New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-07-26
A "GREAT LADY" AUTHOR
MADAME DE LA FAYETTE.

IEa
de La Fayette Par 10 Comte dHaussonville, de
TAcademic Franchise. Paris: Hachette ct Cie'
New York F. W. Christern
The portrait Of Marie Magdeleno Phoebe de Lavergue
Countess de La Fayette which NJ dIIaussonville has
prefxel TO this volume, is certainly not that OF
woman who at any period of her life have been
beautiful or even good looking but the conscientious
bographer chosen 1t in preference to more natter
ing hkenesses, because he thinks II Is the only honest
Of the lady and because he observes none OF his
contemporaries say that she pretty. II Is dobt
full If any woman will find his justification sufficient.
Since there are extant portraits Of Madame de La
Fayette, which make her appear handsome, they Will
say, why not have honored her monograph with one
Of those. Nobody can now what a lady OF the
seventeenth century looked like while everybody in
terested in a pretty face. Why could not he have
taken the charming, II fictitious portrait which adoTs
the sumptuous edition of the " Pr1ncesse de Cleves,
published by COuquet in 1889, for insance1 1t IS true
that has single point resemblance 10 the coune
here presented but 1t is the face Of charming
woman, and surely Madame de La Fayette was that
However we must take NJ. d'Haussonvillc we find
him, and We find him uncompromsingly conscientious
He Is indeed very conscientious that he VIII not
spare his readers the least little detail Of those parts
Of his herones career which have scarce any thing TO
with the literary interest that almost alone links
her to the present age. There is truly certain de-
fciency in the counts Of proportion We look
for literary monograph and 10, we are rendered
somewhat dusve account Of the lady's position and
relations at the Court of Louis the Fourteenth; Of her
connection with La Roclefoucauld and Menge, and
Huck, and others.
We do not say that these details not interesting,
perhaps they necessary In view of the fact that
Madame de La Fayette was great lady in the first
place and an author in the second place and almost by
stealth Her non-lterary life marked by two
mysteries She married a country gentleman, and
after few years Of apparently happy life passed on
bis estates in the country she returned to Paris and
never lived with her liege lord again. There is no
evidence of any quarrel complaint on either side.
La Fayette simply drops out Of his wfe's life, and 50
Insignificant was he that no record can be found to-
day Of the date Of his DEATH or its place. The second
mystery is Madame de LaFayette's relations With La
ROchefoucaud. NJ. d'Haussonvllle examines the evj.
dence carefully and impartiay. and reaches the con-
clusion that the attachment between these two strong
intclgences was Platonlc. Certainly they were very
close to another for twenty years. and certonlv
there plenty of talk among their mutual friends.
could not fail to have been the case in that and
society," no matter what the actual facts Madame
de sevigue who was an intimate friend and constant
correspondent Of Madame de La Fayette. from the
grhood Of re latter until her DEATH throws light
upon this matter, and perhaps it may well be left
where it is-"in nubibus."
Madame de La Fayette wrote, when she over
forty years Of the book which constitutes her main
title to fame. and it is memorable the opening Of
new epoch in fiction. She the first to signalzo
the reaction against the dreadful ong-wnded artificial
and unthinkabe stories which before her constituted
the only resource at the command OF the public.
Romances In ten or twelve volumes, such as The
Great Cyrus" and Clelic" in which the narrative
constantly interrupted by the insertion Of episodes
wholly disconnected from 1t, and which char.
acterized by the widest extravaganza IN plot and
action. had for some time begun TO pail. but the
departure had not been made. The present reader OF
the Princesse de Cloves" who enters upon the book
unprepared may think it artificial in parts; but com
pared with what preceded IT, 1t is very mirror held
up to nature. 1t also has another distinction. II is
the firsJ French romance to exhibit lurch In The
prohgate line of succession which treats all husbands
as predestned victims, and which takes for granted
that married the proper objects OF affection
for all other men. Madame de La Fnyette in tho
Princesse de Ceves," moreover, opened new vein in
another way Her heroine is virtuous woman who
marres man she docs not love, and aferward meets
man she can love. Finding unknown feelings
arising within her. the Princess considers 1t her
duty to acaualnt her husband with the fact and does
So greatly to the poor mans chagrn and admiration
For while the former Is necessarily caused by the dis
covery that his wife does not love him, the second
necessarily results from his conviction that her loyalty
is impeccable
In this case the wifes confession has unexpected vet
natural consequences. The husband is one OF those
"who doats yet doubts; suspects yet strongly loves"
In despite Of himself he watches his wife, Presently
he thinks he sees significant symptoms. He is self
deceived. and though the Princess fully clears herself
the emotions from which he has suffered have given the
poor Prince his deatlblow, and he passes away cx-
oneratng and blessing his faithful, candid but not
loving wife. She, in her turn refuses to wed the man
she loves and who loves her, and ends her days I'm
austere religious devotion. 1t is rather odd that NJ
| d'Haussonvle I'm his account of the "Prncesse de
Ceves should have made reference 10 the interest
Ing fact that the course taken by the Princess In this
novel was actually followed hundred years later by
| celebrated Frenchwoman, Madame Roland. Whether
the latter consciously followed the invention of Madame
La Fayette does not appear clearly but she certainly
did inform her husband Of the fact that she had learned
| to love another man-the Deputy de Bugel, namely
and according to her memoirs she had no cause to con
graduate herself upon her fondness, for while Roland
did turn his face TO the wall die like the Prince
of Ceves he took the subject TO heart brooded nnon
it, and made himself very dsageeable at times there
after. For further particulars concerning this curious
episode the reader is referred to NJ Anatole Francs
introduction TO the latest edition Of Madame de La
| Fayette's masterpiece.
NJ dHaussonvile entertains doubts as to tbe author
ship Of Zayde7 Nine de La Fayettes other and greatly
Inferior romance. which, if well founded may Justify
almost complete detachment of interest from that
work. As to her so-called historical pieces perhaps
| the fragment Of biography of her friend Madames
| moy still be found worth reading. VI. dIaussonvlle
thinks that the description OF Madames death in II is
better than Bossuets in his funeral sermon. Per.
haps, however, the main interest would attach 10
the fact that much OF it is known TO be auobograph
cal But 1t is by the Princesse de Clevess that
Madame de La Fayette's fame and literary rank must
stand and the merits Of the book itself 50 obvious
and It's appearance so significant and critical, that
time is not likely 10 affect either or the other
The present memoir u.s. have said conscientious
and full Of detail but If the author had gwen us more
of his intelligent criticism the literature OF the
period. even at the cost OF reducing somewhat his &C
count of the frivolities Of the "Grand Monaraue,sp
| Court. We should have been better pleased.