A femme fatale (plural: femmes fatales) is an alluring and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers in bonds of irresistible desire, often leading them into compromising, dangerous, and deadly situations. In Sociology, seduction (also called inveigling or wheedling) is the process of deliberately enticing a person to engage in some sort of behavior frequently She is an archetypal character of literature and art. Her ability to entrance and hypnotize her male victim was in the earliest stories seen as being literally supernatural, hence the most prosaic femme fatale today is still described as having a power akin to an enchantress, vampire, female monster or demon. The ideas involved are closely tied to fears of the female witch. Witchcraft, in various historical anthropological religious and mythological contexts is the use of certain kinds of Supernatural or magical powers
The phrase is French for "fatal (or "deadly") woman. French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people " A femme fatale tries to achieve her hidden purpose by using feminine wiles such as beauty, charm, and sexual allure. Typically, she is exceptionally well-endowed with these qualities. In some situations, she uses lying or coercion rather than charm. She may also be (or imply to be) a victim, caught in a situation from which she cannot escape; The Lady from Shanghai (a 1948 film noir) giving one such example. The Lady from Shanghai is a 1948 Black-and-white Film noir directed by Orson Welles and starring Welles his then-estranged Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize moral ambiguity and sexual motivation Her characteristic weapon, if needed, is frequently poison, which also serves as a metaphor for her charms. In the context of Biology, poisons are substances that can cause damage, Illness, or Death to Organisms usually by
Although typically villainous, femmes fatales have also appeared as antiheroines in some stories, and some even repent and become heroines by the end of the tale. In social life, the femme fatale tortures her lover in an asymmetrical relationship, denying confirmation of her affection. Asymmetry is the absence of or a violation of a Symmetry. In organisms Due to how cells divide in Organisms asymmetry in organisms is She usually drives him to the point of obsession and exhaustion so that he is incapable of making rational decisions.
Contents |
History
Mythology
The femme fatale archetype exists, in one form or another, in the folklore and myth of nearly every culture in every century. [1] The early examples are Ishtar, the Sumerian goddess, and Lilith, Delilah, and Salome from the Judaeo-Christian Bible. Ishtar ( D IŠTAR 𒀭𒌋𒁯 is the Assyrian and Babylonian counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna and to Sumer ( Sumerian: sux-Latn [[Ki (earth ki]]-[[EN (cuneiform en]]-'''ĝir15''', Akkadian: Šumeru; possibly Biblical Shinar Lilith (Hebrew he לילית is a mythological female Mesopotamian Storm Demon associated with Wind and was thought to be a bearer Delilah ( דלילה - D+*uL+iJ+L+oH+, Standard Hebrew meaning " who weakened or uprooted or impoverished" from the root dal meaning SALOME (pronounced in English using the French sah-loh-may is the Open Source Integration Platform for Numerical Simulation In ancient Greek literature, the femme fatale is incarnated by Aphrodite, the Siren, the Sphinx, Scylla, Circe, Lamia (mythology), Helen of Troy, and Clytemnestra. In Greek mythology, the Sirens ( Greek singular Seirēn; Greek plural Seirēnes) were three dangerous bird-women A Sphinx is a Zoomorphic mythological figure which is depicted as a recumbent lion with a human head Scylla (ˈsɪlə Σκύλλα Skulla) also known as Scylle (ˈsɪli Σκύλλη Skullē) was one In Greek mythology, Circe ( sərsē; Greek Κίρκη Kírkē, falcon is a Queen Goddess (or sometimes a Nymph In Greek mythology, Lamia was a Queen of Libya who became a child-murdering daemon. This article is about the mythological figure Helen of Troy For other uses see Helen (disambiguation and Helen of Troy (disambiguation. Clytemnestra (or Clytaemnestra (Eng /klaɪtəm'nɛstɹə/ Greek: Klytaimnéstra, "famed for her suitors" was the wife of Agamemnon, king Beside them is the historical figure Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, with her ability to seduce the powerful men of Rome. Cleopatra VII Philopator (in Greek, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ; January 69 BC &ndash 30 BC was a Hellenistic ruler of Egypt Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 Roman propaganda attacked Cleopatra as a femme fatale; resultingly, she became the legendary archetype of the attractions and the dangers inherent to the powerful, exotic woman. Propaganda is a concerted set of messages aimed at influencing the opinions or behaviors of large numbers of people
The femme fatale as an archetypal character also existed in Asia. In Chinese myths, stories and history, certain concubines have been accused as being responsible in part for the weakening and downfall of dynasties, by seducing her lover into neglecting their duties or twisting him to her will.
