Madame Chrysanthème (novel)

Madame Chrysanthème is a novel by Pierre Loti, presented as the autobiographical journal of a naval officer who was temporarily married to a Japanese woman while he was stationed in Nagasaki, Japan. It closely follows the journal he kept of one-month paid relationship with Kiku (Chrysanthemum) in the Jūzenji neighbourhood (modern day Jūninmachi ) in 1885. Originally written in French and published in 1887, Madame Chrysanthème was very successful in its day, running to 25 editions in the first five years of its publication with translations into several languages including English. It has been considered a key text in shaping western attitudes toward Japan at the turn of the 20th century. It is known in Japan under the title of お菊さん (O Kiku-san), which is a direct translation of the French name.

André Messager's 1893 opera of the same name is based on it, as are some aspects of Puccini's 1904 opera Madama Butterfly.