Introduction by Margaret Waller, Pomona College Summary

In 1822, Claire, the duchess of Duras, retreated to her country estate at the age of forty-five,where she drafted five novels in one year, including Ourika. Though she desired privacy, she eventually made her writing public, and her first work, Ourika, was published in a limited private edition in 1823 with Edouard being published in a similar format two years later. While there was no name printed on the title page of either novel, the author's identity was an open secret, and male writers praised Duras' work in the press but resented her success, accusing her of affectation and vanity. When Stedhal and Latouche heard about the idea for Duras' third work of fiction, they wrote anonymous novels and passed them off as her work in order to capitalize on her fame. Duras never...