The Lives of the Muses: Nine Women and the Artists They Inspired

My rating:

add to my books

The Lives of the Muses: Nine Women and the Artists They Inspired

by Francine Prose

3.68 · rating details · 349 ratings · 71 reviews

The Barnes & Noble Review
In the classical world, the muses -- all nine of them -- were daughters of Zeus who inspired poets, musicians, and other creative types to produce works of genius. Today, says Francine Prose, the word has been weakened and is used almost exclusively to refer to the chic women who help fashion designers inform their latest lines. But in her scholarl...moreThe Barnes & Noble Review
In the classical world, the muses -- all nine of them -- were daughters of Zeus who inspired poets, musicians, and other creative types to produce works of genius. Today, says Francine Prose, the word has been weakened and is used almost exclusively to refer to the chic women who help fashion designers inform their latest lines. But in her scholarly account, Prose (a National Book Award finalist for her novel Blue Angel) presents nine real women who moved men to greatness and who were not mere catalysts but worthy of note on their own, in many cases deserving a share of the credit for the work they helped create.

Each chapter is a mini-biography of a woman's life and the way a male artist figured into it. We see the muse as prompter and creator in her own regard, like memoirist Hester Thrale, whose letters to Samuel Johnson helped form his later works. In Alice Liddell, the inspiration for Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, the muse is at her most passive, asserting her independence of the child-loving author only by failing to remain seven years old forever. And with Yoko Ono, there is the muse as artist in her own right, who claimed not to have heard of the Beatles before meeting John Lennon, and whose avant-garde tendencies some blamed for his musical downfall.

To hit the mystical nine, Prose stretches a bit. For every Suzanne Farrell collaborating on ballets with George Balanchine, or every Gala Dal� cosigning canvases with spouse Salvador, there are personae only a graduate student would be likely to know. We learn of "serial muse" Lou Andreas-Salom�'s involvement with Friedrich Nietzsche, Rainer Maria Rilke, and Sigmund Freud, and of how Charis Weston had to vie with a toilet for the attentions of her photographer husband, Edward. But these lesser-knowns help make the book a complete analysis of notable women who motivated men of achievement -- usually at the expense of their own -- and lived with the consequences. iKatherine Hottinger/i

(less)

Paperback, 448 pages

Published October 1st 2003 by Harper Perennial

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

There is a good chance some of your friends read this book. Sign in to see!

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

Best Artists Writing on Art Books

20th out of 26 books — 1 voter

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 741)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Nov 01, 2007

Kate rated it

Shelves: nonfiction

This book fell like a bolt from the sky and landed in my lap. I had been thinking for months about what it means to be a muse, or an artist, and what the relationship between muse and artist means for modern men and women, and where gender fits into all of it. I'd been writing and processing and wondering why it was I craved artists--not art, which I love and which is nourishing, but artists, and their creative minds--so constantly.

