Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Fowler, James E.

Titel

The Young Meilcour: Ambivalence and Desire in Les Egarements du cœur et de l'esprit

Ist Teil von

• Romance quarterly, 2007-04, Vol.54 (2), p.153-163

Ort / Verlag

Washington: Heldref

Erscheinungsjahr

2007

Quelle

Bibliografía de la Literatura Española

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• 3 On the other hand, the idea that Meilcour's oscillations are determined by consistent and identifiable principles is not without its defenders: among these is a detailed and interesting study by Thierry Viart, who applies a Girardian theory of desire to Crébillon's novels.4 I argue that Meilcour's oscillations are indeed governed by consistent principles, but that these only emerge fully if we pay attention to the relatively neglected figure of the prude. From the point of view of the narrator, who is shaping his memoirs, this is the most appropriate dénouement, for it is the logical conclusion to an experience of love that he presented as false at the moment of its inception.19 Choosing and pursuing the ambiguous prude, before rejecting her once she proves "false," allows the young Meilcour's ambivalence to be unpacked as a story of disillusion.