Unlawfully in love with another woman,[3] she was forced to live as a man because of a judge's orders, after a doctor found her to be intersex, and her homosexual behaviors were brought forth.

[5] In 1868, Barbin committed suicide due to her poverty, gender and sexuality troubles and the false persona she was forced to maintain.

[4] Foucault explained in his introduction that the objective of social institutions was to restrict "the free choice of indeterminate individuals".

[8] Scholars Elizabeth A. Meese and Alice Parker noted that the memoir's lessons are applicable to the contemporary world in that the lack of a clear gender identity transgresses the truth.

Judith Butler, in their book Gender Trouble, takes this as an opportunity to read Foucault against himself, especially in History of Sexuality, Volume I.