ABSTRACT
This chapter analyses the significance that Rachilde accords the state of marriage as it is largely portrayed as a means to an end for the novel's heroine. It shows how, in the nineteenth century, women were defined by their position as wife and mother. Rachilde introduces her heroine's marriage to the Baron as a convenience; however, recalling the laws that were in place for women at the fin-de-siecle, it is also made clear that Mary Barbe needs the marriage in order to gain access to affairs that are not available to the single woman. In Gustave Adolphe Mossa's painting, Salome: Le gout de sang, the notion of subverting nature through floral imagery is visually brought to life. In this painting, sex and death are again linked, as is portrayed by the description of Mary's engagement dress. Mary's sadomasochistic relationships end in survival and death. Paul, waking from his submissive trance, is able to escape Mary's clutches and evade his death.
