Sexual Violence in History: A Bibliography

compiled by Stefan Blaschke

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Start: Alphabetical Index: Author Index: A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | Unknown

First published: July 1, 2025 - Last updated: July 1, 2025

TITLE INFORMATION

Author: Candice Dalino

Title: René Magrittes ‘Les jours gigantesques’

Subtitle: Un féministe avant la lettre?

Journal: Pro Memorie: Bijdragen tot de Rechtsgeschiedenis der Nederlanden (Pro Memorie: Contributions to the Legal History of the Netherlands)

Volume: 27

Issue: 1

Year: June 2025 (Published online: June 1, 2025)

Pages: 134-174

pISSN: 1566-7146 - Find a Library: WorldCat | eISSN: 2667-1611 - Find a Library: WorldCat

Language: French

Keywords: Modern History: 20th Century | European History: Belgian History | Representations: Art / René Magritte



FULL TEXT

Link: Amsterdam University Press (Restricted Access)



ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Author: -

Abstract: »Can art provide a force to social reflection and shaping, that abstract laws and policy-making cannot reach? René Magritte (1898-1967), Belgian surrealist painter, touches upon the driving force towards a more equal society with his exploration of (gender-based) violence and sexuality. Les jours gigantesques (1928) depicts a scene of sexual abuse: a man with invisible face attempts to unwittingly overpower a naked woman. It forms a particularly dark, disturbing, and frightening image that causes a shock to the viewer. Magritte confronts the viewer with the societal position of (Belgian) women during the Interbellum: victim of not merely brutal shocking violence, but of a broader inequality that is deeply rooted in our society. This article explores how Magritte’s oeuvre is a carrier of an intrinsic force that directly causes an action (shock) in the viewers’ sphere and brings them to a higher consciousness. An analysis of Les jours gigantesques and related works unveils how René Magritte wields this shock to a higher consciousness towards the (surrealist) image of women as sexual, subordinate objects of lust. The artist’s intention to generate a greater social consciousness of (formal) equality between men and women, situated within the prevailing patriarchal zeitgeist in 1928, leads this article to see Magritte as ‘un féministe avant la lettre’.« (Source: Pro Memorie)

Wikipedia: History of Europe: History of Belgium | Art: Surrealism / René Magritte | Sex and the law: Sexual violence