And then I read The Lives of the Muses. Francine Prose ...more

like 2 likes

· see review

Nov 15, 2011

Hayley rated it

Prose’s ‘The Lives of the Muses’ is a mediocre take on the worlds of nine women who inspired (respectively) authors, poets, musicians, philisophers, and painters. From the titular Alice in Wonderland (and her Lewis Carrol), to the photographer Man Ray’s infatuation with Lee Miller, females have inspired male artists since the dawn of art. (Prose herself makes the case for the men inspiring the women, but she does not spend nearly enough time proving this thesis.) Also featured are Yoko Ono. Suza...moreProse’s ‘The Lives of the Muses’ is a mediocre take on the worlds of nine women who inspired (respectively) authors, poets, musicians, philisophers, and painters. From the titular Alice in Wonderland (and her Lewis Carrol), to the photographer Man Ray’s infatuation with Lee Miller, females have inspired male artists since the dawn of art. (Prose herself makes the case for the men inspiring the women, but she does not spend nearly enough time proving this thesis.) Also featured are Yoko Ono. Suzanne Farrell, Charis Weson, Gala Dali, Lizzy Siddal, and Lou Andreas-Salome.
Prose’s technique of devoting a chapter to each muse felt uninspired. I would have much preferred Prose to focus on an aspect of musedom itself- the sexuality, the friendship, the backlash from contemporaries – rather than a somewhat flat interpretation of each woman’s life. She barely delves into the art that each muse inspired – rather, assuming that the reader has understood the full complexities of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ and does not need explaination the oeuvre of Salvador Dali.
By focusing on each muse as a manifestation of the person she inspired and the time period she lived in, Prose allows the women and girls to transcend even musedom. These ladies become the manifestations of the time period that they’re entrenched in – Alice Liddel represents the vague pedophilia of the repressive Victorian era. Lizzie Siddal is the Pre-Raphealite’s muse of mystery and defiance. Lou Andreas-Salome, who had her hands full providing banter to Frued, Rilke, and Nietze, is particularly interesting. Prose claims “artists rarely create for the muse, to win or keep the muse’s love and admiration, but rather for themselves, for the world, and for the more inchoate and unquantifiable imperatives of art itself.”
Prose is, as usual, hyper readable. She can weave a fantastic story together while still maintaining an air of mystery. She does each muse justice as characters, if not actual people. This objectification is, perhaps, where she is the most enjoyable to read. She includes a particularly beautiful metaphor that likens the muses to artistic crock-pots: “he muses are merely the instruments that raise the emotional and erotic temperature high enough, churn up the weather in a way that may speed and facilitate the artist’s labors.” This is where I appreciate her the most as a writer, but is ironic that for the muses to inspire her, she must subvert their erotic power for her own, just as the artists who fed off their contemporary muse. Prose must make them something to inspire her art, and the dry paragraphs where she attempts to paint their full lives fall flat.
Prose goes into depth about what constitutes a muse – is it sex? Infatuation? The right relationship at the right time? For each of the artists and muses, the relationships are fraught with tension. Prose made the choice to focus specifically on each relationship, rather then give a lengthy character biography of her subjects. It is interesting to note that this is where she places the importance of her material. I expected a fuller interpretation of the lives of these women: how did each react to the musedom and idolatry thrust upon her? If Prose is to be believed, and that the relationship between the artist and the muse is fraught with tension, she does not give enough evidence.
Overall, Prose’s style was enjoyable but her content fell flat. And writing talent alone is, in my opinion, not enough. When I write, I must make sure to connect myself to interesting content instead of merely coasting on technique.
(less)

· see review

Aug 22, 2011

Ana rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: biographies, art, non-fiction

I'm probably being too kind by giving two stars to this book, but then again i usually reserve one star ratings to books i wasn't able to finish. And i did finish this one. It made me angry pretty much throughout it, but i did finish it.

Here's the main thing i don't understand. Why did the author write this book? She seems to have felt contempt and/or pity for most if not all of the women featured here. Why would you spend unknown amounts of time researching someone's life if you didn'...more

· see review

Jun 14, 2010

Lana rated it

This was disappointing, but I think that is mostly b/c I misunderstood what the subject matter would be. I was hoping for a collection of biographies on the "muses" themselves, but they were secondary to the content on the artists. The background of each woman is only briefly mentioned and they are mostly described only in their relationships to the artists. In almost every case the woman is depicted darkly (bordering on cruelly). There are countless biographies written about famous ar...more

· see review

Dec 13, 2009

Linda Robinson rated it

· review of another edition

The Muses were created 2500 years ago, each of The Nine given a realm in which to inspire: theater, writing, music, dance. Originally 3, they were trebled later. The Romans gave them water nymph duty as well. Shakespeare called upon all; Chaucer, Herodotus, the list is huge.

