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Marie Darrieussecq (born 1969) is a French novelist, essayist, and psychoanalyst whose debut novel Truismes (1996) shocked and captivated the French literary world. The novel won the Prix Décembre and the Prix Médicis, establishing Darrieussecq as one of the most innovative voices in contemporary French literature. Her work combines experimental form, philosophical depth, and an unflinching examination of the female condition and subjectivity in patriarchal society. Darrieussecq’s prose is precise, declarative, and deliberately unsentimental—she forces readers to confront uncomfortable truths in an almost clinical tone.
Truismes tells the story of a woman who begins to transform into a pig. Told in a deadpan, matter-of-fact tone, the narrative charts her physical metamorphosis while exploring her relationships with her lover, her job, and her family. The novel is a savage satire of how women are treated as objects, how the female body is simultaneously desired and despised, and how capitalism commodifies human existence. Darrieussecq’s genius lies in her refusal to explain or justify the magic—she simply presents it as inevitable and obvious, forcing readers to confront what is actually being said beneath the surreal surface. The result is both darkly comic and deeply disturbing; a strange and powerful reminder of Kafka’s The Metamorphosis.
Truismes is a foundational text of 1990s French literature and feminism, and its themes (the objectification of women, the violence of everyday life, the control of female bodies) remain urgently relevant today. The novel is brief, formally restricted and direct, and intellectually rigorous. Darrieussecq invites us to think critically about gender, power, and the stories we tell ourselves about what is “natural” and what is monstrous. It operates as both a philosophical argument and a scream of resistance.
Fair warning: it is not comfortable reading as the narrative exploits violence (notably sexual) against women and can be triggering.
