The poetics of the novels by A. Prevost “The History of the Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut” and P.F. BUT

The story takes place in the Regency era (1715−1723), when the morals of French society were characterized by extreme liberty. Under the cheerful and frivolous regent Philip of Orleans in France, a reaction immediately began to the "lean" spirit that reigned under the aged king. French society breathed more freely and gave vent to the thirst for life, fun, pleasure. In his work, Abbé Prevost interprets the theme of fatal, all-consuming love.

By the will of the writer, the story is told on behalf of the Chevalier de Grieux. At the age of seventeen, the young man completes a course in philosophical sciences in Amiens. Due to his origin (his parents belong to one of the most noble families of P.), brilliant abilities and attractive appearance, he wins people over and acquires a true devoted friend in the seminary - Tiberzh, who is several years older than our hero. Coming from a poor family, Tiberge is forced to take the clergy and stay in Amiens to study theological sciences. Des Grieux, having passed the exams with honors, was going to return to his father in order to continue his studies at the Academy. But fate decreed otherwise. On the eve of parting with the city and saying goodbye to a friend, the young man meets a beautiful stranger on the street and starts a conversation with her. It turns out that the girl's parents decided to send her to a monastery to curb her propensity for pleasure, so she is looking for a way to regain her freedom and will be grateful to someone who will help her with this. Des Grieux is overcome by the charm of a stranger and readily offers his services. After some thought, the young people find no other way but to escape. The plan is simple: they have to deceive the vigilance of the escort, assigned to watch Manon Lescaut (that is the name of the stranger), and go straight to Paris, where, at the request of both lovers, the wedding will take place immediately. Tiberzh, initiated into the secret of a friend, does not approve of his intentions and tries to stop de Grieux, but it is too late: the young man is in love and is ready for the most decisive action. Early in the morning, he delivers a carriage to the hotel where Manon is staying, and the fugitives leave the city. The desire to get married was forgotten in Saint-Denis, where the lovers broke the laws of the church and became spouses without any hesitation.

In Paris, our heroes rent furnished rooms, de Grieux, full of passion, and forgot to think about how upset his father was by his absence. But one day, returning home earlier than usual, de Grieux finds out about Manon's betrayal. The well-known tax-farmer, Monsieur de B., who lived in the neighborhood, is probably not the first time he has paid a visit to the girl in his absence. The shocked young man, barely recovering, hears a knock on the door, opens it and falls into the arms of his father's lackeys, who are ordered to bring the prodigal son home. In the carriage, the poor fellow is lost in conjectures: who betrayed him, how did his father know where he was? At home, his father tells him that Mr. de B., having made a close acquaintance with Manon and finding out who her lover is, decides to get rid of his rival and in a letter to his father informs about the dissolute lifestyle of the young man, making it clear that drastic measures are needed. Thus Mr. B ... renders Father de Grie a perfidious and not selfish service. Cavalier de Grieux loses consciousness from what he heard, and when he wakes up, he begs his father to let him go to Paris to his beloved, since it cannot be that Manon cheated on him and gave her heart to another. But for half a year the young man has to spend under the strict supervision of the servants, while the father, seeing his son in continuous anguish, supplies him with books that help a little to calm the rebellious soul. All the feelings of a lover come down to the alternation of hatred and love, hope and despair - depending on the form in which the image of his beloved is drawn to him. One day, Tiberzh visits a friend, deftly flatters his good disposition and inclines him to the idea of ​​renouncing worldly pleasures and taking the tonsure. Friends go to Paris, and de Grie begins to study theology. He shows extraordinary zeal, and soon he is already congratulated on his future dignity. In Paris, our hero spent about a year, not trying to find out anything about Manon; it was difficult at first, but Tiberzh's constant support and his own reflections contributed to the victory over himself. The last months of study proceeded so calmly that it seemed that a little more - and this captivating and insidious creature would be forever forgotten. But after the exam at the Sorbonne, "covered with glory and showered with congratulations," de Grie unexpectedly visits Manon. The girl was in her eighteenth year, she became even more dazzling in her beauty. She begs to forgive her and return her love, without which life is meaningless. Touching repentance and oaths of fidelity softened the heart of de Grieux, who immediately forgot about his life plans, about the desire for fame, wealth - in a word, about all the blessings worthy of contempt if they are not associated with his beloved.

Our hero again follows Manon, and now Chaillot, a village near Paris, becomes the haven of lovers. For two years of communication with B ... Manon managed to extract from him about sixty thousand francs, on which young people intend to live comfortably for several years. This is the only source of their existence, since the girl is not from a noble family and she has nowhere else to wait for money, but de Grie does not rely on the support of her father, since he cannot forgive him for his relationship with Manon. Trouble comes suddenly: a house in Chaillot burned down, and a chest with money disappeared during the fire. Poverty is the least of the trials that await de Grieux. Manon cannot be counted on in trouble: she loves luxury and pleasure too much to sacrifice them. Therefore, in order not to lose his beloved, he decides to hide the loss of money from her and borrow it from Tiberzh for the first time. A devoted friend encourages and consoles our hero, insists on a break with Manon and without hesitation, although he himself is not rich, gives de Grie the necessary amount of money.

Manon introduces her lover to his brother, who serves in the king's guard, and M. Lesko persuades de Grieux to try his luck at the gambling table, promising, for his part, to teach him all the necessary tricks and tricks. With all his aversion to deceit, cruel necessity forces the young man to agree. Exceptional dexterity so quickly increased his fortune that after two months a furnished house was rented in Paris and a carefree, magnificent life began. Tiberzh, constantly visiting his friend, tries to reason with him and warn him against new misfortunes, as he is sure that dishonestly acquired wealth will soon disappear without a trace. Tiberzh's fears were not in vain. The servants, from whom income was not hidden, took advantage of the gullibility of the owners and robbed them. The ruin leads the lovers to despair, but the proposal of brother Manon inspires de Grie with even greater horror. He talks about Mr. de G ... M., an old voluptuary who pays for his pleasures, sparing no money, and Lesko advises his sister to come to his support. But the cunning Manon comes up with a more interesting enrichment option. The old red tape invites the girl to dinner, where he promises to give her half of the annual allowance. The charm asks if she can bring her younger brother to dinner (meaning de Grieux), and, having received consent, rejoices. As soon as at the end of the evening, having already handed over the money, the old man spoke about his love impatience, the girl with her “brother” was blown away like the wind. M. de G... M... realized that he had been duped and had both swindlers arrested. Des Grieux found himself in the prison of Saint-Lazare, where he suffers terribly from humiliation; for a whole week the young man is unable to think of anything but his dishonor and the disgrace he has brought upon the whole family. Manon's absence, anxiety about her fate, fear of never seeing her again were the main subject of the prisoner's sad thoughts in the future. prisons. With the assistance of Mr. Lesko, our hero is free and begins to look for ways to free his beloved. Pretending to be a foreigner, he asks the gatekeeper of the Shelter about the local order, and also asks to characterize the authorities. Upon learning that the boss has an adult son, de Grie meets with him and, hoping for his support, tells bluntly the whole story of his relationship with Manon. M. de T... is touched by the frankness and sincerity of the stranger, but the only thing he can do for him so far is to give the pleasure of seeing the girl; everything else is out of his control. The joy of the rendezvous of lovers who have experienced a three-month separation, their endless tenderness for each other touched the servant of the Shelter, and he wished to help the unfortunate. After consulting with de T. about the details of the escape, de Grieux releases Manon the next day, and the shelter guard remains in his servants.

On the same night, Manon's brother dies. He robbed one of his friends at the card table, and he asked to lend him half of the lost amount. The quarrel that arose on this occasion turned into a fierce quarrel and subsequently into a murder. The young arrive at Chaillot. Des Grieux is preoccupied with finding a way out of lack of money, and in front of Manon he pretends that he is not constrained by means. The young man arrives in Paris and once again asks for money from Tiberzh, And, of course, receives them. From a devoted friend, de Grieux went to Mr. T., who was very pleased with the guest and told him the continuation of the story of Manon's abduction. Everyone was amazed to learn that such a beauty decided to run away with the orphanage minister. But what won't you do for freedom! So de Grieux is beyond suspicion and he has nothing to fear. M. de T., having learned the whereabouts of the lovers, often visits them, and friendship with him grows stronger day by day.

One day, young G. M. arrives in Chaillot, the son of his worst enemy, that old debauchee who imprisoned our heroes. M. de T. assured de Grieux, who was already drawing his sword, that he was a very nice, noble youth. But later de Grieux is convinced of the opposite. G. M. Jr. falls in love with Manon and invites her to leave her lover and live with him in luxury and contentment. The son surpasses the generosity of his father, and, unable to withstand the temptation, Manon surrenders and moves to live with G. M. De T., shocked by the deceit of his friend, advises de Grie to take revenge on him. Our hero asks the guardsmen to arrest G.M. in the evening on the street and keep him until the morning, while he himself indulges in pleasures with Manon in the vacant bed. But the footman who accompanied G. M. informs the old man G. M. about what happened. He immediately turns to the police, and the lovers again find themselves in prison. Father de Grieux seeks the release of his son, and Manon expects either life imprisonment or exile in America. Des Grieux begs his father to do something to reduce the sentence, but is rebuffed. The young man does not care where to live, if only with Manon, and he goes with the exiles to New Orleans. Life in the colony is miserable, but our heroes only here find peace of mind and turn their thoughts to religion. Deciding to get married, they confess to the governor that they used to deceive everyone, introducing themselves as spouses. To this, the governor replies that the girl should marry his nephew, who has long been in love with her. De Grieux wounds his opponent in a duel and, fearing the governor's revenge, flees the city. Manon follows him. On the way, the girl falls ill. Rapid breathing, convulsions, pallor - all testified that the end of her suffering was near. At the moment of death, she speaks of her love for de Grieux.

For three months the young man was bedridden with a serious illness, his disgust for life did not weaken, he constantly called for death. But still, the healing came. Tiberg appears in New Orleans. A devoted friend takes de Grieux to France, where he learns of his father's death. The expected meeting with his brother completes the story.

retold

Antoine Francois Prevost (also Abbé Prevost; French Antoine-François Prevost d "Exiles)

Biography

Antoine Francois Prevost was born in the north of France, in Picardy, in the family of a notary. Like Voltaire, whose biography in general largely coincides with the biography of Prevost, he studied at the College of the Jesuit Order in his native town of Eden and, apparently, at first intended to follow the advice of his father and devote himself to a spiritual career, for which, after graduating from college in 1713, he went to Paris to improve his knowledge in Latin and philosophy.

But, after spending several months there, 16-year-old Prevost suddenly enrolls in the army as a simple volunteer soldier. The young man was seduced by the romantic opportunity to quickly advance in the military field, participating in the final campaigns of the War of the Spanish Succession. However, the war ended very soon, Prevost's soldiers did not receive any promotion and returned to the Jesuits. From 1715 to 1718, Prevost was a novice in various Jesuit monasteries, but his novice was repeatedly interrupted, as traveling attracted the restless seminarian much more than philosophical studies. He tried his luck again in military service - this time with more success than before.

The fact that Prevost did not take advantage of a brilliant opportunity to make a career as a Jesuit priest, many biographers (and he himself later) blamed the innate impulsiveness and unevenness of his nature. But, obviously, it is not only a matter of temperament and inclinations of character. In the era of the Regency and the reign of Louis XV, the once unshakable authority of the Order of Jesus was shaken by fierce intra-church strife. In the eyes of progressive French society in the first decades of the 18th century, the Jesuits sullied themselves with an alliance with ecclesiastical and political reaction, especially when they joined the persecution of Jansenists begun by the pope in 1713. This influential trend in France and Holland within Catholicism, like Protestantism, condemned the official church - and above all the Jesuits - for their support of absolute monarchy.

