"Death of a woman" in literature and art of the XIX-XX centuries

The author introduces and defines the concept of "death of a woman" dealing with the gender characteristics and trends in reflection of death in the art. The article is concerned with the image of old age and death of women in the representation of femininity of the XVI - XX centuries in the European art. By case study of the works of Baudelaire, Bunin, Proust, Schiele, Dix, Brecht and others, the author discusses the rhetoric of death in the interpretations of philosophers, cultural studies scholars and art critics of the XX - XXI centuries.