Evening star., 1962-05-06
lES LIAISONS DANGER

LES LAAkSONS DANGEh-
- FUSES: A novel. BY Cho-
derlos de Laclos. Double
- day; Paperback, $1.450
The greatest Of contempo-
rary novels was written not
by O man Of letters but by
an army officer and was
published not in the Goth
century but in 1882. To
call LES Liaisons Danger
euseS" (the English transla-
tions either keep the readily
understandable French title
or use the inexact Danger
oils Acquaintances") contem-
porary or modern is to hazard
q skeptical reaction only on
the grounds that it can hardly
be matched today in stature;
In its approach and appeal.
in its quality, It does not
speak to US out Of the past,
rs most 18th century novels
do, but touches susceptible
tiles and presumes responses
that we today recognize
as our own. Andre Glide
called 1t the second great
est novel In any language,
and Charles Baudelaire spoke
Of its author as o moralist
deeper than the most pro-
found and higher than the
most exalted. The book has
never been out Of print, but
in England and America 1t
has not enjoyed wide popu-
Iarity. In recent months
several new editions are an
indication that Lies Liaisons
pangereuses" is experiencing
a reincarnation. (The motion
picture based on the novel
is in many ways q good one.
but its merits are not those
of the book, which 1t follows
only in general outline.)
Our authors today are
skilled in sex, but who
among them can drench a
book in eroticism, carnal and
intellectual, without q single
obScenity, a single irnpropri-
ETY., or q single offense
against q society that is al
ways well-mannered, however
corrupt? Laclos could and
did; when he writes the
word "roue," his nearest ap-
proach to q four-letter word,
he apologies ironically in q
footnote. Who today pic
lures the evils he sees In our
society without raising his
voice and without reSorting
to caricature? Laclos was
precise and lethal; II he was
3 moralist, as Baudelaire de-
clares, he was q quite imper-
sonal one, for the author Is
never seen in the novel, ex-
icept In mocking guise In the
preface and in what purports
to be q note by the publisher.
Not o great deal Is known
about Laclos beyond his
long career as Q successful
and respected military off,
Ger. What about him that
is extraordinary, perhaps
unique, is that he produced
one Of the worlds greatest
novels ct the age Of 40 with
out any apprenticeship. and
that although he lived 20
years longer he never at
tempted q second book. Vir-
tually all the other writing
4of Iaclos. insignificant in
quantity, is either occasional
or inconpleted. Yet, lies
Liaisons Dangereuses" was
an immediate and wild sue
cess, and went through at
least u editions in Is years.
The book is q collection Of
IT'S letters. largely the corre-
Spondence Of the seven leAd-
ing characters. The young
,Marquise de Merteuil and
the Vicomte de valmont
have been lovers In the past;
now separated except as
letter writer's, they devote
their lives to surprising one
smother in the design and
execution Of every kind of
anatory adventure. Valmont
lis intent on achieving q
perfect seduction-that Of q
beautiful, chaste and inno-
cent young wife who by the
rules Of Valmont's game must
not accede to his desires but
demand them Of him. The
Maruuise writes Valmont
about Cecile, q 15-year-old