De l’Allemagne...
A Paris: A Paris: Chez J. Paschoud...et a Genève: Chez le meme, 1814. Third edition and second published edition. The first edition of 1810 was seized before publication by Napoleonic authorities, who were insulted by de Stael’s championship of another culture, and only five copies are known to survive. The first published edition appeared in 1813. Joints, spine ends rubbed, a little light foxing. Former owner's light pencil drawing on back free endpaper of Volume II. A very good set, complete with the half-titles. Contemporary marbled boards, paper manuscript labels on spines. Item #15868
In 1800, Madame de Stael (1766-1817) published De la littérature considérée dans ses rapports avec les institutions sociales. In it, she attempts to show the influence of religion, manners, and laws on literature, and of literature on religion, manners, and laws. She reviews the literature of previous ages and of various countries to show that literature reflects the society and thought of its day, and in turn the best literature influences the progress of humanity. A decade later, she produced the present work, which built upon the ideas in her earlier book. It introduced German Romanticism to French audiences and did much to influence the direction of French literature. Wellek in his History of Modern Criticism discusses the book at length, emphasizing the superiority of this to her earlier work: “De l’Allemagne is completely continuous with De la Littérature. But she had greatly improved as a literary critic, especially in analyzing and characterizing individual works of art…De l’Allemagne contributed importantly to that ‘world literature’ which Goethe envisaged later as a synthesis of the European spirit…” (See Wellek, Volume II, pp. 224-231).
See Longchamp, L'Œuvre imprimée de de Mme Germaine de Staël, 91.
Price: $450.00