Protestant and Jansenist positions, in turn, were strengthened by the hopeless crisis that the French monarchy entered under the regent Philippe d'Orléans. Louis XV exacerbated this crisis, discrediting his power with the flourishing of corruption and the famous saying "After me, the deluge." The spiritual atmosphere of those years favored moral skepticism, the cult of pleasure, the pursuit of fortune. But the star of the satirical and philosophical genius of Voltaire was already flaring up, there was a consciousness of the obsoleteness of this era. The search for new spiritual guidelines began, in which the desire for happiness and the dictates of a liberated mind would be combined.

Returning to France in 1719, Prevost tried again to become a novice of the Jesuits, but, having been refused, he broke with this order forever and without regret. However, he did not leave the spiritual field immediately. From 1721, Prevost preached for several years in various Benedictine abbeys in Normandy, then in Paris. Living in the abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Pres, which was distinguished by a very strict charter, Prevost was involved in the compilation of the multi-volume "History of Christianity in Gaul", on which members of the order worked for decades.

Here Prevost began his first novel, Notes and Adventures of a Noble Man Who Retired from the World. The first two volumes were published anonymously in 1728. Literary success immediately comes to Prevost. The story of the innumerable hardships and adventures of the heroes fully satisfied the tastes of the French reader of that time, brought up on the adventurous novels of Le Sage. However, the hero Prevost not only demonstrated fortitude and common sense in troubles and trials, but actively defended and improved his own philosophy of life. The chain of unforeseen blows of fate turns for him into a path to spiritual harmony and strengthening of moral dignity. This, in essence, was already a hero of a new educational type, closer to the characters of Defoe than Le Sage.

The first literary success came with Prevost in a new period of reconsideration of life positions and dissatisfaction with the chosen spiritual path. In turn, the order was also not disposed towards a brother who was so little carried away by pious thoughts when writing a novel. Prevost secretly travels to Geneva and changes his religion there - he becomes a Protestant. In 1728, such a step could well lead to prison: the persecution of Protestants was in full swing in France. Returning to Paris, Prevost does not hide his unwillingness to return to the monastery, referring to the fact that it was his father who forced him to become a priest, then he sends a petition to the pope in Rome to be transferred to another congregation of the Benedictine order with a less severe charter. He does not receive permission, and the conflict with the church authorities aggravates so much that the Prevost flees from the monastery and sends an indignant letter to the abbot from the road threatening to appear in the press with scandalous revelations of the order prevailing in the order. The abbot demands that the authorities arrest the impudent fugitive, but late - dressed in a secular dress, the apostate ab-bat secretly sails to England.

In the first half of the 18th century, this country was the center of advanced European philosophical, scientific and political thought, the center of religious tolerance, where Protestants and Jansenists persecuted from the continent find shelter. This is the cradle of the European literary Enlightenment with its apology for sensibility and captivating Robinsonades, in which the natural rights and feelings of man are defended and the utopian faith in the limitless possibilities of nature, not constrained by ugly social institutions, triumphs. Enlightenment satire and sentimental poetry flourish there, under the pen of Defoe the genre of the psychological novel-biography is laid down. In England, the formation of Voltaire as an enlightening philosopher is being completed: exiled there from France in the 1730s, in his Philosophical Letters he told the European reader about the scientific discoveries of Newton, about Locke's sensationalist philosophy, Shaftesbury's ethics and aesthetics, Shakespeare's masterpieces.

In exile, Prevost met the poet-philosopher A. Pop, read Defoe's novels. Together with his pupil - the son of an English nobleman and politician, Sir J. Aile Prevost, travels around the country. In letters from that time, he admires the nature of the "happy island", the strength of the freedoms and rights that the British managed to defend against the "encroachments of tyranny", freedom of religious beliefs, etc.

Prevost's journalistic talent awakens in England. In 1733 he began publishing in French literary magazine"For and Against" (that was the name of the book printed in 1722 philosophical poem Voltaire), aimed at the widest European reader. Prevost places here reviews of the latest English and French literary novelties, essays on morals, on various events in the life of the English, travel stories, translations of fragments from poems, plays, and historical works. Reviews of Voltaire's Philosophical Letters, staging of the tragedies of the great enlightener, as well as autobiographical notes of Prevost himself, annotations to his novels are found in Prevost's journal. The magazine "For and Against", published in Paris, carried out its educational cultural mission in France until 1740.

In England, Prevost finishes the last two volumes of Notes of a Noble Man and publishes them in 1729 no longer anonymously, but under the pseudonym Marc Antoine Prevost d'Exil. The first parts of the new novel The History of Cleveland, Cromwell's natural son, or the English Philosopher are published ( they are published intermittently, starting in 1731. During all six years spent outside France, Prevost worked intensively for the magazine, composes and corrects novels, translates into French from Latin "History", written by a witness of the religious wars of the 16th century J.O. De Tu.

In Holland, where he comes from London, he strikes up friendships with well-known publishers, which, however, are complicated by the fact that, in the pursuit of money, Prevost often takes advance payments for work not yet done, and then postpones their implementation for a long time.

The personal life of an emigrant writer is very scandalous: carried away by a certain Lenka Eckhardt, a lady of more than a dubious reputation, whom he met in Amsterdam, Prevost follows her to Holland, then to Switzerland, then to London (and possibly even to Russia) and everywhere he makes huge debts, hurriedly concludes contracts for literary works, which remain at the stage of ideas. Over and over again, Prevost is forced to flee from creditors and angry publishers, quarrel with friends, and sometimes leave them his property in payment of debts. A relationship with a prodigal courtesan that lasted several years almost led Prevost to the gallows: in October 1733, he ended up in a London prison, convicted of writing a forged letter on behalf of his pupil to his father, Sir Aile, with a request to issue a large sum of money. The indignant young man went to court, but the aristocratic family preferred to hush up the scandal, and Prevost was released from custody.

After that, the writer had to leave England. However, the love for Lenka, which made Pre-vo's life so difficult, played exclusively important role in his creative life. She gave him invaluable personal experience, which, apparently, helped the writer find that captivatingly sincere note, previously unknown to French literature, with which he spoke about the paradoxes of love passion in the immortal novel The Story of the Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut. The novel was printed in Holland in 1731 or 1733 as an appendix to Notes of a Noble Man and immediately became famous in France. But the first French edition of the novel suffered the same fate as the "Philosophical letters" of Voltaire: in 1734, both of these works were committed to public burning as detrimental to public morals. The verdict, however, only exacerbated interest in Prevost's new novel, which from now on was referred to as "the gentle and passionate author of Manon Lescaut." From year to year, several of his editions appear, which are sold secretly.

After the scandal with the letter, Prevost seeks the favor of Cardinal Bissi in order to enlist his support in front of the Pope, to whom Prevost sent a petition for pardon and permission to return to the Benedictines in Saint-Germain-des-Pres. Pope Clement XII agreed to forgive the fugitive abbot and transfer him to another category of the Order of St. Benedict with a freer charter. Prevost returned to France with his Lenki, visited his native town of Eden, but in 1735, at the behest of the pope, he had to go to repentance in Evreux.

Having fulfilled the papal will, Prevost finally reconciled with the church authorities, thanks to which he received a recommendation from Cardinal Bissy, which secured him a place as a house priest in the family of Prince Conti, cousin of Louis XV and Grand Prior of the Order of Malta in France. Thus, Prevost was close to the highest French nobility. Prince Conti entrusts him with the upbringing of his minor son, Prevost vied with each other to be invited to aristocratic salons. Here, former friendly contacts with English diplomats and writers are revived (in particular, with the creator of the English "Gothic novel" G. Walpole and the sentimentalist poet T. Gray). Close acquaintances also appear among French writers (Marivaux, Crebillon, Mercier). Prevost now lives in the luxurious palace of the prince, receives a large salary.

Sometimes he manages to travel. In 1736, once in Amsterdam, Prevost met with Voltaire, who was very interested in the magazine "For and Against". The friendship of the two writers lasted for several years. Voltaire even petitioned the Prussian King Frederick II to grant Prevost the position of court librarian or secretary, but the author of Manon Lescaut resigned at the last moment.

At the turn of the 1730s and 1740s, a new upsurge began in the work of Prevost. One after another, his novels are published: the last volumes of The History of Cleveland (1739), The Rector of Killerinsky (1735-1740), The History of a Greek Woman (1740), Margarita of Anjou (1740), The History of the Youth of the Commander ** *" (1741, "Philosophical Debates of Mr. de Montcal" (1741), "William the Conqueror" (1742). Pre-vo begins to write the novel "Moral World", which remained unfinished. At the same time, having experienced another love interest, Prevost again finds himself in a difficult financial situation, besides, he is accused of collaborating with a certain feuilletonist convicted of slander.Prevost is forced to leave France for a year - this time he flees to Brussels. Upon his return in 1742, he again takes the place of confessor to the prince Conti: The aging Prevost spills his still unsatisfied wanderlust on the pages of a novel about sea adventures (The Wanderings of Captain Robert Leide, 1745).

the publication of the multi-volume "World History of Travel" - a unique study on the history of geographical discoveries; the first seven volumes of this enormous work are a translation of an unfinished work by the Englishman D. Green, others were written by Prevost himself).

Prevost devoted the last years of his life to history. He is accepted as a translation of English historians. This is how D. Hume's "History of the House of Stuarts" and Robertson's "History of Scotland" appear in France. In 1762, the Prince of Condé instructed Abbé Prevost to write the history of the Condé family, an old French family that included many great politicians and glorious commanders. Prevost works vigorously in the family archives at the Condé family estate in Chantilly. At the same time, he continues his novel The Moral World, the first volume of which had already appeared in 1760.

In his declining years, Prevost had a chance to make sure that his creative undertakings did not go unnoticed and paved the way for new trends in literature. Already in the 1740s in England, under the pen of S. Richardson, a sentimentalist love-psychological novel on a family-household basis flourished - a genre that was destined for a long and happy life in various European literatures of the 18th and 19th centuries. The depiction of the psychology of love conflict in Richardson's novels indicates that their author was inspired by the works of Prevost, which the English writer, not knowing French, read in translations. For his part, Prevost guessed the meaning of the genre innovation of his English contemporary and eagerly set about translating his novels. It was Prevost who opened to the French reader "Clarissa" (published in translation in 1751) and "History of Sir Charles Grandison" (published in translation in 1753), which later became models of educational prose for Diderot and Rousseau. In 1756, Abbé Prevost met Rousseau, who, in his youth,

traded descriptions of the experiences of the characters in Notes of a Noble Man, Ma-non, and Cleveland. The future author of the "Confession" until the end of his days revered Prevost as his teacher in depicting the subtle movements of the soul.

Prevost died in Chantilly from a stroke that suddenly overtook him during a morning walk on a country road. The writer was buried in a Benedictine monastery near Chantilly.

Bibliography

The story of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut
- Killerinsky abbot (1736)
- History of Margaret of Anjou
- The history of the modern Greek woman
- Philosophical wanderings of Montcal
- History of William the Conqueror
- Robert Ice

Translations

Biography of Cicero (Middleton)
— Letters from Brutus.
- Private letters of Cicero
- The Journey of Robert Leda
- Notes of an honest man

Works based on the novel

Opera Aubert, 1856
- Opera Massenet, 1884
- "Manon Lescaut" - opera by Puccini, 1893
- ballet Halévy, 1836

I. A.–F. Prevost. The story of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut

The originality of the genre: the tradition of chivalrous, picaresque and gallant romance in Prevost's novel.