Early Western culture to the 19th century
In the Middle Ages, the idea of the dangers of female sexuality, typified by Eve, was commonly expressed in medieval romances as a wicked, seductive enchantress, the prime example being Morgan le Fay. In Genesis, Eve is the first woman the wife of Adam. God created her from Adam's rib as his helpmate Morgan le Fay, alternatively known as Morgane, Morgain, Morgana and other variants is a powerful sorceress and Antagonist of
The femme fatale flourished in the Romantic period in the works of John Keats, notably La Belle Dame sans Merci and Lamia. Romanticism is a complex artistic literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Western Europe, and gained strength during the "La Belle Dame sans Merci" ( French: "The Beautiful Lady without Pity" is a Ballad written by the English poet John Keats " Lamia " is a Narrative poem written by English poet John Keats. Along with them, there rose the gothic novel, The Monk featuring Matilda, a very potent femme fatale. Gothic fiction (sometimes referred to as Gothic horror) is a genre of literature that combines elements of both horror and romance. Ambrosio or the Monk is a Gothic novel by Matthew Gregory Lewis which first appeared in 1796. This led to her appearing in the work of Edgar Allan Poe, and as the vampiress, notably in Carmilla and Brides of Dracula. Edgar Allan Poe (January 19 1809 – October 7 1849 was an American poet, short-story Writer, editor and Literary critic, Vampires are mythological or folkloric revenants who subsist by feeding on the blood of the living " Carmilla " is a Gothic novella by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu. For the 1960 Hammer film see The Brides of Dracula The Brides of Dracula are three seductive female Vampires who make their first appearance in The Monk was greatly admired by the Marquis de Sade, for whom the femme fatale symbolised not evil, but all the best qualities of Women, with Juliette being perhaps the earliest novel wherein the femme fatale triumphs. Donatien Alphonse François de Sade, Marquis de Sade ( June 2, 1740 – December 2, 1814) ( was a French aristocrat Juliette is a novel written by the Marquis de Sade and published 1797 – 1801, accompanying Sade's Nouvelle Justine. Pre-Raphaelite painters frequently used the classic personifications of the femme fatale as a subject. The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (also known as the Pre-Raphaelites) was a group of English painters Poets, and critics founded in 1848 by
In the Western culture of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the femme fatale became a more fashionable trope, and is found in the paintings of the artists Edvard Munch, Gustav Klimt, Gustave Moreau, and the novels of the Frenchman Joris-Karl Huysmans. A literary trope (from Greek τρόπος - tropos "turn" related to the root of τρέπω - trepō "to turn to direct Edvard Munch (mʉŋk December 12, 1863 – January 23, 1944) was a Norwegian Symbolist painter, Printmaker Gustav Klimt (July 14 1862 – February 6 1918 was an Austrian Symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Art Nouveau Gustave Moreau ( April 6, 1826 &ndash April 18, 1898) was a French Symbolist painter. Charles-Marie-Georges Huysmans ( February 5, 1848 – May 12, 1907) was a French Novelist who published his works as In À rebours are these fevered imaginings about an image of Salome in a Moreau painting:
No longer was she merely the dancing-girl who extorts a cry of lust and concupiscence from an old man by the lascivious contortions of her body; who breaks the will, masters the mind of a King by the spectacle of her quivering bosoms, heaving belly and tossing thighs; she was now revealed in a sense as the symbolic incarnation of world-old Vice, the goddess of immortal Hysteria, the Curse of Beauty supreme above all other beauties by the cataleptic spasm that stirs her flesh and steels her muscles, - a monstrous Beast of the Apocalypse, indifferent, irresponsible, insensible, poisoning. À rebours (translated into English as Against the Grain or Against Nature) ( 1884) is a Novel by the [2]
In fin-de-siecle decadence, Oscar Wilde re-invented the femme fatale in the play 'Salome': she manipulates her lust-crazed uncle, King Herod, with her enticing Dance of the Seven Veils (Wilde's invention) to agree to her imperious demand: bring me the head of John the Baptist. Fin de siècle (fɑ̃ dɛ si'ɛːkl French for ‛end of the century‘ was a cultural movement between 1880 and the beginning of World War I. In several notable works of Western culture the Dance of the Seven Veils (usually described as danced by Salomé) is one of the elaborations on the biblical Saint John the Baptist ( heb. Jochanan ben Sacharja, arab. يحيى Yaḥyā or يوحنا Yūḥanna, aram. Later, Salome was the subject of an opera by Strauss, was popularized on stage, screen, and peep-show booth in countless reincarnations. [3]
Another enduring icon of womanly glamour, seduction, and moral turpitude was Mata Hari, 1876 - 1917, an alluring oriental dancer who was accused of German espionage and was put to death by a French firing squad. Mata Hari was the Stage name of Margaretha Geertruida " Grietje " Zelle ( August 7, 1876, Leeuwarden As such, she embodied the femme fatale archetype, and, after her death she became the subject of much fantastical imagining. She was the subject of many sensational films and books.
