Sarrasine

Barthes proposed in Death of the Author that a text’s context and its author’s biography should not factor into literary analysis. How might Balzac’s life and body of work bear on your interpretation of Sarrasine?

Analyze the significance of beauty in Balzac’s presentation of the theme of Art and the Impact of Representation on Identity in Sarrasine. Consider the various artistic forms that feature (sculpture, painting, singing, acting, storytelling, etc.) and both the idolization and idealization of physical beauty.

How does the use of a frame narrative contribute to Balzac’s presentation of Sarrasine’s themes? Consider parallels between characters, settings, and events between the framing story and the main plot.

Cultural constructions of femininity are at the heart of Sarrasine. To what extent does the novella also consider or critique norms of masculinity?

Select a series of interactions between La Zambinella and Sarrasine for close reading. How does Balzac use dialogue and character actions to present the theme of The Dangers of Obsession?

Consider Barthes’s analysis of Sarrasine in “S/Z.” To what extent does Barthes’s refusal to deal with the depiction of LGBTQ identity detract from the completeness of his analysis?

Sarrasine himself has been characterized as victim, villain, and as both the embodiment and subversion of the archetypal Romantic hero. Analyze the role of the character within the novella, paying particular attention to genre conventions, literary context, and character archetypes.

How do conventional social structures of 19th-century French high society contribute to Balzac’s presentation of the theme of The Artificiality of Gender Roles in Sarrasine? To what extent might recent advancements in gender theory and LGBTQ+ rights affect a modern reader’s interpretation of this theme, as opposed to that of Balzac’s contemporaries?