Proust’s Duchess: How Three Celebrated Women Captured the Imagination of Fin de Siecle Paris

• Books & Literature
• History

Proust’s Duchess is an intimate look at the lives of three women who inspired Marcel Proust’s unforgettable character, the Duchesse de Guermantes.

Geneviève Halévy Bizet Straus, Laure de Sade (Comtesse Adhéaume de Chevigné), and Élisabeth de Riquet de Caraman-Chimay (Comtesse Greffulhe), were three superstars of fin-de-siècle Parisian high society.

Unhappily married, these women sought freedom and fulfillment by reinventing themselves as icons. Savvy and self-aware, these pre-cursors to modern celebrities impacted French society and captured the imagination of everyone around them.

At their fabled salons, they inspired several generations of visual artists, composers, designers, journalists, and writers—including a young Marcel Proust.

Discover the story of these fascinating women and Paris during the time of Marcel Proust.