20th century film, opera, etc
The femme fatale has been portrayed as a sexual vampiress; her charms leach the virility and independence of lovers, leaving them shells of themselves. Vampires are mythological or folkloric revenants who subsist by feeding on the blood of the living Rudyard Kipling was inspired by a vampiress painted by Philip Burne-Jones, an image typical of the era in 1897, to write his poem 'The Vampire'. Joseph Rudyard Kipling (30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936 was an English Author and poet Sir Philip Burne-Jones 2nd Baronet (1861-1926 was the first child of the British Pre-Raphaelite artist Sir Edward Burne-Jones. Year 1897 ( MDCCCXCVII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Common Like much of Kipling's verse it was incredibly popular, and its refrain: A fool there was . . . , describing a seduced man, became the title of the popular 1915 film A Fool There Was that made Theda Bara a star. A Fool There Was ( 1915) is a Silent film starring Theda Bara, one of the first sex symbols of the early 20th century Theda Bara was the stage name and later legal name of Theodosia Burr Goodman ( July 29, 1885 – April 13, 1955) an American The poem was used in the publicity for the film. On this account, in early American slang the femme fatale was called vamps, short for vampiress. Phonology North American English regional phonology In many ways compared to English English, North American English is conservative in its Phonology. Slang is the use of highly informal Words and expressions that are not considered standard in the speaker's Dialect or Language. [4]
From the American film audience perspective, the femme fatale often was foreign, usually either of an indeterminate Eastern European or Asian ancestry. She was the sexual counterpart to wholesome actresses such as Lillian Gish and Mary Pickford. Lillian Diana Gish ( October 14 1893 – February 27 1993) was an American stage screen and television actress whose Mary Pickford ( April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979) was an Academy Award -winning Canadian motion picture Notable silent cinema vamps were Theda Bara, Louise Glaum, Musidora, Nita Naldi, Pola Negri, and in her early appearances, Myrna Loy. Theda Bara was the stage name and later legal name of Theodosia Burr Goodman ( July 29, 1885 – April 13, 1955) an American Louise Glaum ( September 4, 1888 Musidora ( February 23, 1889 – December 11, 1957) was the professional stage-name of a popular French Silent film Nita Naldi ( April 1, 1897 &ndash February 17, 1961) was an American Silent film Actress. Pola Negri ( Barbara Apolonia Chałupiec) ( 3 January, 1897 - August 1, 1987) was a Polish film actress who achieved Myrna Loy ( August 2, 1905 – December 14, 1993) was an American Motion picture Actress.
