Signé; Alain - Sentiments, passions et signes [1/10 sur vélin pur fil ; avec envoi] - 1935

Beautiful copy of this essay by Alain (Émile Chartier) (1868-1951), first published by Gallimard in 1926. One of the ten out-of-trade copies printed on pure Lafuma Navarre vellum, this one bears the letter h.

Enriched with a beautiful inscription signed by Alain: [Copy for Mrs. O.A. Wormser. Obstinacy is a sign of laziness of the imagination. Alain. December 15, 1935].

Bound in an ochre half-calf leather binding, with a spine decorated with gold-embossed title. Covers and spine preserved. Significant rubbing on the spine, edges, and crowns. Interior impeccable. A beautiful, uncut copy.

The subject is very precisely about the development of passions and feelings from signs, whose description and interpretation, both purely physiological, form the positive side of these studies. It is complemented, as one might expect, by an ethics of passions based on the generous part of man, who always tries to overcome passion and save it through sentiment. However, this theory is by no means proven or even formulated. These remarks are cheerful and natural, each forming a whole. Seriousness is mixed in. Readers who enjoy mischievous sketches will like to find here the Prince-trop-fort, the Bègue and the Sourd, the Hands, the Noses, the Glasses, the Dances, the Ring, etc. Others will be drawn by titles that, after laughing, do not fear a moment of reflection. Such are Achilles' Wrath, Othello, the Spirit of the Couple, Charity, Adam, All Saints, etc. All paths remain open.


Alain
Sentiments, passions, and signs [1/10 on pure vellum; with mailing]
Paris, Gallimard, 1935
In-12 (19 x 12cm); 273 pages