Les Demi-Vierges

Les Demi-Vierges (The Half-Virgins) is a novel by French author Marcel Prévost, published in 1894. The novel gained significant attention in France during the 1890s for its purported exploration of the corrupting influence of Parisian society and education on young women. Prévost, who had previously worked as a civil engineer, resigned his post after the success of his earlier novels to focus on writing. Les Demi-Vierges was particularly well-known, and a dramatized version of the book achieved considerable success on stage. Prévost also authored widely read books offering advice to young girls, such as Lettres à Françoise.1