During the film noir era of the 1940s and 1950s, the femme fatale flourished in American cinema. Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize moral ambiguity and sexual motivation Examples include the overly-possessive and narcissistic wife Ellen Brent Harland as portrayed by Gene Tierney in Leave Her to Heaven (1945), who will stop at nothing to keep her husband's affections. Gene Tierney ( November 19, 1920 – November 6, 1991) was an American film and stage actress. Leave Her to Heaven is a 1945 20th Century Fox color Film noir motion picture starring Gene Tierney, Cornel Wilde The year 1945 in film involved some significant events Events Paramount Studios releases theatrical short Cartoon Another fine example is Brigid O'Shaughnessy as portrayed by Mary Astor who uses her acting skills to murder Sam Spade's partner in The Maltese Falcon. Mary Astor ( May 3, 1906 – September 25, 1987) was an Academy Award -winning American Actress. The Maltese Falcon is a 1930 Detective novel by Dashiell Hammett, originally serialized in the magazine " Black Mask " Yet another is the cabaret singer as portrayed by Rita Hayworth in Gilda (1946), who sexually manipulates her husband and his best friend. Rita Hayworth (October 17 1918 &ndash May 14 1987 born Margarita Carmen Cansino was a Spanish-American actress who rose to stardom in the 1940s as the era's leading Sex symbol Gilda ( 1946) is a Black-and-white Film noir directed by Charles Vidor. The year 1946 in film involved some significant events Events Top grossing films (U Another quintessential noir femme fatale is Phyllis Dietrichson, as played by Barbara Stanwyck, who seduces a hapless insurance salesman and persuades him to kill her husband in Double Indemnity (1944). Phyllis Dietrichson is a fictional character James M Cain 's Novella Double Indemnity. Barbara Stanwyck ( July 16, &ndash January 20,) was an American actress, a star of film and television known during her 60-year career as a Double Indemnity ( 1944) is an Academy Award nominated Film noir starring Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck, and Edward The year 1944 in film involved some significant events Events July 20 - Since You Went Away is released In The Paradine Case, a Hitchcock movie from 1947, the character played by Alida Valli is a classic poisonous femme fatale who is responsible for the deaths of two men and the near destruction of another. The Paradine Case ( is a courtroom drama film set in England, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and produced by David O Alida Valli (31 May 1921 – 22 April 2006 sometimes simply credited as Valli, was an Italian actress who appeared in over 100 films including Carol Reed's One often referred to example is the character of Jane in 1949's Too Late For Tears, as played by popular femme fatale actress Lizabeth Scott. Lizabeth Scott (born September 29, 1922) is an American actress who achieved much success within the Film noir genre as well as other During her quest to keep some dirty money from its rightful recipient and her husband, she uses poison, lies, sexual teases and a gun to keep men around her finger.
Other American cultural examples of deadly women occur in espionage thrillers, and juvenile adventure comic strips, such as The Spirit, by Will Eisner, and Terry and the Pirates, by Milton Caniff. The thriller is a broad Genre of Literature, Film, Gaming and Television. An adventure is an activity that comprises Risky dangerous and uncertain experiences A comic strip is a sequence of drawings that tells a story Currently in the Western world, most comic strips are written and drawn by a Comics artist William Erwin Eisner ( March 6, 1917 – January 3, 2005) was an acclaimed American Comics Writer, Artist and Milton Arthur Paul Caniff ( February 28, 1907 - April 3, 1988) was an American Cartoonist famous for the Terry Today, she remains the key character in films such as Body Heat, with Kathleen Turner, The Last Seduction, with Linda Fiorentino, Fatal Attraction, and Basic Instinct, with Sharon Stone. Body Heat is a 1981 Neo-noir film written and directed by Lawrence Kasdan. Mary Kathleen Turner (born June 19, 1954) is a Tony Award - and Academy Award -nominated American actress. The Last Seduction is a Neo-noir 1994 film directed by John Dahl. Linda Fiorentino (born March 9, 1960) Fiorentino is of Italian American Catholic background Fatal Attraction is a 1987 thriller about a married man who has a weekend Affair with a woman who refuses to allow it to end and who becomes Basic Instinct is an American thriller / Neo-noir film directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Joe Eszterhas Sharon Vonne Stone (born March 10, 1958) is an American Golden Globe - and Emmy -winning Actress, producer, and former
