C.-A. Sainte-Beuve - Le Comte de Clermont et sa cour - 1868

1 volume in-12 paperback, 176 pages.

Limited edition of 412 copies, this one is number 212 on Holland paper.

Exterior wear, fragile notebooks, fresh interior – Very good condition.


Charles-Augustin Sainte-Beuve (1804-1869), a great critic of the 19th century, dedicates this text to a rather little-known but fascinating figure of the Ancien Régime: Louis de Bourbon, Count of Clermont (1709-1771).

What is it about?

This is not a “classic” biography, but rather a portrait of a milieu.

The Count of Clermont, prince of the blood, abbot, unfortunate general and cultured nobleman

His court: writers, philosophers, courtiers, brilliant and scheming minds

All of this took place within the intellectual climate of the 18th century, between the end of Louis XV's reign and the nascent Enlightenment.

Sainte-Beuve was primarily interested in:

to morals,

to the characters,

ways of thinking,

to social and literary life more than to major political events.

Sainte-Beuve's gaze

This is where the text becomes really interesting:

A refined, nuanced, sometimes ironic style

extreme attention to small, revealing details

portrait of an intelligent but indecisive man, a symbol of a brilliant and already declining aristocracy

We can sense Sainte-Beuve's method: understanding an era through individuals, their circles, their conversations.


1 volume in-12 paperback, 176 pages

Printed in 412 copies, this one n° 212 on Dutch paper.

Exterior wear, fragility of the notebooks, fresh interior – Very correct condition.


Charles-Augustin Sainte-Beuve (1804-1869), a great critic of the 19th century, devotes this text to a rather unknown but fascinating figure of the Ancien Régime: Louis de Bourbon, Comte de Clermont (1709-1771).

What's that about?

It is not a “classic” biography, but rather a portrait of the environment.

The Count of Clermont, prince of blood, abbot, unfortunate general and great lord cultivated

His court: writers, philosophers, brokers, brilliant and intriguing minds

All this in the intellectual climate of the 18th century, between the end of the reign of Louis XV and the incipient Enlightenment

Sainte-Beuve is mainly interested in:

morals,

to the characters,

ways of thinking,

to worldly and literary life more than to great political facts.

The look of Sainte-Beuve

This is where the text becomes really interesting:

fine, nuanced, sometimes ironic style

extreme attention to small revealing details

portrait of an intelligent but undecided man, symbol of a brilliant and already declining aristocracy

We feel the method of Sainte-Beuve: understanding an era through individuals, their circles, their conversations.