Carmen and Colomba, femmes fatales?

The aim of the bachelor thesis Carmen and Colomba as femmes fatales? is to describe the origin and expansion of the myth of the femme fatale across the 19th century French literature. Through the analysis of the two main female characters Carmen and Colomba of the writer Prosper Mérimée, it is possible to illustrate the general applicability of this myth. The first part of the thesis is dedicated to the definition of the term femme fatale, its expansion in the 19th century and also to the question concerning the relevance of this literary myth. The following chapter covers the analysis of the two mentioned female characters by defining the types of their male victims and their closer analysis. The last chapter provides a space to discuss the development of the myth of the femme fatale over the second half of 19th century, primarily in the piece Les Diaboliques of Barbey d'Aurevilly, but also in the crystallization of femme fatale into the mythological-biblical based figure of Salomé in the end of the 19th century