Composition. Archetypal story. Describe the compositional features of the novel.

Determine the role of the narrator in the novel. Is he an eyewitness to the love story? Why do you think this is important for understanding the characters and what happened to them?

The specificity of the chronotope. The motif of the road as a means of organizing space. Spatial oppositions city/village, France/America, Paris/New Orleans. Analyze a fragment of the novel about the life of the Cavalier and Manon in America.

Character system. Principles of character modeling in the Rococo novel. The originality of the characters of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut. Function of minor characters.

Detail function and mythological overtones.

The concept of love in the novel.

Complete and short title novel: causes and meaning of reduction.

II. C. De Laclo. Dangerous ties

1. The circumstances of the appearance of the novel.

2. The specifics of composition and narration. The novel in letters as the leading genre of literature of the 18th century. Realization of the traditions of the genre in "Dangerous Liaisons".

3. Ways of building an image: clash of self-characteristics and characteristics of third parties - functions, results.

4. Ways of presenting events: the clash of information from the first person and circumstantial evidence - the problem of truth.

5. Traditions of character types in the images of de Merteuil (villain), Valmont (libertine), de Trouvel (loving woman), Cecilia (innocent victim).

6. The theme of Libertines and Libertinism.

III. Comparison of the novels by A.-f. Prevost "The History of the Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut"

and P.F. A. Choderlos de Laclos "Dangerous Liaisons"

Scientific literature:

1. Vipper Y. Two masterpieces of French prose of the XVIII century.// Vipper Y. B. Creative fate and history. (On Western European literatures of the 16th - first half of the 19th centuries). M., 1990. S. 239-261. Mandatory note-taking text!

Available on the Internet: http://www.philol.msu.ru/~forlit/Pages/Biblioteka_Vipper_XVIII.htm

2. Kozhinov V. Roman Prevot as a mature example of the genre // Origin of the novel. Theoretical and historical essay. Moscow: Soviet Writer, 1963. http://svr-lit.niv.ru/svr-lit/kozhinov-proishozhdenie-romana/roman-prevo.htm

3. Mushroom V.R. Abbé Prevost and his "Manon Lescaut" // Mushroom V.R. Fav. Works. M., 1956.

4. Zababurova N.V. French psychological novel (Enlightenment and Romanticism). Rostov-on-Don, 1992.

Practice 3

Gothic literature at the turnXVIII – XIXcenturies and in the era of romanticism

The origin of the Gothic novel genre at the end of the 18th century.

Gothic roots.

The reasons for the development of motives and themes associated with otherworldly, mystical phenomena, the creation of an atmosphere of "horror and secrets" in early literary Gothic.

The phenomenon of H. Walpole.

The Rise of the Gothic Genre: Gothic as a Phenomenon of Mass Culture.

Terrible, playful, moralistic in the novel by M. G. Lewis "The Monk".

Gothic in Mary Shelley's novel "Frankenstein, or the Modern Prometheus": chronotope, plot development, specifics of narrative construction (a set of texts).

The theme of forbidden knowledge.

Rationalization of the Gothic frontier of life and death in the short stories by E.A. Poe "The Fall of the House of Usher", "Without Breath", "The Black Cat", "Buried Alive", "The Oblong Box", "The Truth About What Happened to Monsieur Voldemar ".

Scientific literature

Zalomkina G.V. Gothic myth. Samara, 2010. Sections:

Introduction. pp. 6 – 19.

1.2. Gothic as a phenomenon of collective consciousness at the turn of the 18th - 19th centuries. pp. 71 - 80.

1.3.1. Fantastic: hesitation on the verge. pp. 90 - 101.

1.4.2. Game rationality in line with gender issues. pp. 129 – 139

2.1.1. Rationalization of the Gothic frontier of life and death. pp. 161 - 168.

Text for obligatory notes!Available for sale.

Vatsuro V.E. Gothic novel in Russia. M: New Literary Review, 2002.

Gothic tradition in Russian literature / Ed. N.D. Tamarchenko. M.: Ros. state humanit. un-t, 2008.

Zalomkina G.V. Poetics of space and time in the Gothic story. Samara, 2006.

Practice 4

Prevost F. PREV(Prévost) Françoise (1680-1741), French. artist and teacher. In 1699-1730 at the Paris Opera (she made her debut in the ballet "Hatis" by Lully). She performed in opera-ballets and lyric poetry. tragedies Kampra ("Venetian festivities", "Centuries", "Muses"), Detouche ("Carnival and madness"), etc. "on the plot of the 4th act of Corneille's Horatii, which was one of the first attempts to create pas d" action. P. was a gifted actress. Her dance was distinguished by grace and grace. Among her students are M. Camargo and M. Salle .

Lit .: Nover J.-J., Letters about dance, [trans. from French], L., 1927, p. 200, 305; Michaut P., Histoire du ballet, P., 1945.

V. A. Mainietse.

Ballet. Encyclopedia. - M.: Great Soviet Encyclopedia. Chief Editor Yu.N. Grigorovich. 1981 .

See what "Prevot F." in other dictionaries:

Prevost- Surname Prevost (fr. Prévost) surname. Notable speakers: Prevost, André (1934-2001) Canadian composer. Prevost, André French tennis player, summer bronze medalist Olympic Games 1900. Prevost, Antoine Francois (1697 ... ... Wikipedia

Prevost- (from lat. praepositus chief) official in France 11-18 centuries. From the 11th century, the provost was called a royal official who had judicial, fiscal and military power within the administrative judicial district, into which ... ... Political science. Dictionary.

PREVO- (fr., from lat. praepositus foreman, a person assigned over something by the boss). The old French name for some persons of the judicial administration. Dictionary of foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. PREVO actually ... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

Prevost- non-cl., m. prévôt m. In France, 11th-18th centuries. royal official, who until the 15th century. in the administrative judicial district subordinate to him by the judicial, fiscal and military authorities, from the 15th century he performed only judicial functions. SES. He is King Philip... Historical Dictionary of Gallicisms of the Russian Language

PREVO- (from lat. praepositus chief) in France 11-18 centuries. royal official, who until the 15th century. in the administrative judicial district subordinate to him by the judicial, fiscal and military authorities, from the 15th century. performed only judicial functions ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

revo- [re], indistinct, m ... Russian word stress

Prevost- (French prévôt, from Latin praepositus chief), in France in the 11th and 18th centuries. royal official, who until the XV century. in the administrative judicial district subordinate to him by the judicial, fiscal and military authorities, from the 15th century. carried out only judicial ... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

Prevost- n., number of synonyms: 1 official (80) ASIS Synonym Dictionary. V.N. Trishin. 2013 ... Synonym dictionary

Prevost- d Exile (Antoine Francois Prevost d Exiles) wonderful French. writer (1697 1763), son of the royal prosecutor; Even as a child, he drew attention to himself with his brilliant abilities; For 16 years he was a novice of the Jesuits. then moved to military service … Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron

Prevost- (from lat. praepositus chief; fr. prevot) in medieval France, an official, originally the ruler of a seigneur in the entire seigneury or a separate part of it. From the 11th century (when the royal domain was divided into prefects) P. royal official, ... ... Encyclopedia of Law

Prevost- I Prevost d Exiles (Prévost d Exiles) Antoine François (April 1, 1697, Eden, Artois, November 25, 1763, Courteuil, near Chantilly), French writer. In 1713 he graduated from the Jesuit college, later became an abbot. In the novels Notes and Adventures of a Noble Person... Great Soviet Encyclopedia

Books

• A story about wanderings in general around all the ends of the circle of the earth, the writings of Monsieur Prevost, abridged by the latest arrangement through Monsieur La Harpe, a member of the French Academy. Ch. 1., Prevost, The book is a 1782 reprint edition. Although serious work has been done to restore the original quality of the edition, some pages may… Category: Library science Publisher: Book on Demand, Manufacturer: Book on Demand, Buy for 1948 UAH (Ukraine only)
• Abbe Prevost. Manon Lesko. Choderlos de Laclos. Dangerous Liaisons, Abbé Prevost. Choderlos de Laclos, No dust jacket. The book contains two masterpieces of French prose of the 18th century, which are brought together by the fact that each of the writers (both the Abbé Prevost and Choderlos de Laclos) became famous as the author ... Category:

E. A. GUNST

The Life and Works of the Abbé Prevost

Part one 9

Part two 124

Applications

E. A. Gunst. The Life and Works of the Abbé Prevost 221

Bibliography of Russian translations

"The Stories of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut" 277

As you know, literary reputations are changeable and unsteady: how many writers and poets, whom contemporaries proclaimed the greatest geniuses, were already relegated from the heights of glory by their closest descendants, and soon completely forgotten. On the other hand, how many of those who were not understood and appreciated by their contemporaries died in obscurity, and only after death took an honorable place in the history of literature.

The Abbé Prevost cannot be placed in either of these two categories. His literary fate is a particularly rare case: contemporaries read out his great novels, listened attentively to his journalism. But already at the beginning of the 19th century, the glory of these novels (222) faded, journalism became outdated, and the very name of Abbé Prevost would have long been forgotten if, as if by chance, as if by chance, as if in the margins of his voluminous works, he had not written a short story - "The History of the Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut".

But this story, which occupies an insignificant place in its volume in his literary heritage, brought Prevost truly immortal fame and put him on a par with the largest representatives of world literature.

A monk, a soldier, a writer, a preacher, an adventurer, a scientist - these are the various guises that his contemporaries successively discovered in him. In the history of literature, the name Prevost has become inseparable from the word "abbot", but the clergy, perhaps, was the least suitable for this restless, frivolous, carried away person.

Antoine Francois Prevost was born on April 1, 1697 in the city of Eden (Hesdin, province of Artois) into a respectable bourgeois family, from which several major officials, priests and judges came out. He received his initial education in his native city, in a Jesuit school, and already in his early youth he began to prepare for entry into the spiritual field. Having barely reached the required age - 16 years old - he entered the Jesuit monastery in Paris as a novice; Here, the young man's outstanding abilities were soon appreciated, and two years later (1715) he was sent to the town of La Fleche, where one of the largest educational institutions of that time, the school of Henry IV, was located. Here Prevost was to (223) study theology, philosophy and other humanities.

However, a year later, Prevost, for unknown reasons, leaves La Fleche.

From that time on, his countless adventures began, which the rumor exaggerated and brightened in every possible way, thanks to which his name was surrounded by many legends. Prevost was credited with the most incredible deeds, up to monstrous crimes - such as the fact that he allegedly killed his father, was a bigamist, and so on.

His very death gave rise to the creation of a gloomy legend: it was said that once Prevost, while in the village, fell into a faint. The local doctor took the fainting for death and decided to open the "corpse". During the autopsy, Prevost woke up in order to immediately expire.

Literary historians had to spend a lot of work to clear the biography of Prevost from absurd fictions, but what remains indisputable in it is enough to imagine how complex, rebellious and contradictory his life was, especially in his younger years.

