Suzanne Noel: Cosmetic Surgery, Feminism and Beauty in Early Twentieth-Century France

Working at the forefront of cosmetic surgery at the turn of the twentieth century, Dr Suzanne NoA l was both a pioneer in her medical field and a firm believer in the advancement of women. Today her views on the benefits of aesthetic surgery to women may seem at odds with her feminist principles, but by placing NoA l in the context of turn-of-the-century French culture, this book is able to demonstrate how these two worldviews were reconciled. NoA l was able to combine her intense convictions for gender equality and anti-ageism in the workforce with her underlying compassion and concern for her female patients, during a time when there were no laws in place to protect women from workplace discrimination. She was also responsible for several advances in cosmetic surgery, a thriving industry, and is today best known for her development of the mini facelift. This book, therefore, sheds much valuable light on advances in aesthetic surgery, twentieth-century beauty culture, women and the public sphere, and the 'new woman'.