Virginie Despentes, King Kong Théorie

Alexandra Pugh (King's College London)

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Ed. by Siobhán McIlvanney, King's College London, Kate Averis, University of Western Australia
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.5.2.07: French Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary, 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Kate Averis (University of Western Australia), Hugo Azerad (University of Cambridge), Patrick ffrench (King's College London), Edward Forman (University of Bristol), Akane Kawakami (Birkbeck, University of London), Nicole Kennedy (University of Newcastle), Siobhán McIlvanney (King's College London), Sinan Richards (King's College London), Tim Unwin (University of Bristol), David Williams (University of Sheffield)

Dates

First circulation or publication 2006

Places

France (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Novel

Resources

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Recommended Reading

“I write from the realms of the ugly, for the ugly”, states Virginie Despentes in the opening line of

King Kong théorie

(2006;

King Kong Theory

, 2009 and 2020; Despentes 2020, 13). With its frank, confrontational tone and emphasis on Despentes’s first-person perspective, this line sets the scene for the text to come.

King Kong théorie

is a generically hybrid work that mobilises Despentes’s own experience as a springboard for reflection on topics such as gender, sex work, pornography, rape, and masculinity. It provides an “origin story” for Despentes herself, as well as making a polemical intervention into feminist discourse. Prior to the publication of

King Kong théorie

, Despentes was best known for her scandalous debut novel

Baise-moi

(1994;

Rape Me

, 2003) and for the…

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3237 words

Citation: Pugh, Alexandra. "King Kong Théorie". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 29 November 2022 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=40823, accessed 03 April 2025.]

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