Marguerite Yourcenar (8 June 1903 17 December 1987) was a Belgian-born French novelis an!

! essa"is # $inner o% he Prix Femina an! he &rasmus 'ri(e) she was he %irs woman elec e! o he *ca!+mie %ran,aise) in 1980) an! he seven een h -erson o occu-" .ea 3# /ourcenar was born Marguerite Antoinette Jeanne Marie Ghislaine Cleenewerck de Crayencour in Brussels) Belgium) o 0ichel 1leenewerc2 !e 1ra"encour) o% French bourgeois !escen ) an! a Belgian mo her) Fernan!e !e 1ar ier !e 0archienne) o% Belgian nobili ") who !ie! en !a"s a% er her bir h# .he grew u- in he home o% her -a ernal gran!mo her# /ourcenar3s %irs novel) Alexis) was -ublishe! in 1949# .he ransla e! 5irginia $ool%3s The Waves over a 10-mon h -erio! in 1937# 6n 1939 /ourcenar3s in ima e com-anion a he ime) he li erar" scholar an! 7ansas 1i " na ive 8race Fric2) invi e! he wri er o he 9ni e! . a es o esca-e he ou brea2 o% $orl! $ar 66 in &uro-e# /ourcenar lec ure! in com-ara ive li era ure in :ew /or2 1i " an! .arah ;awrence 1ollege#<1= /ourcenar was bise>ual? she an! Fric2 became lovers in 1937 an! remaine! oge her un il Fric23s !ea h in 1979# *% er en "ears s-en in @ar %or!) 1onnec icu ) he" bough a house in :or heas @arbor on 0oun Deser 6slan!) 0aine) where he" live! %or !eca!es#<4=<3= 6n 19A1) she -ublishe!) in France) he novel Mmoires d'Hadrien) which she ha! been wri ing wi h -auses %or a !eca!e# Bhe novel was an imme!ia e success an! me wi h grea cri ical acclaim# 6n his novel) /ourcenar recrea e! he li%e an! !ea h o% one o% he grea rulers o% he ancien worl!) he Coman &m-eror @a!rian) who wri es a long le er o 0arcus *urelius) he son an! heir o% *n oninus 'ius) his successor an! a!o- ive son# Bhe &m-eror me!i a es on his -as ) !escribing bo h his rium-hs an! his %ailures) his love %or *n inous) an! his -hiloso-h"# Bhe novel has become a mo!ern classic# 6n 1980) /ourcenar was he %irs %emale member elec e! o he Acadmie franaise# *n anec!o e ells o% how he ba hroom labels were hen change! in his male-!omina e! ins i u ionD E0essieurs F 0argueri e /ourcenarE (Gents / Marg erite !o rcenar"# Gne o% he mos res-ec e! wri ers in he French language) she -ublishe! man" novels) essa"s) an! -oems) as well as hree volumes o% memoirs# /ourcenar3s house on 0oun Deser 6slan!) Petite Plaisance) is now a museum !e!ica e! o her memor"# .he is burie! across he soun! in .omesville) 0aine#