Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Part I What are Emotions?
- Part II Emotions in History: France, 1700–1850
- 5 The Flowering of Sentimentalism (1700–1789)
- 6 Sentimentalism in the Making of the French Revolution (1789–1815)
- 7 Liberal Reason, Romantic Passions (1815–1848)
- 8 Personal Destinies: Case Material of the Early Nineteenth Century
- Conclusion
- Appendix A Detailed Review of Anomalous Cases from the Gazette des Tribunaux Sample
- Appendix B Detailed Review of Anomalous Cases from the Tribunal Civil de Versailles Sample
- References
- Index
5 - The Flowering of Sentimentalism (1700–1789)
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 September 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Part I What are Emotions?
- Part II Emotions in History: France, 1700–1850
- 5 The Flowering of Sentimentalism (1700–1789)
- 6 Sentimentalism in the Making of the French Revolution (1789–1815)
- 7 Liberal Reason, Romantic Passions (1815–1848)
- 8 Personal Destinies: Case Material of the Early Nineteenth Century
- Conclusion
- Appendix A Detailed Review of Anomalous Cases from the Gazette des Tribunaux Sample
- Appendix B Detailed Review of Anomalous Cases from the Tribunal Civil de Versailles Sample
- References
- Index
Summary
In 1692, Louis XIV demanded that his nephew, the duc de Chartres, marry one of his illegitimate daughters, Mlle de Blois – a severe blow to the young man and his parents. On the day the engagement was to be announced, the duc de Chartres's mother was seen in the corridor outside the king's apartment sobbing with rage. But that evening, during supper, the duc de Chartres and his mother gathered their wits and behaved with marginally acceptable decorum.
The king appeared completely normal. M. de Chartres was next to his mother, who looked neither at him nor at her husband, Monsieur. Her eyes were full of tears, which fell from time to time, and which she wiped away, looking at everyone as if she wished to see what kind of facial expression each was making. Her son also had reddened eyes … I noticed that the king offered Madame almost all the dishes that were before him, which she refused with a brusque manner that, to the very end, failed to put off the king or temper his polite attention.
Everyone noticed that, at the end of dinner, as all were standing in a circle in the king's chamber, the king made a very low bow to her, but she turned to leave so quickly that, on lifting his head, he saw nothing but her back, as she advanced toward the door (Saint-Simon 1947–1961:I, 35). Far from disquieting the king, her behavior appeared to suit him perfectly.
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- Information
- The Navigation of FeelingA Framework for the History of Emotions, pp. 141 - 172Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2001
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