George Sand - also known as Aurore Dupin - was born in 1804 to a wealthy French family. Married to a baron, she left him and took her two children to live the life she felt she deserved, free from the constraints of a male-dominated society that imposed its restrictions on both her artistic and sexual freedom.
A prolific writer, she composed a variety of texts including stories, essays, plays, novels and memoirs. Her first novel, "Indiana," explored the concept of women's freedom from the constraints of an unhappy marriage. Her subsequent novels, "Valentine" and "Leila", further engaged her readers with their frank exploration of a woman's right to seek sexual and emotional satisfaction.
Called tempermental, fiery, opinionated and fiercely independent, she had open relationships with men outside of marriage, including the famous composer Frederic Chopin. Others she knew and befriended were poet Alfred de Musset, composer Franz Liszt and artist Eugene Delacroix.
But perhaps her boldest statement was in the way she dressed. At a time when women were expected to be the embodiment of virtue and feminine traits, Sand wore men's suits - including tie and top hat - in protest of the unequal treatment of men and women. The envy of many "proper" women, she was not without her critics. But to those who would deny her the freedom she sought, she has said: "The world will know and understand me someday. But if that day does not arrive, it does not greatly matter. I shall have opened the way for other women."
**If you're interested in learning more about George Sand, you might rent the 1991 movie "Impromptu" - based on her love affair with Chopin, and starring Judy Davis and Hugh Grant.**
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