Performing Desire: Stendhal's Theatrical Heroines

Stendhal's independent heroines, often associated with a taste for the theatrical, do not tend to win the preference of his male heroes. As a result, they are often considered by critics to be less successful than their more traditionally 'feminine' counterparts in achieving their goals. However, this paper argues that characters such as Mathilde de La Mole, la Sanseverina, Lamiel, Mina Wanghen and Mina de Vanghel achieve a level of control over their own destinies unknown to Stendhal's more retiring heroines, such Mme de Rênal, Clélia Conti, Mme de Chasteller and Armance. Consequently, the author's less 'natural' female characters turn out in fact to be more authentic, in existential terms at least, than their more traditional sisters. The authenticity of these heroines, interpreted here as their success in defining themselves as subjects rather than objects of desire, is shown by this article to be related, somewhat paradoxically, to their interest in theatrical fakery. In making this argument, the paper engages with the ideas of, among others, Simone de Beauvoir and Jacques Lacan.