Ernest Henry Shackleton Nadar.jpg|Ernest H. Shackleton Image:Adolphe Thiers Nadar.jpg|Adolphe Thiers Image:Jules Verne.jpg|Jules Verne Image:Galliffet, Gaston de.jpg|Marquis de Galliffet, the fusilleur de la Commune Image:Théophil Gautier 1856 Nadar.jpg|Théophile Gautier Image:LeBris1868.jpg|Le Bris and his flying machine, Albatros II Image:Nadar.jpg|Nadar (Gaspard-Félix Tournachon) - Self-portrait Image:JapaneseMissionAndNadarSon.JPG|Nadar's son, photographed by Nadar with members of the Second Japanese Embassy to Europe in 1863...

This biography says:

...She was engaged in an intimate friendship with actress Marie Dorval, which led to widespread but unconfirmed rumors of a lesbian affair....

That biography says:

...In January, 1833, female writer George Sand met Marie Dorval after the former wrote the actress a letter of appreciation following one of her performances...

That biography says:

...But it must be observed that Fromentin's paintings show only one side of a genius that was perhaps even more felicitously expressed in literature, though of course with less profusion. Dominique, first published in the Revue des deux mondes in 1862, and dedicated to George Sand, is remarkable among the fiction of the century for delicate and imaginative observation and for emotional earnestness...

That biography says:

...By then l'affaire Lafarge had polarized French society. George Sand wrote to her friend Eugène Delacroix criticizing the perceived railroading of the case (it was worth noting that Marie, in turn, was an admirer of Sand and was said to read her works "greedily")...

This biography says:

She was linked romantically with Alfred de Musset (summer 1833-March 1834), Franz Liszt and Frédéric Chopin (1837-1847). Later in life, she corresponded with Gustave Flaubert; despite their obvious differences in temperament and aesthetic preference, they eventually became close friends...

That biography says:

...By her second marriage with Claude Dupin de Franceuil, Marie Aurore was the grandmother of Amandine Lucile Aurore Dupin, who later became famous as the writer George Sand.

That biography says:

...The number and quality of the drawings, whether done for constructive purposes or to capture a spontaneous movement, underscored his explanation, "Colour always occupies me, but drawing preoccupies me." Delacroix produced several fine self-portraits, and a number of memorable portraits which seem to have been done purely for pleasure, among which were the portrait of fellow artist Baron Schwiter, an inspired small oil of the violinist Nicolò Paganini, and a double portrait of his friends, the composer Frédéric Chopin and writer George Sand; the painting was cut after his death, but the individual portraits survive....

This biography says:

...* In 2007, Céline Dion recorded a song based on a love letter sent from George Sand to Alfred de Musset for her album D'Elles. * Mona Marshall provides the voice for Sand in the fantasy game Eternal Sonata.

That biography says:

...- Azure Kite * .hack//INFECTION - Kite * .hack//MUTATION - Kite * .hack//OUTBREAK - Kite * .hack//QUARANTINE - Kite * Aedis Eclipse: Generation of Chaos - Quinn * Atelier Iris 2: The Azoth of Destiny - Poe (uncredited) * Brave Fencer Musashi - Musashi * Brave Story: New Traveler - Wataru * Blue Dragon - Shu * Conflict: Global Terror - Carrie Sherman and female reporter * Drakengard - Seere, Angelus * Eternal Sonata - Beat, George Sand * Ratchet and Clank - Helga * Ratchet and Clank 3: Up Your Arsenal - Helga, Helen * Rocket Power: Beach Bandits - Eric Golem Jr...

This biography says:

...It appeared on Ambrosia's Album "Somewhere I've Never Travelled." *Impromptu (1991), starring Judy Davis as George Sand and Hugh Grant as Chopin. *Les Enfants du siècle (1999), starring Juliette Binoche as George Sand and Benoît Magimel as Alfred de Musset *Chopin (2002), directed by Jerzy Antczak starring Danuta Stenka as George Sand and Piotr Adamczyk as Chopin...

That biography says:

...Next she worked again with André Téchiné for Alice et Martin (1998) followed in 1999 by Children of the Century in which Binoche played the role of 19th-century French writer George Sand....

That biography says:

...His first works were an Odalisque, suggested by the writing of Victor Hugo, and a Lélia, illustrating George Sand, but he soon abandoned literary influences for the study of real life....

That biography says:

...In Paris, he made a career as performer, teacher and composer, and he adopted the French version of his given names, Frédéric-François. From 1837 to 1847 he had a turbulent relationship with the French writer George Sand (Aurore Dudevant). Always in frail health, at 39 in Paris he succumbed to pulmonary tuberculosis...

That biography says:

...He went to school in Moscow to study philosophy and began to frequent radical circles where he was greatly influenced by Alexander Herzen. Bakunin left Russia in 1842 for Dresden, and eventually Paris where he met George Sand, Pierre-Joseph Proudhon and Karl Marx....

This biography says:

...The poet Charles Baudelaire is one example of a contemporary critic of George Sand: "She is stupid, heavy and garrulous...

This biography says:

She was linked romantically with Alfred de Musset (summer 1833-March 1834), Franz Liszt and Frédéric Chopin (1837-1847)...

That biography says:

...The tale of his celebrated love affair with George Sand, which lasted from 1833 to 1835, is told from his point of view in his autobiographical novel, La Confession d'un Enfant du Siècle (made into a film, Children of the Century), and from her point of view in her Elle et lui...

That biography says:

...In his twenties, he played concerts in elegant social circles and taught piano. His friends included Franz Liszt, Frédéric Chopin, George Sand, and Victor Hugo. By the age of twenty-four, he had built a reputation as one of the great virtuoso pianists of his day, rivalling other touring virtuoso composer-pianists of the day such as Liszt, Sigismond Thalberg, and Friedrich Kalkbrenner...

That biography says:

...In recognition of his service, Maurice de Saxe was eventually made one of only six maréchaux généraux in French history. He was the great-grandfather of French novelist George Sand, the longtime companion of Polish composer Frédéric Chopin....

That biography says:

...He studied under Rink at Darmstadt in 1835, and as early as 1836 went to Paris, where for twelve years he lived in constant intercourse with Luigi Cherubini, Frédéric Chopin, Franz Liszt and other musicians, and enjoyed the friendship of such great literary figures as Alfred de Musset and George Sand. He had started a set of chamber concerts with Jean Delphin Alard and Auguste Franchomme with great success, and had completed one series of them when the revolution of 1848 drove him from Paris, and he settled, with his wife and two children, in London...

That biography says:

...Her career took her to the best music halls across Europe, and from 1843 to 1846 she was permanently attached to the Opera in St. Petersburg, Russia. Such was her popularity that writer George Sand made her into the heroine of her 1843 novel "Consuelo."...

This biography says:

* A Song to Remember (1945), directed by Charles Vidor, starring Cornel Wilde as Chopin and Merle Oberon as George Sand. *Notorious Woman (1974), a 7-part BBC miniseries starring Rosemary Harris as George Sand and George Chakiris as Chopin...

That biography says:

...She went on to appear as Cathy in her most famous film Wuthering Heights (1939), as George Sand in A Song to Remember (1945), and as Empress Josephine in Désirée (1954)...

That biography says:

She was sent to Europe in 1846 by the New York Tribune as a foreign correspondent, and there interviewed many prominent writers including George Sand and Thomas Carlyle — whom she found disappointing, due to his reactionary politics amongst other things...
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