Set towards the end of the reign of Henry II of France, The Princesse de Cleves (1678) tells of the unspoken, unrequited love between the fair, noble Mme de Cleves, who is married to a loyal and faithful man, and the Duc de Nemours, a handsome man most female courtiers find irresistible. Warned by her mother against admitting her passion, Mme de Cleves hides her feelings from her fellow courtiers, until she finally confesses to her husband - an act that brings tragic consequences for all. Described as France's first modern novel, The Princesse de Cleves is an exquisite and...
Set towards the end of the reign of Henry II of France, The Princesse de Cleves (1678) tells of the unspoken, unrequited love between the fair,...
To experience the innovation of Lafayette's writing, it is necessary to understand the critical resistance it met with in seventeenth-century France "Contemporary Reactions" includes five assessments of The Princess of Cleves--by Marie-Madeleine de Lafayette herself, Roger de Bussy-Rabutin and Marie de Sevigne, Jean-Baptiste-Henry du Trousset de Valincour, Jean-Antoine de Charnes, and Du Plaisir--following its controversial publication. John Lyons's translations for this Norton Critical Edition make these reactions available in English for the first time "Criticism" includes eleven modern...
To experience the innovation of Lafayette's writing, it is necessary to understand the critical resistance it met with in seventeenth-century France "...
