The Writer As Explorer

One of the primary themes of Paris Red is relationships– and the changes and struggles within them, as Victorine seeks to understand herself and in part explore her sexuality. From the first line, we get a sense of her libertine way of thinking, and an insight to her relationship with herself; “Today I am seventeen and I am wearing the boots of a whore.” We come to know that she embraces her sexual desires, and learn of the ways this has impacted her life, for better or worse. From the broken relationship between herself and her parents, we see that she had always been self-assured and did not take mind of warnings or rules. She is confident as she makes her way through the world, and that seems to be one reason that allowed her to become important to Manet. She is aware of the gap between her and Manet, yet remains financially and emotionally reliant on him. In gaining him, she left her friend Denise and her job, leaving her in a precarious situation that spans the length of the novel.