A Civilized Yogi: The Life of French Explorer Alexandra David-Nee

News of Alexandra David-Neel's extraordinary journey to Lhasa made headline news in scores of newspapers in the mid-1920s; the 56-year-old explorer was endowed with an indomitable spirit and a superhuman ability to endure pain. The main purpose of this biography is to go beyond this adventure hero myth by examining the ups and downs, accomplishments and challenges of a life that was both multifaceted and inextricably intertwined with the history of French politics, culture, and society. The essential feature of her world-view was a clash between tradition and modernity, a productive tension which both enhanced her reputation as an Orientalist and contributed to subtle transformations in gender stereotypes. She ultimately crafted an identity that conflated the image of the "modern woman" - independent and intrepid - with that of a "real woman" - nurturing and domestic - and in so doing, she generated an empowering new role for French women: the "modern mother." This apparent conflict was just one of many in the pioneer's life: the explorer's love of solitude was counterbalanced by an equally strong need to be in the spotlight; the anarchist jettisoned rules but treated those closest to her in authoritarian ways; the wife never lived with her husband on a full-time basis; the bohemian remained attached to living a bourgeois life; the mother thought it an abomination to have children; the Orientalist adopted native customs; the traveller yearned to escape from and be a part of Western society; the yogi was civilized. This list reveals that Alexandra recast her identity in ways that served her purpose as a female explorer in a man's world - as a woman in quest of independence and fame. Alexandra's life is a compelling story about a woman who dared to embrace career over family - without ever fully relinquishing her role as wife and mother - when it was not the norm to do so. Even though authentic freedom proved to be an elusive goal, Alexandra never gave up trying to live without submitting to anyone or anything.