Leaving La Flèche, Prevost enters the army as a simple soldier; but it was an inauspicious time for military career: the long-term war for the "Spanish Succession" had just ended, and it was impossible to count on promotion in ranks. Nevertheless, Prevost spent about two years in the army, after which (1719) he made an attempt to return to the Jesuits, but was refused. Prevost decides to go to Rome in order to obtain permission from the head (224) of the Jesuit order for a second reception as novices. On the way, he falls ill, finds himself in extreme need, and a certain officer comes to his aid, who puts him in the hospital and lends him money. However, it soon turns out that the officer was guided not so much by philanthropy as by the hope of recruiting the young man into the army. He considered the help rendered by Prevost as a deposit on account of a soldier's salary and began to force Prevost to enter military service. Fleeing from forced enlistment in the army, Prevost flees to Holland, and a little later returns to his parents' house. Apparently, it was at that time that he experienced the adventure that formed the basis of his famous story.

Like the hero of this story, Prevost decided to follow his beloved, who was detained by the police, but on the way he fell ill, fell behind the party of prisoners and lost track of the girl forever. The grief and despair caused by the loss of his beloved prompt Prevost to seek solitude, and he again enters the monastery, but not to the Jesuits, but to the Benedictines, who were famous for their scientific works, in particular, history.

After a year of novitiate, Prevost takes a vow of monasticism (1721).

But in one of the letters of that time, he frankly says that he recognizes himself unsuitable for a monastery: “It must be admitted that I am in no way fit for monasticism and all those who know the secret of my initiation never (225) foreshadowed from him good fruits "(Harrisee. L" abbe Prevost. P., 1896, p. 15.). Prevost still tries to break himself, humble himself, forget his sorrows, delving into scientific studies; he diligently replenishes his knowledge, he teaches. But the way of monastic life still burdens him, he longs for independence, and his relations with the monastic authorities are becoming more and more complicated.Suffice it to say that in seven years (1721-1728) of them could not resist.

No less eloquent is another circumstance. It was to this time that the beginning of Prevost's literary work dates back: in the cells of the monasteries of Blanc Manteau and Saint-Germain-des-Prés, he wrote the first four volumes of "Notes of a noble man who retired from the world," a novel that was destined to bring him great fame. The first two volumes appeared in early 1728.

The appearance of volumes III and IV coincides with a sharp turn in the fate of Prevost: he secretly flees from the monastery and goes to Paris. The Benedictines make an attempt to hush up the scandal and persuade him to return, but to no avail. Then they turn to the chief of police with a request to detain the fugitive monk; On November 6, 1728, a warrant was issued for his arrest. It is curious that in the complaint of the Benedictines it is already mentioned that Prevost is the author of "Notes of a Noble Man", a book that caused a lot of noise in Paris (226). Literally a few days later - on November 19 - the censor signed permission to print volumes III and IV of Notes of a Noble Person.

As soon as Prevost learned that he was in danger of arrest, he hastened to leave his homeland and moved to England. Here begins a new stage of his adventures, and at the same time, the time of his most intense literary activity.

Prevost spends the years 1729-1734 in exile. At one time, he serves in the family of an English aristocrat as an educator of his son. However, he devotes most of his attention and time to literary work.

In 1731 Prevost moved to Holland; he brought with him, apparently already completely finished, "History of the Chevalier de Grie and Manon Lescaut", which he intended to offer to Amsterdam publishers. However, in view of the exceptional success of Notes of a Noble Man, the Dutch booksellers preferred to receive a continuation of Notes from the writer. Needing money, Prevost undertook to write two more volumes of Notes, although this novel, it would seem, did not require continuation. For commercial reasons, another volume was added to these two volumes, containing "The History of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut", and the author himself, in an appeal to the reader, had to admit that this story had nothing to do with the events referred to in " Notes".

So, the story that immortalized the name of Abbé Prevost first appeared in the summer of 1731 as an addition to the now forgotten Notes of a Noble Man.

By this time, the abbe Prevost had already gained wide popularity. "Notes of a noble man", as well as the novels that followed them, were a great success among contemporaries.

The popularity of Prevost's writings was determined primarily by their amusement. The pages of his books are filled with exciting events - abductions, murders, chases, outlandish coincidences. The action takes place in mysterious dungeons, castles, dense forests, in distant lands. Among the characters there is always a "villain" - a gloomy and mysterious person, the bearer of evil.

The Abbé Prevost is inclined to abuse mystery and horror, and this often gives the unfolding events an implausible character. However, the indisputable advantage of his novels is that they are written by a penetrating psychologist who manages to truthfully convey the feelings and actions of people placed even in the most implausible conditions.

The adventurous nature of Prevost's novels to some extent makes him related to the authors of realistic "picaresque" novels, in particular, with Lesage; however, it is easy to notice the difference between Prevost and these writers: in the picaresque novel, events unfold in a "low" environment and the heroes strive to conquer only material, worldly goods, while Prevost's heroes are dreamers and romantics, living primarily the life of the heart and imagination.

(229) On the other hand, Prevost was undoubtedly influenced by the authors of the so-called "precise" novel, whose characters also experience numerous, sometimes fantastic, adventures, and the feeling of love also lies at the heart of all conflicts here.

Readers were also fascinated by the new features with which Prevost endowed his heroes: in his novels, people appear captured by titanic, all-consuming passions, the fight against which is unbearable for a person. And among these passions, love occupies a dominant position.

“Love is violent, it is unfair, cruel, it is ready for all extremes, it indulges in them without the slightest remorse. Get rid of love, and you will find yourself a man almost without vices” (R. H a z a r d. Etudes critiques sur l "abbe Prevost. Chicago (1929), p. 21.) - this is what a noble man says to his pupil. But words are powerless. The noble man himself knows this. He himself, like many other chosen ones, experienced the invincible power of love.

Abbe Prevost's love is a fatal, spontaneous, irresistible passion, in most cases tragic, leading a person to despair and death, sometimes pushing him to terrible crimes. At the same time, the heroes of Prevost see in love (230) the highest good; only the elect are given to experience it, and for this bliss a person is ready for any sacrifice.

"There is no doubt that there are hearts made for each other, such that they would never love anyone if they were not lucky enough to meet. As soon as they meet, they immediately feel that they are meant for each other and that their happiness lies in to never part. Some secret force prompts them to love each other; they do not need assurances, trials, oaths - they instantly have mutual trust, which prompts them to selflessly surrender to each other "(Ibid., p. 21 .) ("Notes of a noble person", vol. I).

The emotional side of Prevost's novels was one of the reasons for their great popularity. A contemporary of Prevost, Mademoiselle Aisse - the same Circassian, brought up in France, whose life served as a canvas for his novel "The History of a Modern Greek Woman" - wrote in 1728 about "Notes of a Noble Man": "This book is not so good, and yet you read all of its one hundred and ninety pages, bursting into tears "(Harrisse. L" abbe Prevost, p. 131.).

As a psychologist, Prevost is influenced by the great playwrights of the Classical era - Corneille and Racine, whose tragedies are also dominated by irresistible passions. But there feelings seem more abstract and are the lot of mythological heroes or prominent historical figures (kings, generals), and in (231) Prevost's novels, passion rages in the hearts of people occupying a more modest position in society; it is thanks to her that these people rise above the general level. Therefore, the passion of the heroes of Prevost comes into conflict with the usual factors of human life - material circumstances, family considerations, etc.

In 1731-1739, Prevost wrote his second great novel, The English Philosopher, or the History of Mr. Cleveland, Cromwell's Natural Son, written by himself and translated from English by the author of Notes of a Noble Man.

The novel is full of outlandish adventures and terrible events: Cleveland, the illegitimate son of Cromwell, persecuted by his father and doomed to countless suffering, burns with love for Fanny, the daughter of Lord Axminster, but circumstances separate the lovers. Lord Axminster receives the post of governor of the English colonies in America and takes his daughter there. Cleveland rushes after his beloved, but for a long time he cannot find her; when he arrives in Martinique, he learns that Axminster and his daughter have just left for Cuba; however, Cleveland does not find his beloved there either; he learns that her father took her further to Florida. Cleveland again embarks on a search and finally finds his father and daughter - they fell into the hands of savages and they are threatened with death.

In this spirit, events unfold over the course of eight volumes. Despite the improbability of events, the author manages to convey the experiences of his heroes in a fascinating and truthful way (232) and inspire readers with sympathy for their tragic fates.

In 1733, Abbé Prevost founded the weekly magazine "Pros and Cons" in London, whose task was to acquaint readers with the most significant phenomena of the cultural life of England - with its science, political structure, customs, etc. Particularly much attention was paid to English literature in the magazine . Since the English bourgeoisie was at that time a more mature class than the French bourgeoisie, the political, social and literary life of the British was followed with interest in France. The Abbé Prevost succeeded in setting up the magazine in an exemplary manner; as emphasized in its very title, the journal strove for comprehensive coverage of the material and for maximum objectivity. The reliability of the information reported in the journal, its impartial tone, the validity of critical speeches inspired contemporaries with great respect for this publication. Suffice it to say that Voltaire himself sought a benevolent review of his writings in it. At the same time, Prevost sought to make the magazine entertaining and accessible to the public, and this contributed to its popularity both among the nobility and the philistine environment.

The magazine was published until 1740 and played a significant role in bringing English and French culture closer together.

In 1734, Prevost got the opportunity to return to his homeland: the pope granted him forgiveness so that Prevost again went through the trial of obedience. (233) Upon his return to France, Prevost begins the publication of his third major novel, entitled: "Killerin's abbot; a moral history." The protagonist of the novel is an Irish priest, a hunchback and a cripple, a man of rare kindness and nobility, always ready for self-sacrifice. He takes part in the turbulent life of his two brothers and sisters in order to morally support them, help them understand the passions that overwhelm them and realize their delusions.

In 1736, one of the largest French nobles, Prince of Conti, invited Prevost to his retinue for the position of court priest. Prevost held this office in name only; she was not associated with any duties, but did not bring him any income; on the other hand, the position of a retinue priest gave him the opportunity to live outside the monastery. The glory of the greatest writer of our time gave Abbé Prevost access to high society and literary salons; he has many friends, many admirers, he is in correspondence with many prominent contemporaries, in particular, with Voltaire. But his financial situation is deplorable. In one of the letters to Voltaire (1740), Prevost complains about financial difficulties: he does not receive a salary, debts are growing. Prevost asked Voltaire to petition the Prussian King Frederick for a position, but he soon abandoned the idea of ​​going to Berlin, partly due to lack of funds for the trip.

(234) It was at this time that Prevost was once again destined to be in exile. In those years, handwritten magazines were widely distributed in France, in which all kinds of news, rumors, secular gossip were reported, often not at all corresponding to reality. Clever businessmen, the so-called journalistes a la main, secretly copied these magazines by hand and sent them to subscribers. Prevost had the imprudence to help one of these underground journalists in the literary processing of the material. Some of the influential people considered themselves slandered in this leaflet, the journalist was arrested, an investigation began, and when it turned out that Prevost was involved in editing the magazine, the police chief suggested that he leave France. Prevost spent a year and a half in exile in Belgium and Frankfurt.

Upon Prevost's return to his homeland, his life entered a peaceful rut, his fame was in full bloom, years of peace of mind and relative prosperity came. But his creativity waned. Prevost, who had already done a lot to familiarize his compatriots with English culture, now took up the translation of Richardson's novels, which were then read to all of Europe. In 1751 he published Clarissa; Grandisson, translated by Prevost, came out after his death - in 1775. Excellently executed, Prevost's translations were as common as the original text. It is curious that Prevost, who himself sinned in length in his novels, made significant cuts in Richardson's works (235) and thereby gave them greater expressiveness and harmony.

In addition to the novels listed above, Prevost put a lot of work into compiling a voluminous and at one time very popular "General History of Travels". He began issuing it in 1746. The first seven volumes are none other than Prevost's translation of the English work of John Green, published in London in 1745-1747 by the bookseller Astley. The English edition ceased with the seventh volume, after which Prevost compiled the next eight volumes on his own; the last of these was published in 1759.