Prose's nine are modern women, beginning with Alice Liddell, who at 7 began the musedom to Oxford don Charles Dodgson that would result in "Alice's Adventures Under Ground" and later "Through the Lo...more

· see review

Aug 02, 2009

Alison rated it

A book I read by accident that became a text for my course on Women in the Visual Arts. After all, at least 4 of these muses were "in the visual arts." I find the chapter on Lee Miller the most fascinating, and the most likely to inspire me to research her more. Why don't more people know about Lee Miller? It's a travesty, except...her own son knew nothing of her life before she became an ex-pat housewife to Sir Penrose, and took up gourmet cooking. The muses are all fact stranger t...more

· see review

Jul 20, 2009

Jeanne rated it

Shelves: non-fiction, creativity

I've never read Prose's fiction, but love this book! Each essay is a biographical sketch of the relationship between a muse and her artist. Prose does a great job examining the problematic nature of muse relationships, especially for women and the different ways women reacted/profited/grew or were destroyed by/from these associations. The most contemporary muse is Yoko Ono, but honestly while I loved the book so many of the critical observations Prose made in each of the essays seemed to repeat ...more

· see review

Dec 10, 2010

Brian rated it

· review of another edition

Recommended to Brian by: bb123@efn.org

Whew! Finally finished it. Most of the book is a tedious long slow slog through the lives of partners of tortured artists. By shifting the focus from the creator to the person ostensibly driving and suffering with the artist, the author has perhaps opposite her intended effect. Other than Alice Liddel and to a much less extent Lee Miller and Yoko Ono, the muses seem tangential to the artists lives.

Prose's choice of subjects is arbitrary and disappointing. She mentions in several pla...more

· see review

Jun 19, 2010

Catherine rated it

The Lives of the Muses is a consistently compelling non-fiction work. It both looks at the idea of the muse over the years and picks 9 muses to create short biographies of them and their relationship with their artist as a representation of the undefinable role of the muse. It also uses the muse to go into the role of the female, how the muse is quite obviously a sexist responsibility but how each muse either redefined it in their own way or submitted themselves fully to the idea of the muse. Wh...more

· see review

Jan 19, 2008

Mymuseisme rated it

Recommends it for: people watchers

Offers engaging narratives and provided insightful details of the women's unconventional relationships with their artists and, in my opinion, the illusions/disillusionments that pervaded many of their relationships. Those who read The Meaning of the Oxford English Dictionary might be interested to read the chapters on Samuel Johnson and Hester Thrale and Lewis Carroll and Alice Liddell. Ms. Thrale's friendship and support quite literally enabled Johnson to survive and write his dictionary. The...moreOffers engaging narratives and provided insightful details of the women's unconventional relationships with their artists and, in my opinion, the illusions/disillusionments that pervaded many of their relationships. Those who read The Meaning of the Oxford English Dictionary might be interested to read the chapters on Samuel Johnson and Hester Thrale and Lewis Carroll and Alice Liddell. Ms. Thrale's friendship and support quite literally enabled Johnson to survive and write his dictionary. The chapter on Lewis Carroll saddened me. Alice in Wonderland just might be illustrative of the sublimation of personal desires, but his behaviors would be judged very harshly by today's standards. Ms. Liddle's silence preserves the questionable, childlike innocence of the story. The chapter on Dali and Gala-Dali was an eye-opener since I was unaware of his emotional disturbances. Again I am saddened that artistic achievement is fueled by pathology. Many of Dali's paintings manifest his inner view of Gala, and the one that gave me pause was the Madonna of Port Lligat. The painting seems incongruous in light of Gala's tumultuous relationship with her daughter from her marriage with Paul Eluard, and with whom she maintained intimate relations while married to Dali, but interesting when viewed in light of her behaviors with Dali. I won't comment on the Pope's sanction of this painting. I chuckled at Lou Andreas-Salome's proclivity for intellectual relationships much to the physical dissatisfaction of her male counterparts. She is connected with three artists, the poet Rilke, the philosopher Nietzsche, and the psychoanalyst, Freud. Lee Miller's personal life is a revelation and certainly contributed to many of her emotional problems, possibly enabling her to learn from Man Ray and become an accomplished photographer in her own right. Suzanne Farrell and George Balanchine show how a gifted artist and gifted muse can bring out the best in each other if they are able to overcome negativity.(less)

· see review

Jan 27, 2009

Renee rated it

I read this 400 page book over 2 days; that's how fascinating it was. I read it end-to-beginning because I thought the most curious muses were saved for the end. So I began with Yoko Ono and proceeded backwards through Suzanne Farrell (George Balanchine), Lee Miller (Man Ray), Gala Dali (Salvador Dali), Charis Weston (Edward Weston), Lou Andreas-Salome (Nietzsche, Rilke and Freud), Elizabeth Siddall (Dante Gabriel Rossetti), Alice Liddell (Lewis Carroll), and Hester Thrale (Samuel Johnson).

