The 48 Laws Of Power

194 LAW 25

surprise,suspense,

thecreationof

sympathy,

and

symbolic

identification.

Alsolike

him,

you

mustbe

constantly

awareof

your

audience——of

what

will

please

themandwhatwillborethem.Youmust

arrange

to

place

your-

selfatthe

center,

tocommand

attention,

andnevertobe

upstaged

at

any

cost.

OBSERVANCEOFTHELAWII

Inthe

year

1831,

a

young

womannamedAurore

Dupin

Dudevantlefther

husbandand

family

inthe

provinces

andmovedtoParis.Shewantedtobe

a

writer;

marriage,

she

felt,

wasworsethan

prison,

foritleftherneitherthe

timenorthefreedomto

pursue

her

passion.

InParisshewouldestablish

her

independence

andmakeher

livingbywriting.

SoonafterDudevantarrivedinthe

capital,

however,

shehadtocon

frontcertainharshrealities.Tohave

anydegree

offreedominParis

you

hadtohave

money.

Fora

woman,

money

could

only

come

through

mar»

rlage

or

prostitution.

No

womanhadevercome

closeto

making

a

livingby

writing.

Womenwroteasa

hobby,supportedby

their

husbands,

or

by

an

inheritance.InfactwhenDudevantfirstshowedher

writing

toan

editor,

hetold

her,

“Youshouldmake

babies,Madame,

notliterature,”

Clearly

Dudevant

had

cometoParis

to

attempt

the

impossible.

Inthe

end,

though,

she

came

up

witha

strategy

to

dowhat

nowomanhad

ever

donew-a

strategy

tore-createherself

completely,forging

a

public

image

of

herown

making.

Womenwritersbeforeherhadbeenforcedintoa

ready-

made

role,

thatofthe second-ratearfist whowrote

mostly

for other

women.Dudevantdecidedthatifshehadto

play

a

role,

shewouldturnthe

game

around:Shewould

play

the

part

ofaman.

In 1832 a

publisheraccepted

Dudevanfsfirst

major

novel,

Indium.

Shehadchosento

publish

itundera

pseudonym,

“George

Sand,”

andall

ofParis assumedthis

impressive

newwriterwasmale. Dudevanthad

sometimeswornmen’sclothesbefore

creating“George

Sand”

(she

hadal-

ways

foundmen‘sshirtsand

riding

breeches

more

comfortable);now,

as

a

public

figure,

she

exaggerated

the

image.

Sheadded

long

men’s

coats,

gray

hats,

heavy

boots,

and

dandyish

cravatstoherwardrobe.Shesmoked

cigars

andinconversation

expressed

herselflikea

man,

unafraidtodomiv

natethe

conversationor

tousea.

saucy

word,

This

strange

“male/female”writerfascinatedthe

public.

And

unlike

otherwomen

writers,

Sandfoundherself

accepted

intothe

clique

ofmale

artists.Shedrankandsmokedwith

them,

evencarriedonaffairswiththe

mostfamousartistsof

Europe—Musset,Liszt,

Chopin.

Itwasshewhodid

the

wooing,

andalsothe

abandoning-—she

movedonatherdiscretion.

Thosewhoknew

Sandwell

understood

that

hermale

personapro-

tectedherfrom

the

public’spryingeyes.

Outinthe

world,

she

enjoyed

playing

the

part

tothe

extreme;

in

private

sheremainedherself.Shealso

realized thatthecharacterof

“George

Sand” could

grow

stale or

pre-

dictable,

andtoavoidthisshewould

every

nowandthen

dramatically

alter