Collects letters, novellas, essays, criticism, and a play by a leading intellectual of the Romantic period

An Extraordinary Woman

Literature & Fiction

de Staël, Germaine

History & Criticism

Columbia University Press

Considerations on the Principal Events of the French Revolution

Few individuals have left as deep an influence on their time as did Germaine de Staël, one of the greatest intellectuals of her age, whose works have influenced entire cultures, eras, and disciplines. Soon after its publication, posthumously in 1818, Considerations on the Principal Events of the French Revolution became a classic of liberal thinking, making a deeply original contribution to an ongoing political and historical debate in early nineteenth-century France and Europe. As a representative of classical liberal opinion, de Staël’s voice, which Napoleon Bonaparte tried to silence by censorship and banishment, is a unique and important contribution to revolutionary historiography. Considerations is considered de Staël’s magnum opus and sheds renewed light on the familiar figures and events of the Revolution, among them, the financier and statesman Jacques Necker, her father. Editor Aurelian Craiutu states that Considerations explores the prerequisites of liberty, constitutionalism and rule of law, the necessary limits on power, the relation between social order and political order, the dependence of liberty on morality and religion, and the question of the institutional foundations of a free regime.” Madame de Staël’s unique perspective combined a sharp intellect with an elegant style that illustrates the French tradition at its best. Considerations was rightly hailed as a genuine hymn to freedom based on a perceptive understanding of what makes freedom possible and on a subtle analysis of the social, historical, and cultural context within which political rights and political obligation exist. Madame de Staël conceived of this volume in six parts: parts 1 through 4 reflect on the history of France, the state of public opinion in France at the Accession of Louis XVI, and Necker’s plans of finance and administration. Other topics discussed in this section of the book include the conduct of the Third Estate in 1788 and 1789, the fall of the Bastille, the decrees of the Legislative Assembly, the overthrow of the monarchy, the war between France and England, the Terror of 179394, the Directory, and the rise of Napoleon Bonaparte. Parts 5 and 6 contain a vigorous defense of representative government in France, with a detailed examination of the English political system. Part 6, in particular, offers memorable political insights on liberty and public spirit among the English and discusses the relation between economic prosperity and political freedom and the seminal influence of religion and morals on liberty. Germaine de Staël (17661817) rose to fame as a novelist, critic, political thinker, sociologist of literature, and autobiographer. She experienced firsthand many important events of the French Revolution, which she followed closely from Paris and, later, from exile in Switzerland, where she lived between 1792 and 1795. Her salon was famous for hosting Benjamin Constant, August Wilhelm von Schlegel, Lord Byron, and other luminaries, before and after her exile by Napoleon. Aurelian Craiutu is Associate Professor of Political Science at Indiana University, Bloomington.

CONSIDERATIONS ON THE PRINCIPAL EVENTS OF THE FRENCH REVOLUTION

History

Europe

Liberty Fund, Inc.

Delphine

Germaine de Staël's first major novel, Delphine, published in 1802, is a profound commentary on the status of women during a critical period of French political history. Delphine's eighteenth-century conventional form as an epistolary novel masks its unconventional questioning of accepted values and norms. From the start, the Napoleonic government understood that Delphine was more than just a tale of tragic love. Though Staël disclaimed any intention of writing a political novel, the subversive aspects of a book dedicated to "The France of Silence" were not lost on Bonaparte, who prompty exiled the author from Paris. Perhaps most unacceptable to Napoleon was Staël's assertion of the rights of the individual, particularly those of women. The novel is especially important for its presentation of the plight of women at the end of the eighteenth century. This translation of Delphine is based on the authoritative critical French edition prepared by Simone Balayé. Goldberger's introduction places the novel in the context of Staël's work and the thought of the times.

Contemporary

Northern Illinois University Press

Capturing eloquent observations of the Napoleonic period's most politically outspoken woman, this edition of Dix Ann\u00e9es d\u00b4Exil is the powerful memoir of Germaine de Sta\u00ebl\u00b4s tumultuous years fleeing Napoleon. Translated by an award-winning scholar, Ten Years of Exile is the only unabridged English edition of this strong-minded and passionate woman\u00b4s personal and political journal. During the French Revolution, Mme. de Sta\u00ebl\u00b4s salon became a brilliant center of political and intellectual life. Sta\u00ebl herself helped to introduce Napoleon to French society, yet like other liberals in the Constitutional Club, she soon came to oppose the increasingly powerful general. He in turn banished her from Paris in 1803 for her liberal ideas. In exile, Sta\u00ebl continued to agitate against the new master of France. When Napoleon began his great Russian campaign, she fled across Austria and Poland to avoid his advancing armies. She arrived in Moscow only weeks ahead of Napoleon and then barely escaped to England. After Napoleon\u00b4s defeat, Sta\u00ebl returned to Paris and again received ministers, generals, and sovereigns in her revived salon. As the author of beloved novels and widely read works on literature, history, and politics, Sta\u00ebl knew and corresponded with many of the leading intellectuals and politicians of her day, including Talleyrand, Schiller, and Goethe. Her memoir provides penetrating insights into the society of Napoleonic Europe and vivid portraits of the leading figures of the age, including the emperor himself. Based upon the definitive 1996 French text edited by Simone Balay\u00e9 and Mariella Bonifacio, this edition includes a new introduction by Simone Balay\u00e9 and Avriel Goldberger. Supplemented with notes, a chronology, and a map of de Sta\u00ebl\u00b4s dramatic flight across Europe, Ten Years of Exile will intrigue readers interested in biography, French history, women\u00b4s studies, political and intellectual history, literature, and the Age of Napoleon.

Ten Years of Exile

Biographies & Memoirs

Arts & Literature

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