This publication was a great success; it introduced wide circles of readers to distant countries, to the way of life and customs of various peoples. Prevost himself was always attracted to unfamiliar lands; he, as we have seen, traveled a lot and his wanderings were caused not only by necessity, but also by interest in foreign, distant lands. This feature makes Prevost a forerunner of the Romantics, in whose work the exotic took such a significant place.

Prevost did not leave literary work until his last day. Death caught him compiling the history of the family of the princes Condé and Conti. He died of a broken heart on 25 November 1763 while walking near Chantilly.

As mentioned above, "The History of the Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut" was first published in 1731 in Holland in the form of Volume VII of "Notes of a Noble Man". In France, Prevost's masterpiece (236) was not immediately appreciated. It is curious that the Parisian publisher, the widow Delon, who hastened to reprint volumes V and VI of the Notes, did not add the History to them. Despite the resounding success of the History in Holland and the laudatory reviews of the Dutch magazines, French publishers did not publish it in 1732 either. In France, the story was first published only in 1733. It came out as an independent work (separate from "Notes") in Rouen (marked "Amsterdam"); on the title it was written: "the work of Mr. D ***".

The book was a huge success. “They flew at her like butterflies on fire,” says a contemporary, writer and lawyer Mathieu Marais (Harrisse. L "abbe Prevost, p. 177.).

"Recently, a new volume of Notes of a Noble Person has been published. The book is written with such skill and so entertaining that even decent people sympathize with a swindler and a public girl."

"Recently, the "History of Manon Lescaut and the Chevalier de Grie" was printed here, which serves as a continuation of "Notes of a Noble Man". The hero is a swindler, the heroine is a public girl, and yet the author somehow manages to inspire sympathy for decent people. 238) writes superbly; he is in prose what Voltaire is in verse.

But a little later, the authorities give the order to seize and destroy the book. A document survives of the confiscation of five copies from one Parisian bookseller and two copies from another.

“Something can be added to the History of Manon Lescaut,” wrote the same newspaper on October 12. “This little book, which has just begun to attract everyone’s attention, has recently been banned. worthy of them - vice and licentiousness are described by the writer in such a way that they do not cause proper disgust for themselves.

These notes do not mention Prevost's name, and the general public probably did not know who the author of the sensational book was.

But in letters to the well-known lawyer and writer of that time, academician Bouhier, Mape names the name of the author of the "History". Here are some excerpts from these letters, for they speak eloquently of the idea of ​​Prevost formed among his contemporaries.

This ex-Benedictine is crazy; recently he wrote a disgusting book called "The Story of Manon Lescaut", and the heroine is a whore who spent time in the Orphanage and was sent in chains to the Mississippi. The book was on sale in Paris (239) and people flew at it like butterflies on a fire, on which the book and the writer himself should have been burned, although he has a good style.

Have you read "Manon Lescaut"? There is only one good comparison: the girl was so good that she could restore paganism in the world.

Look through Manon Lescaut, and then throw it into the fire; but it should be read once, otherwise put it in the section of the priapey, where it belongs "(Harrisse. L" abbe Prevost, p. 177.).

The removal of the book from sale could not, of course, muffle its success, and contemporaries read Prevost's story in numerous Dutch editions, which were heavily imported into France.

The prohibition of the story as a work of the immoral in an era when the rights were distinguished by their particular licentiousness now seems incomprehensible. But perhaps it was this licentiousness that was the reason for the underestimation and misunderstanding of the author's main idea: contemporaries saw in Prevost's story only the story of the frivolous adventures of two dissolute young people. This is how A. I. Herzen explained the underestimation of the work of Prevost by his contemporaries.

(240) According to Monteglon, such a detail testifies to the frivolous attitude to the story. In London, the book was published with the following designation of the imaginary publishing company: "In London, with the Constant brothers, under the sign "Inconstancy." books (Bibliographic reference of Anatole de Monteglone in the edition of "Manon Lescaut" by the Glady brothers (Glady freres). P., 1875, p. 328.) We also note that the story here was called not "History", but "Adventures" .

The ban on the story prompted Prevost to defend it in his journal. Taking advantage of the fact that the book was published anonymously and that the article in the journal is also published anonymously, Prevost allowed himself to evaluate his work. Subtly analyzing his story, Prevost tries to soften the impression she made and avert reproaches that he wrote an "immoral" book (The article was placed in the journal "Le Pour et Contre", vol. III, No. XXXVI, p. 137 and completely reprinted in the above edition of the Glady brothers (Glady freres), pp. 7-9. We note by the way that this apology is sometimes mistaken for the third preface to the story (considering the first preface is a letter to the Amsterdam publishers, preceded by "History of the Chevalier de Grie and Manon Lescaut" in Volume VII of Notes of a Noble Person and cited in Gladi's edition on pp. 326-328; the second preface is printed in our edition, p. 5).

(241) Here is what Prevost wrote:

"The public has read with great pleasure the last volume of Notes of a Noble Man, containing the adventures of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut.

We see in them a young man endowed with brilliant and infinitely attractive abilities, who is carried away by an unreasoning passion for the young woman he has fallen in love with and prefers a dissolute wandering life to all the benefits that his talents and his origin promise him; this is the unfortunate slave of love, foreseeing the hardships that await him, but deprived of the strength to do anything to avoid them; he is keenly aware of these hardships, he drowns himself in them and yet neglects the means that would help him to get a better position; in a word, this young man is both vicious and virtuous, well-intentioned thinking and acting badly; he is attractive in his thoughts and disgusting in his deeds. It is a peculiar character (singulier).

The character of Manon Lescaut is even more peculiar. She knows what virtue is, she even appreciates it, and yet she commits the most unworthy deeds. She passionately loves the gentleman de Grie, but the desire to live richly and shine forces her to betray her feelings and the gentleman, to whom she prefers the rich financier. What skill was required to captivate the reader and inspire him with sympathy for the disastrous misfortunes that this depraved girl is experiencing!

(242) Although both of them are very dissolute, you feel sorry for them, because you see that their unbridledness comes from weakness of will and from the ardor of passions, and that they also internally condemn their behavior and recognize how reprehensible it is.

Therefore, by depicting evil, the writer does not teach evil at all. He depicts the influence of violent passion, which makes reason useless when a person has the misfortune to completely indulge in it; such a passion, although it cannot completely stifle virtue in the heart, prevents it from being followed in practice. In a word, this work exposes all the dangers that debauchery brings with it. There will not be such a young man, such a girl, who would like to be like a gentleman and his beloved. They are vicious, but they are tormented by remorse and sorrow.

But the character of Tiberzh, a virtuous priest, a friend of the gentleman, is excellent. This is a wise man, full of piety and piety; it is a gentle and generous friend; it is a heart that continually laments over the errors of a friend. How attractive is piety when it accompanies such a fine character!

I will not say anything about the style of this work. There is neither rudeness, nor grandiloquence, nor sophistic reasoning in it; here Naturalness itself leads the pen. How miserable the style of writers pompous and embellishing the truth seems next to him! Here the writer does not pursue wit or what is called wit. This style is not laconically tight, but (243) smooth, rich and expressive. Everywhere - painting and feelings, moreover, painting is truthful and feelings are natural.

The story was banned for twenty years. Only in 1753 the ban was lifted and a new edition was published in two volumes, with numerous, although not changing the basics, amendments and an added episode.

Since then, "Manon Lescaut" has firmly taken its place among the most outstanding works of world literature.

In France, it was printed truly countless times - both in the form of expensive editions with illustrations by famous artists, and in mass penny editions, and in the form of large-format volumes with wide margins, and in the form of miniature pocket volumes, and in the form of "academic" publications with prefaces, notes, bibliographic references, options, etc.

A large number of articles have appeared (sometimes in the form of prefaces), the authors of which interpret the work from different points of view, seek to unravel the mystery of the charm of the main character.

In a brief essay, it is not possible to list all the reviews of French writers and critics. Let's note only the most significant.

Paul de Saint-Victor writes: "There are obscene books that we admire, despite their dirt, but at the same time regret that we cannot clean the dirty pages. Manon Lescaut is an amazing exception; this story is liked precisely for its obscenity, (244 ) and we would not at all want to whitewash her heroine. If Manon were not so guilty and not so immoral, she would cease to be herself. A speck of dirt goes to this playful girl like a fly. This is the hallmark by which her lovers recognize her. There is no need to hesitate in the choice of a word for this vile and delightful creature; she is a "wench" in the most unsightly sense of the word.) "Like the German poet's Ondine, she has no soul" (Paul de Saint-Victor. Hommes et dieux. P., 1880, p. 479, 481.).

Houssaye, emphasizing the autobiographical authenticity of the story, says that Prevost portrayed himself in this work twice: in the image of de Grie - his passion, in the image of Tiberzh - his conscience. "Abbé Prevost in life was alternately de Grieux, then Tiberge; in these two characters, two principles are impeccably truthful, which fought incessantly in his ardent but weak heart. De Grieux and Tiberge are action and reaction, this is the ebb and flow, This is recklessness, galloping like a wild horse, and reason, which holds him by the mane and tames, caressing "(Histoire de Manon ... P., Jouaust, 1874, p. VII;). "In this story - all Prevost; all his talent, all his heart" (Ibid., p. XXVI.).

Alexandre Dumas son, in his famous preface to Prevost's story, says that writers cannot be reproached for encouraging it by depicting licentiousness; if there were no (245) licentiousness, he says, then there would be no writers who describe it. Dumas emphasizes that in Prevost's story, as in any perfect work, the spirit of the era is clearly reflected. “Transfer the story of Manon Lescaut, as it is, to another era and to other customs, and it will lose its meaning,” he says; but he immediately makes a reservation: The feelings that are described in it, and which are inalienable from the human heart, i. that is, from what remains eternally unchanged, will remain just as true, but the facts described will continually revolt you with their implausibility. Dumas argues that if Father de Grieux, Tiberge, depraved old men and other characters in the story are bright representatives of the Regency era, then Manon herself is a type that has existed at all times. You are youth, you are sensuality, you are lust, you are joy and eternal temptation for a man.

You even loved - as far as someone like you can love, that is, you loved, wanting to receive only pleasure and benefit from love. As soon as you had to sacrifice something, you shied away from it. " About the gentleman, Dumas says: "What an inexhaustible source of sacrifice, selflessness, forgiveness! This eccentric becomes an ungrateful son, a treacherous friend, he is a swindler, he is a murderer! But you forgive him everything: he loves.” “He cheats on everyone; He never betrays Manon; he does not stop thinking about her for a minute.” “There is not a decent person who, having heard the story of his misfortunes, would not extend his hand to him, perhaps even would not envy him.

(246) For he who did not love you, Manon, did not know all the depths of love." "But you know, Manon, that this person is much better than you, a thousand times better! Only having lost everything, did you begin to understand what he represents, and in this you are quite a woman. But how well he knows you, and how he is tormented by this! Hardly experiencing your constant betrayals, he suffers not only because he loses the joy of possessing you and not only because you bring this joy to another, but because he knows: no matter what your accomplice is, you will share this joy with him " .

At the same time, Dumas notes that women like Manon are loved and glorified only while they are young. "The morality that you trample under your feet, the duties that you despise, the laws that you violate, sooner or later come into their own, and you, in turn, trampled, despised and disgraced, break into something that is as eternal as you: about family, work, modesty and love" ("Histoire du chevalier des Grieux ...". P., Clady freres. 1875, p. XIX.).

