Dangerous Women: The Perils of Muses and Femmes Fatales

by Laure Adler, Élisa Lécosse

A selection of sixty powerfully seductive women, from Biblical times to the present day, featuring mythical and real heroines. The most memorable stories throughout history feature a powerful, seductive woman who has an irresistible hold over the man in her life. The alluring Cleopatra, like Helen of Troy, inspired lovers to the battlefield in a brave display of loyalty. Eve and Pandora wreacked havoc when they tempted men to defy the laws of the day. Traitorous Dalila brought the all-powerful Samson to his knees as she divested him of his magical mane. Lovesick Juliet and Hamlet’s Ophelia chose death over life in a courageous display of honor to their forbidden passion. The enchanting Scheherazade of One Thousand and One Nights saved herself from certain death through her exceptional capacity for storytelling. Each of these women was brave and steadfast, and their stories have inspired artists throughout the history of art. In this gallery of femmes fatales, feminist historian Laure Adler guides us through the ages to rediscover incredible heroines. Their stories are illustrated with iconic works by masters such as da Vinci, Michelangelo, Botticelli, Rubens, Goya, Sargent, Picasso, Dali, Warhol, Saint Phalle, and Tracey Emin.

Genres: Nonfiction, Art, History, Mythology

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Valeriu Gherghel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un album de artă comentat de Laure Adler și Élisa Lécosse. Cuprinde o selecție de 60 de portrete. Putem admira, astfel, 60 de femei seducătoare din timpurile biblice și pînă în contemporaneitate.

Unele doamne provin din mitologie (Dalila, Judith, Esther, Calypso), altele sînt reale (Ono no Komachi, Juliette Drouet, Dora Maar, Frida Kahlo, Tracey Emin). Portrete de cuvinte dublează portretele de culori. Rezultă din ele imaginea unor femei puternice, seducătoare, viclene, uneori, inocente, în cele mai multe cazuri. Măcar două dintre ele și-au determinat amanții să pornească la război (Elena din Troia și Cleopatra). Altele i-au ispitit amarnic pe bărbați: Eva și Pandora. Nemiloasa Dalila l-a pierdut pe Samson. Julieta și Ofelia s-au sinucis din dragoste. În schimb, Șeherezada și-a salvat viața prin darul de a spune povești și povești în povești, multiplicîndu-le într-un joc labirintic, în principiu infinit. Toate i-au inspirat pe artiști.

Pățaniile lor reale sau doar închipuite au fost ilustrate de mari artiști ca Ambrogio Lorenzetti, Filippo Lippi, Sandro Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Peter Paul Rubens, Francisco de Goya, Picasso, Dali etc.

[thebookofclocs · Rating 4 out of 5]

lu dans le cadre de mon mémoire, je l’ai cependant trouvé très intéressant ! les œuvres iconographiques m’ont beaucoup plu et j’ai adoré voir les différents aspects que revêt une femme amoureuse aux yeux du monde

[Laurel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful reproductions, and I immensely enjoyed the introductory passages of each chapter, but I'd have liked to see greater depth in the discussions about each woman and her place in history or mythology.

[Zivile · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very generic descriptions of too-well-known fictional and some real women. Not sure why such writing even should claim authorship.

[Maddalena · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointed…this book poses as an academic assessment of “dangerous” women depicted in art but is poorly written, includes no citations, and has an extremely misleading title — the English book title “Dangerous Women: The Perils of Muses and Femme Fatales” insinuates the book will cover deviant women in society, however the book’s main point is unclear, jumping back and forth between discussing depictions of women in love and praising autonomous female figures in general. Even the introductory chapter does not explicitly state what the primary focus is on. In addition to the confusing thesis, I also find it extremely frustrating that though this book pretends to ally with feminists, the authors limit themselves to a primarily heteronormative analysis. As much as I want to forgive their ignorance towards gender and sexuality (notably, not understanding the difference between the two), their attempt to be “progressive” or even knowledgeable In contemporary gender studies is just plain sad.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

J’ai beaucoup aimé les reproductions de tableaux et oeuvres d’art. Les commentaires des autres lecteurs/lectrices indiquent que les descriptions sont basiques, et c’est vrai, néanmoins c’est un rappel agréable de ces destins de femmes, des figures mythologiques et bibliques aux femmes contemporaines.
Pour une non initiée de l’art c’est agréable à lire et à regarder.
Je ne pense pas que le titre soit fidèle au contenu du livre cela dit...

[nessy · Rating 5 out of 5]

the content is as nice as the gorgeous illustrations
as a woman who loves art, women figures and mythology this book was really interesting. i do wish we could have longer descriptions of the art works included in the book.
i will definitely read the whole series and i am looking forward to read women who write are dangerous which is just beside me !

[Yasmin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of the paintings in this collection are good. A pity she can't understand people that are trans. Her explanation is very far from accurate. I did skip the sections that had W. Simpson, J. Kennedy and M. Munroe. The book is very white centric. The three stars are for the paintings in terms of colour and light.

[Jai M {Cat Crazy Dragon } · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars.

[Kimsandara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Livre intéressant mais si vous avez des connaissances en histoire de l'art, il manquera sans doute de profondeur. La lecture reste très superficielle.

[Marcelina Sk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Très beau livre

[Kirsty Henderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated but disappointing

I found most of the text somewhat pretentious, especially the introductory section at the beginning, and while the paintings and photographs have been beautifully reproduced, there is very little to be said on each of them.

My opinion may come from the fact that I study history and expect arguments, opinions and more footnotes! If you are looking for a book as an introduction to the world of the femme fatale then this would perhaps be worth buying, however if you are studying and require books with more substance and references then I would urge you to consider other books before buying this one. (I would personally recommend Idols of Perversity: Fantasies of Feminine Evil in Fin-de-siecle Culture (Oxford Paperbacks) which is much more comprehensive and readable but only focuses on the Victorian period)

Over all it is a nice book and well worth the price just for the reproductions inside, but surprisingly little is actually said (I read it cover-to-cover within a few hours) and it often raises more questions than it answers.

[Jan Deelstra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This beautiful edition is ripe with the feminine mystique as depicted thru art. Truly a sensual treasure and not for the faint of heart or prissy.

[pan pan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't agree with some of the points but also I'm not nearly educated enough to disagree with anything so I'll just drop this here. Not a bad book, just a lot of little things in there that irk me.