· see review

Apr 29, 2011

Kathleen Maguire rated it

I love this topic, and when I saw it and then saw the writer's name I was thrilled! Francine Prose is erudite without being inaccessible, and does an excellent job of presenting biographical/factual information in a narrative and thematic context. Each chapter stands on its own, and although I liked every chapter, I liked the ones about artists I like more. My only negative is that I would have liked to see a female artist and the male must that inspired HER!

· see review

Jul 17, 2010

Catherine rated it

Interesting, interesting....In covering Yoko Ono, the author notes the anti-feminism and anti-Asian comments she endured; however, the author is obviously not a fan of Yoko Ono's work, as noted: "Much of Ono's art is, to put it bluntly, annoying -- and surely annoyance must be fairly low on any conceivable hierarchy of responses to art. Daily life provides enough friction without seeking more in high culture. Yet Ono seems convinced that getting negative attention is a productive form of ...more

· see review

Nov 21, 2008

Kate rated it

This is a thoughtful and well put-together book about nine women who lived during times spanning the 18th century to the 20th. Except for Yoko Ono, the women have been relatively unknown compared to the artists they inspired. In describing their lives, the author has given us insight into the eccentric lives of the artists themselves as well as what it is like to have an influence on the artistic process. A unique book that I highly recommend.

· see review

Oct 10, 2008

J.P. rated it

Recommends it for: biography fans, artsy-fartsy types

Recommended to J.P. by: nobody; I ran across it in Borders

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

· see review

Jun 02, 2010

Rldsr12 rated it

New Paperback Our Price: $8.98 I love Francine Prose! "In a brilliant, wry, and provocative book, National Book Award finalist Francine Prose explores the complex relationship between the artist and his muse..." "In Francine Prose's exhilarating study of nine women who have inspired artists, you get to enjoy something rare: a book of serious ideas that is also addictively juicy."-Boston Globe

· see review

Jul 06, 2007

Rachel rated it

A fabulous book. I became completely engrossed in these symbiotic lives. Some of the muses and artists were familiar to me but a few were new and exciting. I particularly liked the section on Salvador and Gala Dali as well as Louis Andreas-Salome and her three gentlemen: Friedrich Nietzsche, Rainer Maria Rilke and Sigmund Freud. The book showed several different muse relationships. The muse as simply inspiration kept at a distance to ensure their pedestal status, the muse in unconventiona...more

· see review

Sep 13, 2007

Bess rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: girls... and the boys who love them

Ed. note: ~~the hardcover jacket for this book is a million times better and more appropriate, and if I achieve "librarian" status, I will in fact be uploading it~~. Fixed it. This is the hardcover jacket.

Francine Prose is perhaps #1 on my list of writers discovered in recent years who make me happy to be alive. This book in particular was exactly what I needed at the time it came out: excellently crafted modern verse about little-known women in history who secretly inspired ...more

· see review

Jun 01, 2008

Joyce added it

The subtext of this book is all about the difficulty of not projecting feminist ideals onto women from the past... but in the end it's pretty hard not to come to the conclusion that the happiest women were the ones who actually accomplished more with their lives than inspiring and nurturing men.

Some of the biographical details are surprising. The vast majority of the muses in this sample did not have a "normal" sexual relationship with their artists; often the muses marrie...more

· see review

Mar 11, 2010

Keith rated it

For anyone interested in Art and the inspirational people behind the artists, this is a book for You..Do yourself a favor, find this book and read it slowly...The slower you read, the better it gets..This is one book one should not want to finish anytime soon..