Maupassant gave a subtle analysis of the image of Manon in the preface to Lonette's edition. Starting with the assertion that a woman was created only for love and motherhood, Maupassant says that "the writers have left us only three or four wonderful images of a woman who live in us like memories - as if we knew these women - and so tangibly that they seem alive." Mentioning Virgil's Dido, Shakespeare's Juliet, (247) Virginie Bernerden-de-Saint-Pierre, he remarks: "And, finally, Manon Lescaut, the most feminine of all, ingenuously roguish, treacherous, loving, exciting, witty (spirituelle), dangerous and charming.In this image, full of charm and innate cunning, the writer seems to have embodied everything that is most fascinating, captivating and low in women.

Manon is a woman in the full sense of the word, just the way a woman has always been, is and will be. "" And how sincere this slut is in all her tricks, how sincere she is in her dishonesty! "" In love, she is an animal, cunning from nature is an animal, completely devoid of the ability for refined feelings, or rather, any shame. And yet she loves “her chevalier,” but in her own way, how can she love a creature devoid of conscience.” “Not a single female image has been depicted with such subtlety and fullness as this one; no woman was so feminine, was not so full of this quintessence of the feminine, so enticing, so dangerous, so treacherous! (Maupassant. Sobr. soch., vol. XIII. M., 1950, p. 231).).

In Russia, the works of Abbé Prevost were famous even during the life of the writer. The first translation of Notes of a Noble Person was published (248) in 1756-1764. "History of the Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut" appeared in Russian in 1790 (in the form of VII-VIII volumes of "Notes").

Pre-revolutionary Russian critical literature did not have works specifically devoted to The History of the Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut, but in cursory references to Prevost's story, its artistic merits are invariably noted.

So, Belinsky, in an article about Eugene Sue's novel "Thérèse Dunoyer", which tells the story of the heroine's devoted love for an unworthy person, says:

“The idea is true, but not new! Abbé Prevost has long ago expressed it beautifully in his excellent novel Manon Lescaut. And then Belinsky remarks that Prevost’s novel “because of its poetic and psychological fidelity, immortality is destined” (Belinsky. Sob. op., Vol. X. M., Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, pp. 116, 105.) Herzen writes in his Diary (Sept. 1842): "The story of Manon will always be a wonderful work."

At the same time, Herzen notes that the underestimation of Prevost's story when it appeared was associated with the general licentiousness of morals, characteristic of the upper strata of French society of that time. “The light glance of the 18th century was not able to discern the full width and bottomlessness of the horror of love for such a creature as Manon ...” - he said (Herzen. Sob. Soch., vol. II, M., Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, p. 225, 226).

(249) Note that both Belinsky and Herzen see the tragedy of de Grieux's love in that it was inspired by him by an unworthy woman.

The story of the abbe Prevost was also highly valued by Turgenev. In a letter to Pauline Viardot dated January 5/17, 1848, he says: “I am translating Manon Lescaut” (Turgenev. Collected works, vol. I. M., Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, pp. 291, 455.) On this occasion, L.P. Grossman remarks:

"This is a significant moment of his labors and days. He undertook translations only of the closest, dearest and deeply captivating creations." "The little book of Abbé Prevost should have greatly excited Turgenev if he took up the translation of the French text in the midst of work on the Hunter's Notes and the first comedies ..." (L. Grossmann. Portrait of Manon Lescaut ( Two studies about Turgenev), Moscow, 1922, p. 14).

Turgenev translated "Manon Lescaut" into Spanish for practice, but for this purpose he could, of course, take only a work very close to him. K. N. Leontiev cites the story of Prevost as an example of "the ingenious creation of a non-genius author" (K. N. Leontiev. Sobr. soch., vol. VIII. M., 1912, p. 326.).

B. A. Griftsov, opposing "The History of the Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut" to the works of writers who are limited to describing the hero's adventures (for example, Lesage's novels), notes that "the novel began to live a new and unusually intense life when ethics entered it." "Prevost did not seek special occasions, monstrous (250) or anecdotal. The outwardly simple case revealed a controversy in itself, which Prevost felt the more acutely, the less he was able to find a way out of it. This very simple feeling of one's helplessness in the face of a feeling that promises dubious happiness is the significant story of Manon Lescaut. What, in essence, prevented its heroes from finding a way out of situations, one more shameful than the other? A very correct remark was once made: a bad novelist would certainly make Manon more moral and thereby kill the novel. Manon is frivolous, vain, she needs all sorts of trifles and brilliance. She is cheating on de Grieux, not even because she is driven by need. She promises to get better and never will. That is how he loves her and love makes him fall so low "(B.A. Grifftsov. Theory of the novel. M., 1927, pp. 85-86.).

Subsequently, Soviet literary critics devoted several works to the work of Prevost and, in particular, to The History of the Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut, and all authors are unanimous in their high assessment of the story.

So, A. K. Vinogradov in a brief preface to the story in the edition of "Academia" notes: "... unlike his contemporaries and predecessors, Prevost took a really living being, portrayed him with features of deep reality, reducing his quality by turning to deep real, but perhaps not quite a full-fledged object. Manon is not a "model" girl, "impeccable woman"; (251) this is why this novel strikes the reader with an extraordinary freshness of colors and truthfulness of situations "(Prevost. Manon Lescaut. M., "Academia", 1932, p. 11.).

In the subsequent works of Soviet literary critics, there is a desire to transfer the problematics of the story from the ethical and psychological realm to the social realm and interpret History as a work exposing the vices of aristocratic and bourgeois society. At the same time, there is a tendency towards an increasingly decisive "rehabilitation" of the beloved of the cavalier de Grieux.

The talented literary critic V. R. Grib, who died early, in the preface to Manon Lescaut, made an attempt at a deeper interpretation of Prevost’s story, but some of the considerations put forward by him seem disputable: “All the misfortunes of de Grieux and Manon,” he says, “come from the fact that they have come into collision with aristocratic conventions, and in this collision the moral force is precisely on the side of the alleged "criminals", and not on the side of official morality. Is there anything criminal or repulsive in the characters of Manon and de Grie?"

On the other hand, the critic notes: "Enlightenment literature often brought 'fallen creatures' to the stage in order to rehabilitate them as victims of class oppression." The "fall" was portrayed as a consequence of external, social conditions, without affecting the internal (252) purity. Prevost violates this canon of enlightenment literature. Not only class prejudices, external obstacles destroyed the happiness of two lovers, but also internal reasons - the character of Manon herself, elusive and bizarre, woven from contradictions and mysteries. Prevost, as an artist, is not interested in the fight against evil, but in their elusive merging."

According to the critic, “the views (de Grie. - E. G.) on love and his actions are an expression of how new human relationships were presented to the new people themselves, people of the 18th century, who could still harbor rosy illusions about their character. Manon is an expression of the actual nature of these relations "(Prevost. Manon Lescaut. M., "Academia", 1936, pp. X, XIII, XIV, XVI.).

N. Ya. Berkovsky in the article "Evolution and Forms of Early Realism in the West" says that "The History of the Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut" is perhaps the most perfect and immortal novel of this century for us." According to the author, "de Grieux is not going to correct Manon -" a penchant for pleasures, "for which she cheats on the beggar de Grieux, is in itself natural and humane in his eyes. This novel is dominated by the concept of a human maximum, the natural accessibility of all small and the great benefits that the hostel has." “Manon is just when she demands for herself theaters, dresses and a dozen other small joys, (253) - de Grieux over the head of Manon refers his accusation to society in its given historical form.

Responsibility is removed from Manon, the theme of Abbé Prevost is the tragedy of individual love in the conditions of its everyday non-fulfillment, when only "fidelity of the heart" remains from it and when the very flesh of love is available at auction to anyone who gives more. The misfortune of de Grieux is that inwardly Manon never betrayed him. The sensual sharpness of the novel is due to this bifurcation of love into the physical and the spiritual, and de Grieux suffers from the fact that the physical Manon constantly eludes him, while spiritually she always belongs to him "(" Early Bourgeois Realism ", collection of articles. L. , 1936, p. 67.).

L. A. Levbarg in the article "Manon Lescaut of Abbé Prevost" convincingly analyzes the main images of the story: "The Cavalier de Grieux gives himself entirely to his passion and, following Manon, falls lower and lower. But this fall of the Cavalier de Grie in society is connected with his moral growth. Love, regenerating de Grie, raises him above society, pulls the young aristocrat out of the circle of narrow moral ideas. "

However, L.A. Levbarg is also inclined to explain the conflict by the difference in the class affiliation of the heroes and justify Manon: "Love that arose at first sight and struck the hero like a" lightning strike "collides with the different class affiliation of its bearers." "Manon is not to blame for anything; even if she commits (254) immoral acts, she does not realize it. This sincerity and simplicity are the reasons for the charm of her whole appearance" ("Scientific Notes of the Herzen Leningrad Pedagogical Institute", vol. XXVI. L., 1939, pp. 163-167).

G. N. Gendrichson is even more categorical and straightforward than her predecessors in the moral justification of the heroes of the story: “The carriers of genuine moral rightness in his (Prevost.-E. G.) novel are just imaginary criminals, and the virtuous Tiberzh and Father de Grieux turn out, in the final analysis, to be the real criminals who ruined the life of de Grieux and ruined the lovely Manon "("History French literature", vol. I. M., Publishing House of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, 1946, p. 722.).

In the dissertation "Antoine Prevost and his novel" Manon Lesko ", defended by I. N. Pozharova in 1953, the place occupied by Prevost's work in the literature of the 18th century is determined. According to the author, Prevost is characterized by "denunciation of the feudal-absolute order, which has a detrimental effect on the fate of a person..." for sale ... "The author believes that the main problem of the novel is not only a protest against class prejudices, but a struggle with the whole society, with the entire system of social relations that existed at that time. Having taken such a point of view, the author idealizes Manon: "Her thirst for luxury is not only (255)" a feature of the era ", but the manifestation of a developed and rich soul..." with a loved one. In Manon, one feels a rejection of religious-feudal morality. She is a person who claims the rights to the full satisfaction of her needs. " "Her entertainment is not an empty pastime, a complex and deep soul finds rest and satisfaction in them" (I. N. Pozharova, Antoine Prevost and his novel "Manon Lesko". 1953, pp. 143, 175, 176, 180.).

In 1962 Prevost's story was published in French for the first time in Russia. In the preface to this edition, Yu. B. Vipper notes that "in a society where money reigns, as Prevost shows, there is no one common morality. There are two of them: one for the masters, and the other for their victims." "From page to page, the writer shows how Manon's attachment to the Chevalier steadily matures and grows stronger, gradually clearing her moral concepts, transforming her in relation to the outside world." “Psychic purity has not been etched out of Manon’s consciousness. Submitting to the repulsive mores of her environment, she is not infected with the spirit of money-grubbing. She strives for money not for the sake of money. Des Grieux and Manon cannot do without gold, because it seems to them that they need it to complete their love happiness, but at the same time despise him.

In contrast to most of our critics, the author rightly emphasizes the features that (256) distinguish de Grie from his beloved: "With even greater force, the theme of indestructible spiritual purity finds expression in the image of de Grie, the central and truly problematic hero of the story. Hostile forces cannot break, subdue de Grieux, to separate him completely from Manon. He atones for his falls at the cost of cruel suffering and severe deprivation. His love for Manon is not only the source of his mistakes, but at the same time the source of his strength. The struggle for Manon is for de Grie a struggle for man and for his own right to humanity.The most important thing is not that carried away by his feelings, he can become a card cheat for a while, but that in the name of love he can sacrifice his personal well-being, voluntarily go into exile, doom himself to poverty and endless suffering" ("Manon Lesko". M., Publishing house of literature in foreign languages, 1962, pp. 16-18.).

