Dziennik milie Serpin (1863-1881)
The Personal Journal of milie Serpin (1863-1881)

Summary/Abstract: This article by Philippe Lejeune, prominent French scholar on women’s personal journals and founder of the French Association pour l’autobiographie et le patrimoine autobiographique [Association for Autobiography and Autobiographical Heritage], focuses on the diary of Émilie Serpin, a humble governess. Lejeune discusses nineteenthcentury forms of female spirituality, Serpin’s experience of music through Catholic rites, her sense of loneliness in the wealthy homes of her employers, as well as her religiosity. For Serpin, her journal is a substitute for a close friend. Her relationship to diary-writing and religion allows her to maintain a sense of self-worth, which is threatened by the circumstances of her life in wealthy homes. The diary ends when Serpin unexpectedly gets married.

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