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Officially commemorated in 1848, Dubray's bust of Marianne features a bare breast with little drops of breast milk. "The Republic prefers an opulent, more maternal breast, with its promise of generosity and abundance," explains writer/historian Maurice Agulhon. Even shape has its meaning. According to Agulhon, perfectly shaped breasts that are exactly the same size are "an additional symbol of the egalitarian spirit."

In this bountiful and decidedly female context, nothing could delight French mayors more than Laetitia Casta, who once declared that her breasts were raised on butter and crème fraîche. Granted, there have been detractors, those who, like Agulhon, see in the "Mariannization of the stars" a travesty of national values. Many of them hark back to the ideals of the 1792 convention, when it was decreed that Marianne would be made "so that our national emblems would circle the globe, presenting to all peoples the cherished images of liberty and republican pride." But that was a long time ago, before television, air travel and Victoria's Secret.

Today, it is Laetitia Casta's luxurious bosom that, on the glossy pages of Victoria's Secret lingerie catalogs or the cover of Vogue, has "circled the globe." In fact, with the new Marianne freshly minted and busted all over France, these globes in their own right have become a symbol of national pride much in the same way as Joan of Arc. Leave it to the French to embody their national values in the form of mythic, rebellious women endowed with special virtues: Joan of Arc heard voices. Marianne had great breasts.

Which makes one wonder: Would Casta have been chosen to represent Marianne, who long ago replaced Napoleon as France's national bust, if she filled a mere 34A cup? Or is that beside the point? Says Casta, "To represent France, liberty and a certain idea of what a woman is -- that's a hell of a responsibility."

No kidding.
salon.com | Feb. 19, 2000

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