In France very few sociological studies have tackled deviance from the perspective of gender: as they are under-represented in the statistics of the penal world, women are often left out of analyses. However, the choice of women’s deviance as an object of study sheds light on the way the penal process works, especially in relation to parapenal institutions which contribute to differentiate male and female deviance. To explore the marginal space occupied by incarcerated women therefore amounts to question the notion of center. If it is necessary to analyze the prison system in connection with social order, it is equally important to deal with it within the context of a gender-based order and its norms.