Two proto-science-fiction novels written in French by 18th century women

TL;DR

This paper examines two rare 18th-century French female-authored science-fiction novels, highlighting their shared Enlightenment philosophy of equality and their significance in early science fiction history.

Contribution

It uncovers and analyzes two overlooked interplanetary novels by women from the 18th century, emphasizing their philosophical themes and historical importance.

Findings

Both novels promote gender and social equality.

The authors' works reflect Enlightenment ideals.

These novels are among the earliest examples of science fiction by women.

Abstract

With Cyrano, Voltaire, and Verne, France provided important milestones in the history of early science fiction. However, even if the genre was not very common a few centuries ago, there were numerous additional contributions by French-speaking writers. In this paper, we review two cases of interplanetary novels written in the second half of the eighteenth century and sharing a rare particularity: their authors were female. Voyages de Milord Ceton was imagined by Marie-Anne de Roumier-Robert whereas Cornelie Wouters de Wasse conceived Le Char Volant. While their personal lives were very different, and their writing style too, both authors share in these novels a common philosophy in which equality -- between ranks but also between genders -- takes an important place. Their works thus clearly fit into the context of the Enlightenment.