In Search of Self: How Chanel Became Coco to the World

This chapter is an example of psychobiographical research, and deliberately employs the object relations theory of Donald Winnicott to explore the life narrative of the selected subject, Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel (1883–1971). Chanel—also known as, and popularly referred to as Coco Chanel—was a 20th century couturier and fashion icon. She challenged conventional femininity and masculinity in her styles—and, in doing so, also challenged the gender lines and mores of the time. In the context of a difficult early life marked by the death of her mother and being orphaned, poverty, rejection, and shame she established immense prominence. Following from this ‘rags to riches’ story, there has been an interest in not only her success—but also in the intimacies of her life. This chapter examines her life in a new way by considering her development psychologically, and the formation of her identity and the impact that this had on how she related to her self and the world. Facets of this identity (such as the ‘adored self’, the ‘collapsed and fragile self’, and the ‘self-made woman’) include a powerful split between her authentic and false self; and for much of her life she seemed to struggle with this. With a new reading of the subjective world of Chanel and her creativity—that is, how Chanel became Coco to the world—this chapter contributes to the growing, but limited number of psychobiographies on fashion icons. It also demonstrates the particular relevance of the object relations theory of Winnicott to modern psychoanalytic psychobiographies.