Male and Female Bildung: the Mémoires de Céleste Mogador

In her Mémoires (1854), Céleste Mogador portrays a prostitute turned countess who has the strength to suceed despite societal conventions that limit women's lives. The text reveals the feminine libertine experiences of an "exceptional" nineteenth-century heroine. I read the Mémoires as Bildungsroman, and focus on events that shape the main character's maturation. Typical in women's texts, the protagonist's development is nurtured by her connection with others; Céleste's Bildung is intertwined with the psychological evolution of her lover. The embedded male developmental plot parallels that of the heroine and highlights the different trajectories for male and female self-discovery. (CAM)