· see review

Apr 16, 2011

Rachel Pollock rated it

interesting enough to read as a bedtime book, but Prose's analysis of her subjects (nine women who included Elizabeth Siddal, Lee Miller, and Yoko Ono) was fairly pedestrian and catty, and i'd been hoping for something a bit more insightful.

· see review

Apr 11, 2010

Amanda rated it

A whirlwind of different artistic movements and the lives of influential people within them. An interesting take on the idea of a muse, in a feminist sort of way. Really interesting and it has lead me to some other equally interesting books.

· see review

Apr 23, 2011

Sherry rated it

Well written and researched. The kinky lives of these artists and their muses was both hot and cold for me. I didn't enjoy it much. Sorry almost to read of the raw Yoko and John......maybe I'm just not as in love with biography as I thought, at least some biographies. Also, perhaps she made my sense of muse too gender based/biased and too human :). Enough.

· see review

Dec 28, 2009

Tbolton rated it

This was a gift from a friend for my birthday which introduced me to the interesting topic of muses and their role in the lives of artists, some modern and historic.

· see review

Oct 10, 2010

Cathy Day added it

Shelves: mrs-cole-porter

This book and Katie Roiphe's Uncommon Arrangements are excellent in their analysis of the relationship between making art and maintaining a marriage.

· see review

Aug 29, 2009

Carol rated it

Biography of nine women and the various roles they played in the lives of the men they inspired, from Hattie Thrale (Samuel Johnson) to John Lennon (Yoko Ono)

· see review

Apr 29, 2011

Gooby rated it

Very uneven quality. The Yoko Ono chapter was especially poor-- if the author doesn't consider Yoko a true and worthy muse, she could've reached her magical 9 with a contemporary like Marianne Faithfull, or a bit earlier w/ Alma Mahler.

· see review

Jan 17, 2010

Kat Masek rated it

· review of another edition

A fascinating study–by a fascinating writer–about "nine women and the artists they inspired," all women who should have had their own muses.

· see review

Apr 08, 2010

Julie rated it

Depressing.....basically nothing good comes from being someone's muse. These women wrecked their lives for a fleeting taste of fame.

· see review

Nov 07, 2010

Margaret Vincent rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

one of the most compelling pieces of non-fiction I've ever read. beautifully done, thoughtfully reasoned, and rather haunting.

· see review

« previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 … 24 25 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Be the first to start one »

Recommend it | Stats | Recent status updates

combine
Other Editions (9)

More editions...

Genres

Non Fiction

18 users

Art

17 users

Biography

17 users

History

10 users

Writing > Essays

3 users

Book Club

2 users

Womens

2 users

Biography Memoir

2 users

Feminism

2 users

Art > Art History

2 users

See top shelves...

Readers Also Enjoyed

About Francine Prose

Francine Prose (born in 1947 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American novelist. She graduated from Radcliffe College in 1968, and received a Guggenheim fellowship in 1991. She has sat on the board of judges for the PEN/Newman's Own Award, and her novel Blue Angel, a satire about sexual harassment on college campuses, was a finalist for the National Book Award. She is now teaching at Bard College.
...more

More about Francine Prose...

Books by Francine Prose

Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Pin It

Trivia About The Lives of the ...

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

Groups That Shelved The Lives of the ...

Not Just Another Book Club

29 members

last activity Feb 03, 2012 01:00pm

shelf: to-read

title link	preview: The Lives of the Muses: Nine Women and the Artists They Inspired
avg rating	preview: The Lives of the Muses: Nine Women and the Artists They Inspired Goodreads rating: 3.68 (349 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39939.The_Lives_of_the_Muses?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1169340291m/39939.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39939.The_Lives_of_the_Muses?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]The Lives of the Muses: Nine Women and the Artists They Inspired by Francine Prose[/url]

The Lives of the Muses: Nine Women and the Artists They Inspired

Friend Reviews

Community Reviews

Readers Also Enjoyed

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website