Marie-Jeanne L'Héritier de Villandon (12 November 1664 – 24 February 1734) was an aristocratic French writer and salonnière of the late 17th century, and a niece of Charles Perrault.Jack Zipes, The Great Fairy Tale Tradition: From Straparola and Basile to the Brothers Grimm, p 833,
In the 1690s, she published three fairy tales, and is credited with the beginning of the fairy tale vogue among the Précieuses. Her work on fairy tales preceded that of her uncle by a year. Like several other women writers of her era, she was a member of les conteuses.
Biography She published three fairy tales early in her career. Although she wrote few thereafter, she marked the beginning of the fairy tale vogue among the Précieuses,Jack Zipes, The Great Fairy Tale Tradition: From Straparola and Basile to the Brothers Grimm, p 834, publishing her first tale a year before her uncle, the famed author of Les Contes de ma Mère l’Oye (Tales of Mother Goose) in 1696.L'Adroite princesse, ou, Les aventures de Finette, Paris, Marie-Jeanne, 1664-1734 A great friend and protégé of Madeleine de Scudéry, L'Héritier's participation in the fairy tale genre reflected her involvement in the salon scene, as she and so many of her friends and fellow salonnières, such as Madame d'Aulnoy and Henriette-Julie de Murat, were members of les conteuses. These women were monumental in the inception of the fairy tale genre, along with her esteemed uncle. She inherited Scudéry's salon upon her death in 1701.Contes, Éd. Raymonde Robert, Paris, Champion, 2005
Works Fairy tales L'Adroite princesse, ou, Les aventures de Finette - as above.The Discreet Princess, or the Adventures of Finette discussed in The Valor of Mars and the Charms of Venus, Sarah N. Lawson, 2015 Marmoisan - a literary tale classified in the Aarne-Thompson-Uther Index as ATU 884A, "The Forsaken Fiancée: Service as Menial".Trinquet, Charlotte. Le conte de fées français (1690-1700): Traditions italiennes et origines aristocratiques. Narr Verlag. 2012. p. 217. Ricdin-Ricdon - a literary predecessor to tale type ATU 500, "The Name of the Helper", akin to Rumplestiltskin.
References
External links Les Caprices du Destin (French) Oeuvres meslées, contenant L'innocente tromperie, L'avare puni, Les enchantemens de l'éloquence, Les aventures de Finette, nouvelles, et autres ouvrages, en vers et en prose (French)