A Thesis presented to the faculty of Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté // Université de Franche-Comté, Sciences du Langage de l'Homme et de la Société. In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Rare Books and Digital Humanities by Amanda Robin Hemmons, 2024
The full text of the thesis is available as a single document here:
Genderqueer Marquis(e)/Computational Methods of Authorship Attribution for A French Tale
Introduction
Queer stories and queer people are often described as a modern invention, as if they sprung fully formed from Madonna’s bullet bra the same way Athena emerged from Zeus’s head in mythology. In reality, we have stories dating back centuries about people with unusual gender presentation, and non-traditional romances that any modern reader would describe as queer.
Queerness and mythology, in fact, share deep roots, with ancient myths offering stories of fluid identities, transformations, and complex relationships that challenge the strict binaries often found in later societal norms. There are figures like Caenus, who transitioned from a female to a male form with Neptune's blessing, and many ancient pantheons that also included gods and goddesses with androgynous qualities. These examples show that fluidity in gender and identity was part of human storytelling long before modern labels existed. These themes of transformation, resistance, and self-discovery naturally carried over into the realm of fairy tales, where they have continued to evolve and resonate with audiences over time.
Mythology, folk tales, and fairy tales share deep connections in the storytelling tradition, even as they evolved to suit changing cultural needs. They have grappled with complex identities, often exploring questions of transformation and identity beyond a strict male-female binary, viewing them instead as manifestations of cosmic power. As societies grew and diversified, mythology adapted into more localized folk tales that shifted focus from gods and cosmic battles to human characters and everyday struggles. Folk tales retained elements of the mythic but brought them down to earth, focusing on peasants, animals, and mystical creatures that inhabited their listeners’ worlds.
Yet even as the focus moved from gods to people, folk tales continued to include characters whose roles or identities did not conform to social norms. Figures like clever tricksters and gender-fluid creatures embodied the same questioning of rigid identity boundaries as in myths. These stories often circulated within tight-knit communities, adapting to each culture’s environment while retaining themes of queerness and unconventional self-presentation. In this sense, folk tales are mythology transformed: they keep myth’s archetypal patterns and values while making them more accessible and relatable to everyday audiences. Folk tales upheld the myths’ message of adaptability, presenting queerness not as an anomaly but as an intrinsic part of human nature and storytelling. By exploring identity through fantastic transformations or animal-human hybrids, folk tales demonstrated that diversity in self-expression was woven into the very fabric of communal storytelling.
With the advent of print culture, folk tales evolved further into literary fairy tales. Writers collected and adapted folk tales into a polished, literary genre that appealed to aristocratic tastes, while still preserving themes of otherness and transformation. Fairy tales began to incorporate structured plots, clear morals, and narrative closure; features that are rare in oral storytelling. While folk tales circulated orally and allowed for creative retellings, fairy tales became fixed in written form, with specific “authors” and authoritative versions. Yet despite their refined nature, fairy tales, like folk tales, continued to explore questions of personal identity, transformation, and acceptance—at times even more subversively, given their appeal to elite audiences.
Traditional fairy tales can seem to reinforce rigid gender roles and heterosexuality, but queerness and gender nonconformity can be found beneath the surface. Many classic stories feature characters who blur gender lines or defy societal expectations, often by taking on disguises or undergoing physical transformations. For example, the theme of the mermaid’s desire to transcend her prescribed identity is most notably seen in Hans Christian Andersen’s original 1837 version of The Little Mermaid. In this version, the mermaid's yearning to become human reflects not only her romantic desire for the prince but also her deeper longing for a soul and a different existence, symbolizing a more complex transformation beyond mere physicality.
Many scholars have interpreted Andersen's tale as a metaphor for identity and self-discovery, with some readings suggesting a queer subtext. Andersen himself may have identified with the mermaid’s sense of longing and desire to transcend boundaries, as some of his personal letters reveal unrequited love for men. The mermaid’s quest for an impossible transformation can be seen as a reflection of the struggle for acceptance and a place in a society that rigidly defines gender roles and expectations. In this way, her struggle to change her form and identity can be interpreted as resonating with themes of breaking free from societal limitations, including those related to gender and sexuality. Even the journey of self-discovery that many protagonists undergo echoes the journeys of those discovering and accepting their own queerness in a world that often tries to suppress it.
For marginalized people, especially those in the queer community, fairy tales offer an opportunity to reclaim narratives of transformation, otherness, and hope. Queer readers often relate to the fairy-tale trope of the outsider, finding kinship in the struggles of characters who long to live authentically in a society that doesn't fully accept them. Fairy tales, by their very nature, deal in fantasy, which provides marginalized groups with the space to reimagine worlds where they can be their true selves, where magic allows them to transcend the limitations of societal oppression.
Moreover, fairy tales often conclude with a sense of justice or a "happily ever after" that resonates deeply with those who have experienced exclusion. These stories hold out the promise of a better future—a narrative arc that parallels the longing for equality and belonging in real life. The archetypal simplicity of fairy tales make them easy to relate to, while their magical elements offer a hopeful escape from the harshness of reality. This is why queer people, alongside other marginalized communities, often find solace, empowerment, and a sense of possibility within these age-old stories.
Folk tales haven’t disappeared, despite fairy tales’ widespread influence. Oral storytelling is resilient, and queerness continues to evolve with them, emerging in urban legends, local myths, and even internet lore. Although literary fairy tales gave folk narratives a new life in print, they could never fully replace the oral tradition, which continues to transform, adapt, and reflect each generation’s concerns. Together, mythology, folk tales, and fairy tales form a continuum that shows how stories evolve yet remain fundamentally similar—centuries later, they each echo the timeless themes of humanity’s quest for meaning, identity, and belonging.
The Histoire de la Marquise-Marquis de Banneville is one such story. Written in the late Seventeenth-century, it tells a fictional tale about a mother who is willing to do anything to keep a son from ever going to war, and a daughter who is more than what she seems. It has a surface-level similarity to other familiar fairy tales like Cinderella; a girl from the countryside being introduced to the court, a family friend playing the role of a fairy godmother to buy her dresses and take her to the balls, and a handsome love interest that sweeps our heroine off her feet. However, we have something wildly unique about the Histoire, and that is the story’s repeated motif of gender presentation being separate from a character's assigned sex.