Her characters are for the most part historical figures who played very important roles in sixteenth century geopolitics, which leads to bizarre moments in which some guy falls in love with some woman but needs to be removed from her immediate vicinity for plot reasons... so he gets sent to Spain to negotiate for the King. Meanwhile, the Princess de Clèves does everything she can to conceal her love for the duke from everyone, even from her lover himself. The Princesse de Clèves was an innovative novel in at least two ways. Plus, I have a hard time with any novel that assumes that just, [ (where the Princess's husband finally dies, but the Princess feels so guilty that s. [ (where the Princess's husband finally dies, but the Princess feels so guilty that she retires to a convent, does not marry her love, and they both die unhappy) dissatisfied me. With this simple story told in dignified, unsentimental prose, La Fayette launched the novel of character; much more than a story of thwarted love, it is an intimate psychological portrait. verbal fencing!--but I found it hard reading. The Princess (as Mademoiselle de Chartres) marries the Prince at about the age of sixteen when her mother brings her to court to find a good husband (position and wealth). This classic of early French literature was published in 1678 anonymously, but was later attributed to Madame de LaFayette. As a courtier herself, Mme de Lafayette knew intimately the intrigues and gossip that went on at court and she conveys that magnificently. It sure is short and only talks about love, yet it was enough for me. Christened Marie-Madeleine Pioche de La Vergne, she was born in Paris to a family of minor but wealthy nobility. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. This is one of the earliest French “novels,” inasmuch as it tells historical events with inaccuracies. It tells the story of the eponymous heroine, who struggles with her feelings as she finds herself torn between fidelity to her husband and her overwhelming passion for a handsome and charismatic duke. 33 Sweeping Multigenerational Family Dramas. Corrections? The Princess of Cleves (La Princesse de Clèves) (The romance classic!) Bonus features include, N.B. Only instead of the wacky hijinks and misunderstandings surrounding poor English girls with little dowry, it's the wacky hijinks and misunderstandings surrounding the French court during Henri II's reign. The book's actually pretty exciting - there's lots of court intrigue, tournaments, plot digressions involving the misplacement of a Very Important Letter (on that note, isn't it amazing how many older books like this have plot points that revolve around Ve. This was definitely an interesting depiction of the intrigues of the French court, and when I say intrigues, I mean the intrigues of love. But I got the main idea, and what I understood I really liked. Initially, a bit overwhelmed with the multitude of characters described in the novel, I was finally able to keep everyone straight, although with effort. The author was very skillful in depicting the inner workings of the characters' minds, especially those of the Princess of Cleves and the Duc de Nemours. La Princesse de Clèves, novel written by Marie-Madeleine, comtesse de La Fayette, and published anonymously in 1678. The Princess of Clèves Reading instructions and group work assignment Every student is expected to read the whole novel. Review for the English translation of the graphic novel. Nevertheless, the stilted, utterly artificial dialog, the smothering moral tone, and the rampant historical inaccuracies were even worse than I’d thought. 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