In The History of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut, Abbe Prevost treats the theme of fatal, all-consuming love - a theme that, as we have seen, is dominant in his work. But unlike the great novels of Prevost with a complex, intricate plot, "The History of the Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut" is distinguished by a rare harmony and balance of composition. Perhaps this is due to the autobiographical (257) nature of the story, the fact that the drama, deeply experienced by the writer himself, served as sufficient material and allowed him to abandon the heap of far-fetched situations and events.

Prevost created such a captivating image of the "fallen girl" that she soon eclipsed her devoted knight in the minds of readers. This is evidenced by a seemingly minor but very eloquent fact: already at the beginning of the 19th century, book publishers began to arbitrarily make an "amendment" to the title of the story: "The Story of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut" turned into "The Story of Manon Lescaut and the Chevalier de Grieux", and over the years, the heroine completely ousted de Grie from the title page of the book: the story was often called simply "Manon Lescaut."

Only recently have French publishers returned to the original name given by the author himself. Swapping names may seem like a small thing; in fact, here the question is raised about the main character, about whose tragedy the author intended to tell us. And not in vain, of course, Prevost put the name de Grieux in the first place; it is de Grieux, and not Manon, who is the tragic hero of the story. It can be objected that in the story there are two heroes connected by a commonality of feelings, and that they are inseparable from each other, as are inseparable, for example, Romeo and Juliet, Tristan and Isolde, and many other characters of famous works. But such an objection is unjustified - both in Shakespeare's tragedy and in the medieval novel we have before us (258) two heroes who are equally noble, equally self-sacrificing, and indeed constituting a spiritual whole. They are experiencing the same tragedy common to both. This is apparently how the conflict between de Grieux and Manon is understood, and by those critics who speak of Manon's moral purity and in this respect equate her with de Grieux.

Meanwhile, in the events that Prevost tells about, the conflict lies in the deep difference in the characters of the gentleman and his beloved.

If de Grieux had been as immoral as Manon, their meeting would not have entailed a tragedy: having united his fate with Manon, he would have turned into a successful pimp and, taking into account Manon's external attractiveness, friends would have lived without worries and needs. By the way, this is the path that both Manon's brother and she herself suggest to the gentleman.

But the whole point is that de Grieux and Manon are deeply different natures; in their moral essence, in their intellectual appearance there is little in common. The tragedy of de Grieux is the impossibility of realizing with Manon that high ideal of love, which alone can satisfy him, and the whole tragedy of Manon comes down to a lack of material wealth.

By the will of the writer, the story is told on behalf of de Grieux. The autobiographical form of narration allows Prevost to reveal to us the inner world of the hero with exhaustive depth and truthfulness. The fatal nature of their meeting (259) is emphasized by its pure chance, and the instantly flashed passion speaks of the complete irrationality of his feelings. Just as suddenly, passion ignites in the hearts of the heroes of the medieval novel "Tristan and Isolde"; but there the feeling arises under the influence of a love potion drunk by young people. In Prevost's story there is no such "materialized" witchcraft, de Grieux is defeated not by a magical drink, but by the outward charm of a stranger. Des Grieux's attraction to Manon is purely sensual, it is inspired not by spiritual virtues, but by the girl's external attractiveness. The very suddenness of this passion testifies to its purely sensual basis - de Grieux's attraction flares up at the first glance at the girl, before he gets the opportunity to at least superficially get to know her.

The sensual basis of de Grieux's passion is even more clearly expressed during his second meeting with Manon, in the seminary. If, when meeting at the inn, de Grieux, not yet knowing Manon, could assume that moral perfection also corresponded to her external charm, now, after Manon's betrayal and her departure to a rich patron, de Grieux can no longer be mistaken.

We also note that at the first meeting he was still a young man completely free in choosing a life path, and by the time of the second meeting, two years later, he had already become a person not only more experienced in life, but also assumed certain obligations to society and (260) own conscience. So, the second "fall" of de Grieux is much more serious and deeper than the first, and the second "victory" of Manon, unlike the first, accidental and not dependent on her will, is deliberate and even more convincing.

Des Grieux's innate nobility and idealism prevent him from seeing Manon for who she is. Only in rare moments of enlightenment, most often in the absence of his beloved, de Grieux realizes his moral degradation, and he experiences it all the more deeply because, in his opinion, the struggle is unbearable and impossible for him, because the will of man is not free.

French literary scholars, especially Paul Azar, emphasize that the influence of Jansenism is strongly felt in the worldview of de Grieux. The Dutch theologian Jansenius (1585-1638) taught that the human will itself is not free to choose between good and evil; only the help of providence, only divine grace strengthens a person and directs him to good. Jansenism became widespread in France in the 17th-18th centuries, not only in theological circles, but also in society. Among the supporters of Jansenism one can name such outstanding thinkers and writers as Pascal, Arno, Racine and others. In Prevost's story, the influence of Jansenism is especially evident in de Grieux's philosophical reasoning.

True to his lofty ideals of love, the gentleman refers to Manon as the purest embodiment of femininity. It should be noted that de Grieux (261) does not tell us anything about the physical appearance, about the facial features of Manon. For him, she is the absolute, containing all perfections.

And like a true knight, de Grieux sacrifices to his idol everything that he has - his good name, social position, family, career, material well-being; he is ready, if necessary, to sacrifice life itself.

The image of Manon in its artistic merits is one of the most perfect creations of world literature. The author managed to combine external charm and internal limitation in her heroine so convincingly that the reader is always on the verge of opposite feelings, either admiring or resenting her.

True, we must not forget that we perceive the image of Manon from the words of de Grieux - the most biased narrator that one can imagine. Des Grieux always tries to justify Manon and only in rare moments is he more or less clearly aware of her shortcomings.

Des Grieux, of course, draws Manon before us mainly as he saw her in the days of their life together, in other words, he draws from the best side. Neither about her past, nor about her behavior behind de Grieux's back, in the homes of wealthy clients, we know nothing, because this is unknown even to the narrator himself.

For all his sincerity and truthfulness, de Grieux strongly idealizes his beloved. So, for example, he says that at the first (262) meeting with Manon in Amiens, it seemed to him that "her feelings were excited no less than mine." In reality, Manon agreed to run away with a young man whom she barely had time to meet, primarily because she had to get rid of the monastery at all costs, where her parents decided to place her "against her will, undoubtedly, in order to curb her the propensity for pleasure, which has already come to light." Therefore, it is impossible to talk about a feeling that suddenly arose in Manon. Manon immediately realized how much she could benefit from meeting a young and wealthy nobleman. De Grieux himself notes that the girl (even though she was only seventeen years old at that time) was much more experienced than him.

We know nothing about the Manon family. In the first edition of the story, the author said that Manon comes "not from a noble family." In the second edition (1753), he says more specifically: she came from "an ordinary family." This amendment was made by Prevost, probably to please the aristocratic readers of that time, who might have found it incredible and insulting that a public woman had come out of their midst. But for us this "clarification" does not change anything: what is essential is that the parents could not cope with the bad inclinations of the girl.

Manon is a woman devoid of any moral principles, a creature with a poorly developed intellect and an extremely narrow, bourgeois outlook. Therefore, it is erroneous to assert that this novel is dominated (263) by the concept of "human maximum"; not to mention the fact that hedonism is by no means inevitably associated with a violation of generally accepted ethical norms, "human maximum" seems to Manon to be something very primitive - these are outfits, dinners, theaters, entertainment. The creative principle, even in a purely feminine sphere, is alien to Manon. She cannot be imagined as a mother of a family, a devoted wife, a teacher of children, a caring housewife. Moreover, Manon carries an active destructive force: everything that comes close to her degrades. Even Manon's servants, who observe her life with de Grieux, are infected by a bad example and rob their masters, just as she robs her clients.

Manon is unable to bring happiness to a person who loves her: even on such a stronghold as de Grieux's selfless love, she cannot build their well-being.

She also has no kinship feelings. Unlike de Grieux, who constantly returns to his father, to his brother, to his childhood friend, Manon never thinks about his family and does not talk about it. She doesn't have any friends either. While near de Grie all the time, if not physically, then spiritually, his friend Tiberge is present, she is completely alone. There is no ground for friendship with her.

It should be noted that in Prevost's story, all positive characters appear from the side of de Grieux (his father, brother, (264) Tiberge, Mr. de T ..., - up to the jailer from the Orphanage), and all negative ones - from Manon (her brother, successive clients). Manon, as it were, attracts everything vicious to himself. It is significant that all the "admirers" of Manon, depicted in the story, come to her only from base motives; they have no reason to doubt its availability. And there is not one among them who would have a sincere feeling for her. The last circumstance - the lack of a worthy rival for de Grieux - deprives the credibility of the attempt of some critics to oppose Manon's "physical betrayal" - "spiritual fidelity".

True, in America, Manon's behavior is less reprehensible than at home. But one can hardly see in this a consequence of repentance or a natural evolution of character. Traveling to America in that era - a long journey in a wagon across France, a two-month voyage on a sailing ship, harsh living conditions in the New World, the humiliating situation of prisoners, all sorts of hardships - all this could not but undermine the spiritual and physical forces Manon. She arrived in America as a different woman - exhausted, exhausted, desperate, having lost her former carelessness and frivolity.

Prevost's story is distinguished by rare thoroughness in describing everyday features. The action takes place in the era of the Regency (1715-1723), when the mores of French society were characterized by extreme liberty. AT last years During the long reign of Louis XIV, a spirit of severity and hypocrisy reigned at the court, which affected the whole way of life. After the death of Louis XIV, who outlived his son and grandson, the throne was inherited (265) by his great-grandson, the infant Louis XV, and the regent, Philippe d'Orleans, actually became the ruler. With a cheerful and frivolous regent in France, a reaction immediately began to the "lean" spirit that reigned under the aged king. French society breathed more freely and gave vent to the thirst for life, fun, pleasure.

Abbot Prevost reproduced in his story with exceptional accuracy many of the everyday features of that time. Historians of the Regency era unanimously assert that such details as the procedure for sending exiles to America, the location and customs of gambling houses, the rules that existed in the police, in prisons, in taverns, etc. - in a word, that all small details correspond to reality. The author does not allow himself the slightest deviation from what he himself was a witness to. The picture of the then life, reproduced by him, is impeccably true.

But this does not mean, however, that the conflict depicted by Prevost is characteristic only of this era, because the obstacles to the happiness of de Grieux and Manon lie not so much in the social orders of the Regency era, but in the very character of Manon.

The literature of the eighteenth century is replete with works in which young people who love each other encounter an obstacle based on aristocratic or bourgeois prejudices. Let us recall, for example, The New Eloise, where the happiness of Julie and Saint-Preux (266) collapses only because Saint-Prex is a plebeian. The tragedy of the Chevalier de Grieux is based on completely different reasons, and in no case can responsibility for it be placed on his entourage, in particular, on his father. Father de Grieux rebels against his son's marriage to Manon, not because she is from a simple family, but because she, as a morally flawed creature, cannot give happiness to his son. Father de Grieux is a man of experience in life, able to understand people, and the story of Manon's flight with his son, whom she barely had time to meet, the circumstances under which this acquaintance took place, and, perhaps, especially, the betrayal of Manon, who betrayed her beloved, as soon as she realized that he had no money to support her - all these facts gave Father de Grie a complete picture of Manon and every reason to oppose this marriage. It is impossible to imagine, not only in the years of the Regency, but also in any other era, parents who would approve of the intention of a seventeen-year-old son to link his fate with a public woman, a thief and a swindler.

