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The Journal of the Royal Institute of Thailand √— ° “¡‡ â “„ππ«π‘ ¬“¬¢Õß´’ ¡Õπ ‡¥Õ ‚∫«— «√å Vol. 32 No. 3 Jul.-Sep. 2007 590 Abstract The Love Triangle in Simone de Beauvoir’s Novels Chintana Damronglerd Associate Fellow of the Academy of Arts, The Royal Institute, Thailand Simone de Beauvoir expresses her feminist ideas by creating a love triangle in her novels, generally formed with a man and two women. This article discusses the love triangle through the novel La Femme rompue published in 1968. La Femme rompue is narrated by Monique, wife of Doctor Maurice. Monique and Maurice make an ideal couple who have loved each other for a long time. They have two daughters: Colette is married and lives in Paris as a housewife, Lucienne is working in the United States. Maurice suggests to Monique that she finds a job since all the children are grown up. Monique still enjoys looking after the household and does not seriously consider going to work. Simone de Beauvoir points out here that Monique misses her chance to be free. According to the author, a woman needs to have her own career so that she can live without depending upon a man. The happy married life of Monique ends when Maurice has another woman, Noëllie Guérard, a lawyer and a widow. Noëllie is beautiful, intelligent and attractive. She represents Simon de Beauvoir’s ideal woman. Finally Maurice leaves Monique and spends his life with Noëllie. Monique falls into a hopeless situation: no husband, no children and no career. This event illustrates Simone de Beauvoir’s point in Le deuxième sexe when she refers to a man as a ç sex who kills é . Monique notes at the end of the novel that she is scared. The hidden idea is that a woman needs to overcome this fearful reality because it is not an insurmountable fate. Key words : Simone de Beauvoir, French novel, feminism, love triangle