Joan Dejean

The secret history of the rebellious Frenchwomen who were exiled to colonial Louisiana and found power in the Mississippi ValleyIn 1719, a ship named La Mutine (the mutinous woman), sailed from the French port of Le Havre, bound for the Mississippi. It was loaded with urgently needed goods for the fledgling French colony, but its principal commodity was a new kind of export: women.Falsely accused of sex crimes, these women were prisoners, shackled in the ships hold. Of the 132 women who were sent this way, only 62 survived. But these women carved out a place for themselves in the colonies that would have been impossible in France, making advantageous marriages and accumulating property. Many were instrumental in the building of New Orleans and in settling Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, and Mississippi.Drawing on an impressive range of sources to restore the voices of these women to the historical record, Mutinous Women introduces us to the Gulf Souths Founding Mothers.

What makes fashionistas willing to pay a small fortune for a particular designer accessory -- a luxe handbag, for example? Why is it that people all over the world share the conviction that a special occasion only becomes really special when a champagne cork pops -- and even more special when that cork comes from a bottle of Dom Perignon? Why are diamonds the status symbol gemstone, instantly signifying wealth, power, and even emotional commitment? One of the foremost authorities on seventeenth-century French culture provides the answer to these and other fascinating questions in her account of how, at one glittering moment in history, the French under Louis XIV set the standards of sophistication, style, and glamour that still rule our lives today. Joan DeJean explains how a handsome and charismatic young king with a great sense of style and an even greater sense of history decided to make both himself and his country legendary. When the reign of Louis XIV began, his nation had no particular association with elegance, yet by its end, the French had become accepted all over the world as the arbiters in matters of taste and style and had established a dominance in the luxury trade that continues to this day. DeJean takes us back to the birth of haute cuisine, the first appearance of celebrity hairdressers, chic cafes, nightlife, and fashion in elegant dress that extended well beyond the limited confines of court circles. And Paris was the magical center -- the destination of travelers all across Europe. As the author observes, without the Sun Kings program for redefining France as the land of luxury and glamour, there might never have been a Stork Club, a Bergdorf Goodman, a Chez Panisse, or a Cristophe of Beverly Hills -- and President Clinton would never have dreamed of holding Air Force One on the tarmac of LAX for an hour while Cristophe worked his styling genius on the presidents hair. Written with wit, dash, and elan by an author who knows this astonishing true story better than virtually anyone, The Essence of Style will delight fans of history and everybody who wonders about the elusive definition of good taste.

Una de las más destacadas autoridades de la cultura gala del siglo XVII analiza en esta obra cómo en un momento brillante de la historia, durante el reinado de Luis XIV, los franceses establecieron los estándares de la sofisticación, el estilo y la elegancia que todavía hoy siguen presentes en nuestras vidas. Joan DeJean explica cómo un atractivo y carismático joven rey, con un gran sentido de la estética y aún mayor de la historia, decidió convertir su país en la meca de la moda, el buen gusto y el glamur internacional. Partiendo de su propia imagen (fue el primero en usar medias de seda, zapatos de tacón y cubrirse enteramente de brillantes), orquestó junto con su ministro Colbert una gran campaña de márquetin que potenció las industrias nacionales, logrando exportar artículos de lujo a todos los lugares del mundo (muebles, espejos, tejidos, champán, joyas, perfumes…). A principios de su reinado, la nación no ejercía dominio alguno en el terreno de la moda y, sin embargo, al finalizar este, sus súbditos eran ya aceptados en toda Europa como árbitros absolutos en materia de estilo y buen gusto. Francia ponía en marcha un domi- nio internacional en el comercio del lujo que pervive desde entonces.