A girl like Manon could not be accepted by any aristocratic, or bourgeois, or peasant family. The depravity of Manon is not caused by poverty, but by the absence of any moral principles. There is not even a hint in the story that someone seduced and corrupted her. The depravity of Manon lies at the very foundation of her nature. If she were a woman from a noble, rich environment, she would be just as immoral, only her licentiousness would take a different form.

(267) To look for excuses for Manon and to soften, obscure her deep depravity means to belittle the inconsistency, originality and significance of this image and, therefore, underestimate the psychological insight and literary skill of the writer.

The elder friend of de Grieux - Tiberzh is depicted by the author as an exemplary, devoted friend. It has long been noticed that positive characters, especially in the literature of the 18th century, are always less colorful, always "more boring" than negative ones. But the prudence and steady consistency of Tiberzh's behavior by no means makes his image dull and insipid. Tiberge is adamant in his convictions, but at the same time indulgent towards de Grie, he is severe, but at the same time humane. If he were just a callous, limited pedant, ready only for boring moralizing, de Grieux would not appreciate him so much. Tiberzh is a true, generous friend who never backs down from his weak-willed comrade. His devotion is expressed in many ways: in disputes, in spells to come to his senses and return to the path of honor and work, and in his readiness to serve as an intermediary in negotiations that may be useful to de Grieux, and in material assistance; his devotion reaches heroism - in order to save a friend, he selflessly rushes after him to distant America, and this journey took several months under the then conditions and was fraught with great difficulties and risk.

And de Grieux highly appreciates the friendship of Tiberge; he (268) is sure that no trials can break her. Tiberge is the only person with whom de Grieux can be quite frank, and it is in disputes with him that he tries to sort out his feelings and find an answer to the questions that torment him. In these disputes, the friends hold profoundly different points of view, but this does not prevent them from understanding each other (especially Tiberge from understanding de Grieux). Tiberge's reasoning is completely unacceptable for de Grieux, because it contains not only a condemnation of his course of action, but also a complete denial of his illusory happiness. And yet, the gentleman opens his heart to no other than Tiberzhu: he knows that he will meet with him not only censure, but also sympathy, understanding and support.

We note in passing that the cavalier never even attempts to talk with Manon on topics that he touches on in disputes with Tiberzh.

Before meeting with Manon de Grieux, apparently, he fully shared the views of Tiberge; on this community of beliefs their friendship and respect is based. The divergence between de Grieux and Tiberge is a temporary phenomenon and it is quite probable that as soon as the action of the force that separated them ceases, their views, if not completely identical again, will in any case become significantly closer. According to the witty remark of Arsene Usse, Tiberge is the conscience of the Chevalier de Grieux.

The literary skill with which The History of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut is written puts this little story on a par with (269) the greatest masterpieces not only of French but of world literature. Her style is distinguished by captivating simplicity and harmony; the language - accurate, clear and smooth - is not inferior to the best examples of French prose of the era of classicism and enlightenment; de Grieux's account of his misfortunes and sufferings captivates with its sincerity, it is free from affectation, pomposity, exaggeration, but behind the outward restraint one can feel a seething passion all the time.

The story is just as perfect with regard to composition - the author immediately introduces the reader into the course of events, and our attention does not weaken until the last line (An interesting stylistic analysis of the story is given in the work of Rodier (Roddier. Prevost. L "homme et l" oeuvre. P., 1955. See also E. Etkind, Seminary in French Stylistics, Part I: Prose, Leningrad, 1960).

But the main merit of Abbé Prevost, of course, is the creation of two truly immortal images.

Cavalier de Grieux is an example of selfless love, selflessness and forgiveness. The author portrays the hero's painful and complex experiences with such persuasiveness that we forgive him for all his falls and continue to believe in his nobility and moral purity.

The image of Manon has no equal in artistic perfection in all world literature. The author managed to endow this empty, heartless, limited and licentious woman with such an endearing charm that we forget about her shortcomings and are ready to admire her not (270) less than de Grieux himself. Arsène Usse wittily remarks that no matter how many lovers Manon has, all this is nothing compared to the crowds of admirers that Abbé Prevost brings to her feet.

And indeed, after two centuries, Manon is still captivating, her fervent laughter is still heard from the pages of the book, and her sly, mysterious look still attracts us.

BIBLIOGRAPHY OF RUSSIAN TRANSLATIONS

"HISTORIES OF CAVALIER DE GRIER AND MANON LESCO" (Compiled by the All-Union State Library for Foreign Literature.)

Prevost d "Ekzil A.F. Adventures of the Marquis G., or the Life of a noble man who left the light. Per. I. Elagin, vol. 7-8: The story of Cavalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut. M., Univer hypnosis by Okorokov, 1790. 2 vols.

Same. 2 embossing. 1793.

Prevost. The story of Masha Lesko and Cavalier de Grieux. SPb., 1859. - Supplement to the journal "Library for Reading", 1859, No. 1.

The story of Manon Lescaut and Cavalier de Grieux. Per. D. V. Averkieva. "Bulletin of Foreign Literature", 1891, No. 6.

Prevost. The story of Manon Lescaut and Cavalier de Grieux. Per. D. V. Averkieva. SPb., 1892 ("New Suvorin Library").

Prevost. The story of Manon Lescaut and Cavalier de Grieux. Per. I. B. Mandelstam. L., publishing house "The Sower".

Prevost. Manon Lesko. Per. M. A. Petrovsky. Foreword by A. K. Vinogradov. ill. V. Konashevich. M.-L., "Academia", 1932.

P e in about. Manon Lesko. Per. M. A. Petrovsky. Essay by A. France: "The Adventures of Abbé Prevost". Intro. article by V. R. Grib. ill. V. M. Konashevich. M.-L., "Academia", 1936.

Prevost A. - F. Manon Lesko. Per. M. A. Petrovsky. Ed. B. A. Krzhevsky. L., Goslitizdat, 1951.

Prevost. Manon Lesko. Per. B. A. Krzhevsky. ill. K. I. Rudakova. M.-L., Goslitizdat, 1951.

Prevost. Manon Lesko. Per. B. A. Krzhevsky. M., Goslitizdat, 1957.

Rebellious S. Manon Lesko. Melodrama in 10 cards. (Staging). M., ed. Copyright Office, 1940.

Prevost A. - F. The story of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lesko. Foreword Yu. B. Vipper. Comm. I. P. Pozharova. M., ed. lit-ry in foreign. languages, 1962. Text in French. lang. Foreword and comm. in Russian lang.

As can be seen from the above bibliography, the story of the Abbé Prevost has always enjoyed wide popularity with the Russian reader. One of the best translations is the translation of M. A. Petrovsky offered in our edition.

Mikhail Alexandrovich Petrovsky (1887-1940) - professor at Moscow University, author of a number of works on the history of Western European literature and on the theory of prose. Peru M. A. Petrovsky also owns translations of the works of Merimee, Hoffmann, d "Oreville, Arnim, Balzac, Flaubert and others. Of the theoretical works of M. A. Petrovsky, it should be noted: "Composition of Maupassant's short story" (f. "Beginnings", 1921 , No. 1), "Morphology of Pushkin's "Shot"" (Sat. "Problems of Poetics". M., 1924), "Morphology of the Short Story" (Sat. "Ars poetisa". M., GAKhN, 1927), etc.

For this edition, the translation by M. A. Petrovsky was re-checked with the original text of 1753, republished by the publishing house of the Glady brothers (Glady freres, R., 1875).

(273) In order to elucidate the evolution of the art of literary translation over the course of almost two centuries, it is not without interest to cite a fragment of the original text and samples of its translations made by various authors.

Translation by I. Elagin (1790)

We sat down next to each other and I, taking her hands, said to her, looking at her sadly: “Ah, Manon! I never expected from you such a vile betrayal with which you paid me for my love. It was easy for you to deceive such a heart, whom you were the perfect owner of, and who based all his well-being on being pleased and obeyed by you, tell me now, have you found someone as gentle and as submissive as I?... No, no! at least tell me, have you ever felt sorry for me, and what should I think about this return of your favor, which now brings you to my consolation? with all the torments I endured for you, tell me, will you be more faithful in the future?"

Translation in "Libraries for Reading" edition (1859)

We sat next to each other. I took her hands. “Ah! Masha,” I said, look at her sadly, “I was not prepared for the black betrayal with which you repaid me for my love. It was easy for you to deceive the heart, which you completely controlled and whose happiness consisted in to please and obey. Confess to me now - have you found such tender and submissive hearts? No, no, nature does not create hearts like mine. Tell me, at least, did you regret him sometimes? Which is what you should think about the reason that brought you today to console my heart? I only see that you are even more beautiful, but, in the name of all the suffering that I endured because of you, lovely Masha, tell me, will you now remain faithful to me?

Translation by D. V. Averkiev (1892)

We sat opposite each other. I took her by the hand. “Ah, Manon!” I said, looking at her with a sad look, “I did not expect that you would pay me for love with such a black betrayal. It was easy for you to deceive the heart, of which you were the complete mistress and whose whole happiness consisted in pleasing and obeying you. Tell me yourself, have you found a heart so tender and submissive? No no! nature did not create a heart of such a law as mine. Tell me, at least, have you ever regretted it? What confidence in his consolation can I have in that return of tenderness which brought you here today? I too see that you have become even more charming than you were; in the name of all the torments that I have endured because of you, beautiful Manon, tell me, will you be more faithful in the future?

Translation by I. B. Mandelstam (1926)

We sat next to each other. I took her hands in mine. “Ah, Manon,” I said, looking sadly at her, “I did not expect that black betrayal with which you repaid my love. It was easy for you to deceive the heart, over which you established your complete dominion and which saw all its bliss in pleasing and obeying you. Tell me now if you have found other hearts as tender and submissive. Oh no, nature did not create a second heart of the same temper. Tell me at least if you ever missed him. How can I explain to me the good impulse that prompted you to come today to console him? I see that you have become even more beautiful than you were, but in the name of all the suffering that I endured because of you, tell me, beautiful Manon, will you be more faithful from now on?

Translation by M. A. Petrovsky (1932)

We sat next to each other. I took her hands in mine. “Ah, Manon,” I said, looking sadly at her, “I did not expect that black betrayal with which you repaid for my love. obedience to you. Tell me now, have you found another heart as tender, as devoted. No, no, nature hardly makes hearts of my temper. Tell me, at least, have you ever regretted it? I can be sure of the good feeling that prompts you to console him today? I see too well that you are more captivating than ever; but, in the name of all the torments that I have endured for you, beautiful Manon, tell me whether you will stay are you faithful to me now?"

Translation by B. A. Krzhevsky (1951)

We sat next to each other. I took her hands in mine. “Oh Manon,” I said, looking at her with sad eyes, “least of all in the world could I expect that black betrayal that you paid for my love. It was very easy for you to deceive the heart, whose only mistress was you, and whose whole happiness consisted in obeying you and pleasing you. Tell me now, have you ever met hearts so tender and submissive? Oh no, no; nature does not create more hearts of such temper as mine. But at least tell me, have you ever regretted it? What faith must I attach to the return of the tenderness that brought you here to comfort me? I can see too well that you are as charming as ever, but in the name of the agony I endured because of you, beautiful Manon, tell me, will you be more faithful?

Prevost A. - F. The story of the Chevalier de Grieux and Manon Lescaut

(Translated by M. A. Petrovsky, edited by M. V. Vakhterova)