{"id":689,"date":"2020-04-23T23:10:19","date_gmt":"2020-04-24T04:10:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/?p=689"},"modified":"2020-04-23T23:10:19","modified_gmt":"2020-04-24T04:10:19","slug":"lies-that-tell-the-truth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/2020\/04\/23\/lies-that-tell-the-truth\/","title":{"rendered":"Lies That Tell The Truth"},"content":{"rendered":"

In his writings, Dorf suggests that one root of identifying an experience as \u201csapphonic\u201d can be found in the idea of women opening doors that had long been closed by men. He cites that \u201creading Greek was a transgressive act for women.”1<\/sup><\/a>He continues to suggest that the Princesse de Polignac and her circle reading Plato could be just as Sapphonic as Natalie Barney reading Sappho with her circle, the root of these similarities being \u201can unspoken awareness of each other\u2019s precarious sexual position.\u201d2<\/sup><\/a> \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In both cases, we see a deliberate expression of empowerment between women romantically interested in other women. According to Dorf, one of the most striking aspects of Sapphonics is the \u201chidden eroticisim.\u201d3<\/sup><\/a> There is a power in the unnamed, but signaled. By request, Satie was deliberate with removing all blatant sexualization from his piece, yet it is still interpreted as having a Sapphonic nature. The piece did not need to be explicitly depicting scenes of a homoerotic nature to signal a lesbian interpretation. I am convinced by Dorf that Satie\u2019s use of an \u201cexotic\u201d 4<\/sup><\/a>style and the intent of the commission by the Princesse de Polignac make its Sapphonic interpretation accurate.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"
Romaine Brooks and Natalie Barney<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I personally find immense power in the idea of lesbian women enjoying a text written by Plato, intended for the pleasure of men, for their own pleasure.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the article \u201cCamp in Francis Poulenc\u2019s Early Ballets,\u201d Moore makes a compelling argument as to why Les Biches could be read as queer. A \u201cJanas-faced\u201d work, 5<\/sup><\/a>utilizing both sacred and profane inspiration, Poulenc\u2019s ballet leaves an audience questioning what they have experienced, as it \u201c[establishes] the theme for heterosexual desire as an alibi for the work\u2019s queer subtext.\u201d 6<\/sup><\/a>Much like the Princesse de Polignac, Poulenc found success \u201cworking inside the system,\u201d 7<\/sup><\/a> and coming out with an entirely outlandish ballet might have brought on questions that he was not looking to address. Leaving the audience with innuendos through costuming and musical expression, it is highly possible to come away with a queer interpretation.\u201cPoulenc explained that his ballet was not informed by \u201cpathos\u201d but rather by \u201cacquiescent pain.\u201d 8<\/sup><\/a>\u00a0 One could interpret this as the pain he was feeling through his own life\u2019s constrictions regarding his homosexual expression. However, one could also argue that this is not the case, as there is no definitive evidence expressed by Poulenc, himself. I believe Moore\u2019s argument to be justified in this ballet, but am cautious to overextend this justification into other aspects of Poulenc\u2019s life. Of course, identity informs expression, but it is difficult to navigate speculations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

1Dorf, S. N. (2007). \u201c\u00c9trange n\u2019est-ce pas?\u201d: The Princesse Edmond de Polignac, Erik Satie\u2019s Socrate, and a Lesbian Aesthetic of Music?\u00a0FLS<\/i>,\u00a0XXXIV<\/i>, 97.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

2 Ibid. 98.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

3 Ibid. 97.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

4 Ibid. 90.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

5 Moore, C. (2012). Camp in Francis Poulencs Early Ballets.\u00a0The Musical Quarterly<\/i>,\u00a095<\/i>(2-3), 299\u2013342. doi: 10.1093\/musqtl\/gds023. 300.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

6 ibid. 313.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

7 Dorf, S. N. (2007). \u201c\u00c9trange n\u2019est-ce pas?\u201d: The Princesse Edmond de Polignac, Erik Satie\u2019s Socrate, and a Lesbian Aesthetic of Music?\u00a0FLS<\/i>,\u00a0XXXIV<\/i>, 94.<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

8Moore, C. (2012). Camp in Francis Poulencs Early Ballets.\u00a0The Musical Quarterly<\/i>,\u00a095<\/i>(2-3), 299\u2013342. doi: 10.1093\/musqtl\/gds023. 328.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In his writings, Dorf suggests that one root of identifying an experience as \u201csapphonic\u201d can be found in the idea of women opening doors that had long been closed by men. He cites that \u201creading Greek was a transgressive act for women.”1He continues to suggest that the Princesse de Polignac and her circle reading Plato […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2604,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-689","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/689","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2604"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=689"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/689\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":710,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/689\/revisions\/710"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=689"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=689"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pages.stolaf.edu\/performinghistory\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=689"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}