Jules and Jim fall in love with the same woman Jeanne Moreau in a classic French film by François Truffaut from 1962. Jules and Jim ( Jules et Jim) is a 1962 French film directed by François Truffaut and based on the semi-autobiographical novel by Jeanne Moreau (French ʒan mɔˈʁo born 23 January, 1928) is a BAFTA Awards -winning French Actress, Screenwriter François Roland Truffaut ( February 6 1932 – October 21 1984) was one of the founders of the French New Wave in filmmaking
A classically portrayed literary femme fatale is the "Justine" heroine of Lawrence Durrell's Alexandria Quartet. Lawrence George Durrell ( February 27, 1912 &ndash November 7, 1990) was an expatriate British Novelist, Poet, The Alexandria Quartet is a Tetralogy of novels by British writer Lawrence Durrell, published between 1957 and 1960
In opera, the femme fatale is usually played by a dramatic mezzo-soprano. Opera is an art form in which Singers and Musicians perform a Dramatic work (called an opera which combines a text (called a Libretto A voice type is a particular kind of human Singing voice perceived as having certain identifying qualities or characteristics In musical theater, the femme fatale is often played by an alto and sometimes functions as the foil or the enemy of the ingenue or the damsel in distress. Musical theatre is a form of Theatre combining Music, Songs spoken Dialogue and Dance. Alto is a musical term derived from the Latin word altus, meaning "high" that has several possible interpretations A foil is a character that contrasts with another character usually the protagonist and so highlights various facets of the main character's personality The Ingénue (ˈænʒənuː is a Stock character in Literature, Film, and a Role type in the Theatre; generally a girl or a young The subject of the damsel in distress, or persecuted maiden is a classic theme in world literature art and film
In popular culture
Despite usually being portrayed in religion as symbolic of corruption and moral turpitude to justify societal misogyny, in contemporary times the femme fatale is symbolic of women of free will and unrestrained passion. Misogyny (mɪˈsɒdʒɪni is hatred (or contemptof women Misogyny is parallel to Misandry — the hatred of men She survives as heroine and anti-heroine, in Nikita and Moulin Rouge!, and video games and comic books. Nikita (re-titled La Femme Nikita in some countries is a 1990 French movie written and directed by Luc Besson This article is about the 2001 Motion picture. For other uses see Moulin Rouge (disambiguation Moulin Rouge! is a 2001 Musical film A video game is a Game that involves interaction with a User interface to generate visual feedback on a video device. Elektra, a character from Marvel Comics,Fujiko Mine from Lupin the 3rd, Catwoman and Poison Ivy from the Batman stories, and EVA from Metal Gear Solid 3 are further examples of the femme fatale. Elektra Natchios, usually referred to only by her first name Elektra, is a Fictional character in publications from Marvel Comics. Marvel Comics is an American comic book company owned by Marvel Publishing Inc Catwoman is a Fictional character associated with DC Comics ' Batman franchise. Poison Ivy ( Pamela Lillian Isley) is a Fictional character, a DC Comics Supervillainess who is primarily an enemy of Batman. Batman (originally referred to as the Bat-Man and still referred to at times as the Batman) is a fictional Comic book Superhero co-created (commonly abbreviated to MGS3) is a stealth action Video game directed by Hideo Kojima. The woman ninja (the Kunoichi) is legendary for being a trained seductress and a martial artist. Kunoichi (くノ一 is the term for a female Ninja or practitioner of Ninpo. The protagonists of the American television program Desperate Housewives use sexual allure to get what and whom they want. Desperate Housewives is an American Television Dramedy series created by Marc Cherry, who also serves as Show runner, and produced A modern example of the archetypal femme fatale is Xenia Onatopp, the character from Goldeneye who seduced men and then murdered them by crushing them between her thighs. This is a list of henchmen from the James Bond 1995 film GoldenEye. GoldenEye (1995 is the seventeenth Spy film of the British James Bond series directed by Martin Campbell and the In the anime Cat's Eye, the 3 sisters use their beauties to escape police.
The Velvet Underground band sing a song titled "Femme Fatale" in the The Velvet Underground and Nico album. This article is about the band For their self-titled album see The Velvet Underground (album; for the book see The Velvet Underground (book Alice Cooper's song Poison is about a femme fatale, and includes the lyrics "I wanna love you but I better not touch (don't touch)/I wanna hold you but my senses tell me to stop". Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier; February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer songwriter and musician whose career spans five Bell Biv Devoe's (break off band from New Edition) song "Poison" is about femme fatales (1990).
