Colette, the French writer who overcame the stereotypes of her time and had to fight to be recognized

At the beginning of the 20th century, women did not have basic rights, such as the right to vote, and those who had the courage to act in the world of literature were not taken seriously. But that was no barrier for Colette, a Frenchwoman who, through her novels, stories, essays and memoirs, defied the norms imposed on her genre. Such was her writing talent that in 1948 she was nominated for a Nobel Prize and, after her death, became revered as a national treasure, becoming the first French writer to receive a state funeral.

However, all of Colette’s accomplishments may have been in the shadows because her first books were published under her husband’s name, who ended up receiving full credit for his work for years.

O awesome.club has researched more about Colette’s life and wants to share with you the story of how she fought for her merits to be recognized.

Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette, better known simply as Colette, was born on January 28, 1873 in the village of Saint-Sauveur-en-Puisaye in Burgundy, France. Her mother, Sidonie, was a huge influence and inspiration for the girl, as it was she who taught her the importance of her gender. In one memorable episode, Sidonie surprised neighbors when she refused to wear mourning clothes after her husband’s death, an act considered scandalous at the time.

Colette with her husband, Willy, and their dog, Toby

Colette led a typical country girl’s everyday life when, at age 16, she met 30-year-old Henry Gauthier-Villars. He was a renowned Parisian novelist who published his work under the pseudonym Willy. The couple married four years later, in 1893, and he took her to live in Paris, where he introduced her to the world of salons in which other renowned writers and artists found themselves. It was there that Colette first saw acts of lesbian love, which were accepted by the people of this social group, something that would affect her love life later on. Willy constantly suffered from writing blocks and relied on a series of ghost writers to produce his works. Shortly after the wedding, he discovered Colette’s writing talent and put her to work alongside her team.

Interested in Colette’s school life stories, Willy encouraged her to write them. So good was the wife’s work that, after making a few small changes, the author sent it to his publisher. Only that he had written those stories, Willy. This is how the four novels in the Claudine series (narrated the life of a young woman named Claudine) were born, which became instant bestsellers in France. All credit for the work went to Willy, who became rich thanks to the sales of the books.

For the next few years, the couple lived a wild hedonistic lifestyle, financed by income from the hit series. Colette was not particularly fond of writing and was easily distracted; therefore, on more than one occasion, her husband locked her inside a room for hours, preventing her from leaving until she had written several pages for him.

Writing wasn’t the only activity her husband encouraged Colette to explore. As their fame rose in Parisian salons, they also began to have extramarital relationships. Willy was happy to provide partners for his wife, as long as they were all women. He and Colette even engaged in a simultaneous fling with the same woman. The relationship was the inspiration for the fourth novel in the Claudine series.

After 13 years of marriage, Colette became disillusioned with her husband after he refused to acknowledge her as the author of Claudine’s books. Finally, in 1906, the couple divorced. However, even after their separation, Willy continued to receive royalty money from the four novels written by Colette.

Colette along with the Marquise de Belbeuf, known as “Missy”

While still married to Willy, Colette began a six-year romance with the Marquise de Belbeuf (known as “Missy”). She was an aristocrat who defied established paradigms for her gender and was one of the first women of her generation who dared to dress like a man and embrace masculinity as part of her identity.

With no money for her work as a writer, Colette eloped with Missy and began an extravagant career in the theaters. Together, they performed on stages across the country. Always willing to break the stereotypes of her time, she even appeared half-naked in several of her performances. Her notoriety was sealed when riots broke out outside the popular Moulin Rouge after he kissed Missy during a performance.

Colette and Missy acting together in the well-known Moulin Rouge

In 1910, Colette published her first book under her own name: The Vagabond, the story of a divorced woman who became an actress. It was the first of her novels written entirely by her to be taken seriously by critics. But it was not until 1912, when she married her second husband, Henry de Jouvenel, editor of the French newspaper Le Matin, that she began writing in earnest again. Year after year, Colette produced novels, mostly colorful autobiographies heavily inspired by her personal life. At age 40, she was surprised to become pregnant with her first and only child, Colette de Jouvenel, whom she nicknamed Bel-Gazou. During World War I, Colette began working as a journalist.

Colette with actress Audrey Hepburn during rehearsals for the Broadway play Gigi

the fabulous period of La Belle Époque (“The Fair Age”) in Paris was the setting for many of Colette’s novels throughout the 1920s and 1930s, during which time she had finally achieved recognition and praise for her writings. Much of her work was based on her own sexual encounters, with both men and women. In 1920, she published Cheri, a story about the love between an aging woman and, interestingly, a very young man. One of his most popular books, Gigibecame a Broadway musical, and Audrey Hepburn (who, at that time, was just beginning her career) won the lead role.

After having an affair with Henry’s 17-year-old son, the couple divorced. In 1925, at age 52, she married her third and final husband, Maurice Goudeket, 16 years her junior. They were together for the next 30 years and only split briefly when Paris fell to the Nazis in 1941 during World War II. Maurice was arrested for being Jewish. However, the 67-year-old writer made use of her network of contacts and managed to free her husband.

In her later years, she suffered from arthritis, but that did not stop her from continuing to write novels and becoming a grande dame of the Paris literary scene. Maurice dedicated his life to caring for Colette until her death in 1954, aged 81.

Colette lived with the same passion with which she described the heroines of her stories. Her saucy style and exotic dialogue made her one of the most acclaimed French writers of her time. In 1945, her work was recognized when she was elected the first female president of the distinguished Goncourt Academy, because of her more than 50 novels and dozens of short stories.

Years later, books by Claudine began to be published under the name Colette Willy. After Willy’s death, Colette went to court to demand that only her name be used and that her ex-husband’s participation in the works be eliminated.

What surprised you most about Colette’s extraordinary life? In her opinion, do women today still have the same difficulties to work successfully in various professions? Tell us in the comments section.