L'homme fatal
Men who are fatal include Don Juan, Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights, most of the heroes in Lord Byron's books (termed the "Byronic hero"), as well as such diverse characters as Billy Budd, Count Dracula, Tadzio in Death in Venice, Harthouse in Charles Dickens' Hard Times, Georges Querelle in Jean Genet's Querelle of Brest, James Bond, and Tom Ripley in Patricia Highsmith's "Ripley" novels. Don Juan (Spanish or Don Giovanni (Italian is a legendary fictional Libertine whose story has been told many times by many authors Heathcliff' is the central male character of the novel Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë. Wuthering Heights is Emily Brontë 's only Novel. It was first published in 1847 under the Pseudonym Ellis Bell and a posthumous second The Byronic hero is an idealized but flawed character exemplified in the life and writings of Lord Byron, characterized by his ex-lover Lady Caroline Lamb Billy Budd is a Novella begun around 1886 by American author Herman Melville, left unfinished at his death in 1891 and not published until 1924 The Novella Death in Venice was written by the German author Thomas Mann, and was first published in 1912 as Der Tod in Venedig. Hard Times- For These Times is a Novel by Charles Dickens, first published in 1854 Georges "Jo" Querelle is the Protagonist and Antihero of Jean Genet 's 1947 novel Querelle de Brest. Jean Genet (ʒɑ̃ ʒəˈnɛ in French ( –) was a prominent controversial French writer and later political activist. Georges "Jo" Querelle is the Protagonist and Antihero of Jean Genet 's 1947 novel Querelle de Brest. James Bond 007 is a Fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve Novels and two Short story Character overview Highsmith characterizes Ripley as a "suave agreeable and utterly amoral" Con artist who always gets away with his crimes including Murder Patricia Highsmith ( January 19, 1921 - February 4, 1995) was an American Novelist known for her Psychological thrillers [5]
See also
References
- ^ Mario Praz (1951) The Romantic Agony: 199
- ^ Huysmans À rebours - Toni Bentley (2002) Sisters of Salome: 24
- ^ Toni Bentley (2002) Sisters of Salome
- ^ Per the Oxford English Dictionary, vamp is originally English, used first by G. K. Chesterton, but popularized in the American silent film The Vamp, starring Enid Bennett
- ^ Mario Praz (1951) The Romantic Agony: 53-95
Bibliography
- Toni Bentley (2002) Sisters of Salome. This is a list of Supervillainess characters that can be found in all forms of media In analysing Visual culture, the concept of The Gaze (also gaze and Le regard in French describes how the viewer gazes upon A succubus (plural succubi) is a Demon who takes the form of a beautiful woman to seduce men especially monks in Dreams to have Sexual intercourse In fictional works the character type warrior princesses refers to a strong female personality of royal background determined in pursuit of her goals and often eager to take on typical A gun moll is a female companion of male professional criminal and in some contexts the term more specifically suggests that the gun moll handles a Firearm. Gilbert Keith Chesterton (29 May 1874 – 14 June 1936 was an influential English writer of the early 20th century Enid Bennett (15 July 1893 York Western Australia - 14 May 1969 Malibu, California) was an Australian Silent film actress Salome considered as an archetype of female desire and transgression and as the ultimate femme fatale.
- Bram Dijkstra (1986) Idols of Perversity: Fantasies of Feminine Evil in Fin-De-Siecle Culture, (1986) ISBN 0-19-505652-3. Bram Dijkstra is a Professor of English literature. He joined the faculty of the University of California San Diego in 1966 and taught there until he Discusses the Femme fatale-stereotype.
- Bram Dijkstra (1996) Evil Sisters: The Threat of Female Sexuality in Twentieth-Century Culture, (1996) ISBN 0-8050-5549-5
- Elizabeth K. Mix Evil By Design: The Creation and Marketing of the Femme Fatale, ISBN 978-0252073236. Discusses the origin of the Femme fatale in 19th century French popular culture.
- Mario Praz (1951) The Romantic Agony. Mario Praz ( September 6, 1896, Rome, Italy - March 23, 1982, Rome was an Italian -born Critic of See chapters four, 'La Belle Dame Sans Merci', and five, 'Byzantium'.
External links
- The Femme Fatale Throughout History (History Television)
- The Femme Fatale in Film Noir
- High Heels on Wet Pavement: film noir and the femme fatale
- Marling, William: Hard-Boiled Fiction (Case Western Reserve University. Updated 2 August 2001. )
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic