Catriona Seth is a British academic, professor of French literature at the University of Lorraine, and specialist in the Age of Enlightenment. She notably worked on the 2011 edition of
Dangerous Liaisons
in the Pléiade collection, for which she wrote the preface, and edited the work
Laclos d'après Laclos
(2016).
LE FIGARO. - Are
Dangerous Liaisons
part of a particular movement, or do they represent a sort of literary hapax?
CATRIONA SETH. - Laclos is part of a generic continuity, since before
Les Liaisons Dangereuses
there was
a slew of epistolary novels and in particular polyphonic epistolary novels, where several writers write letters. Laclos therefore has a series of models in generic terms, we can think of
Rousseau's
La Nouvelle Héloïse in particular, but
Les Liaisons Dangereuses
represents a culmination of this literary form. One of the great strengths of the novel is that it holds together through the style itself.
You talk about the
“polyphonic”
nature of the work. Does this help define Laclos' style, or does this polymorphic writing complicate his characterization?
In
Dangerous Liaisons
, it is the characters' letters that we are given to read: there is no omniscient narrator. We have all the correspondence and it is up to us, as readers, to judge the value of the different letters and the authenticity of the words of the different writers. One of the great qualities of Laclos compared to other authors of epistolary novels, less talented than him, is to know how to give a particular style to the different characters. The easiest character to define by her verb is Cécile. She is a teenager, her handwriting is clumsy and you can feel it when reading her letters. The term that most clearly characterizes Cécile's style is the word
"good"
, which she uses for lack of stylistic resources: it also defines her character.
“What Dangerous Liaisons shows is that mastering language also means mastering someone’s identity. »
Catriona Seth, academic and professor of French literature
It is this work of stylistic variation which therefore allows a game of manipulation through dialogue, whereas the latter is usually aimed at communication and transparency.
Yes, and that's one of the great distinctions between the characters. Madame de Merteuil also criticizes Cécile for being too transparent by telling her that you should not write what you want to say, but what the reader, what the person to whom you are writing wants to hear. In the same way Valmont, when he sets out to seduce Madame de Tourvel, says that they are arguing about words, because she speaks of friendship when he speaks of love, but that deep down, it is the same thing: the whole question is to know what we put behind these terms. This question of the value of words is central in
Dangerous Liaisons.
If we take over someone's language, we manipulate it. What
Dangerous Liaisons
shows is that to master language is also to master someone's identity, it is to master the feelings of the other.
When Cécile writes to Madame de Merteuil to explain to her, without her having the words to say it, that Valmont raped her, she does so thinking of confessing to a trusted person, and she does not expect to Madame de Merteuil uses this information by broadcasting it to other characters. On the other hand, when Madame de Merteuil orchestrates a mock rape to bring down Prévan, because the latter has sworn that he
"would have it"
, she writes to Madame de Volanges while wanting her letter to circulate, playing the virtuous part. Laclos deals with these two levels of correspondence, and the final disgrace of Madame de Merteuil comes from the fact that two letters supposed to be secret will circulate: the large letter 81, which is a sort of autobiography of Madame de Merteuil in which she describes herself as a new Dalila, and the letter in which she explained to Valmont how she had staged the false rape scene against Prévan. It is this alternation between private and public which allows the outcome.
“There is a disintegration of libertine language at Valmont. »
Catriona Seth, academic and professor of French literature
Does this place given to language and correspondence also reflect an era, a taste for
“beautiful style”
?
There is, of course, a taste for beautiful style. A character like Madame de Merteuil writes with elegance and exchanges regularly with those around her, because it corresponds to her character and her time. But if she writes admirably, Madame de Merteuil is also the champion of text explanation! By reading the letters sent to her, she analyzes what they say to her, or what they think they say to her, and she interprets. It is she who realizes long before Valmont that the latter is in love with Madame de Tourvel, by simply reading the letters: she takes the words and grasps their significance. It is this recognition of the value of terms that gives him such mastery over others. Because she is a master of style, she shines in the dangerous game of connections.
A sort of unwilling confession from the Viscount of Valmont, as if, by dint of wanting to manipulate words, he was caught in his own game?
Valmont is taken by the appearance, by the role he has given himself. He believes himself to be a libertine, but one thing is impossible, and that is to be a libertine in love since the libertine, by definition, conquers women. He talks a lot in terms of conquest, campaign, obstacles, he uses warlike metaphors. The libertine must always dominate, must always be in control. And the day he gives in to his feelings, he no longer controls things in the same way and it is his language that translates it.
Are we seeing a shift from libertine language to a love language?
Indeed, this is what happens to Valmont: he is mastered by language, even though he thought he was pretending. Sometimes you write a little thank you note,
"I had a wonderful evening, the dinner was delicious"
, even though it was quite ordinary, but you do it out of politeness, you feel obliged. Valmont does the same: he begins by feigning a state of love, because he is committed to
“conquering”
Madame de Tourvel. But as he writes, he is overpowered by words and suddenly his language no longer belongs to him. From what was only a deceptive speech real feelings are born, which Madame de Merteuil perceives very well. In Valmont there is a disintegration of libertine language.
“The question of the value of words is central to Les Liaisons Dangereuses. »
Catriona Seth, academic and professor of French literature
You consider that the principle of the novel does not necessarily lie in its epistolary character: what does this
“spirit”
of
Dangerous Liaisons
consist of ?
Apparently, we say to ourselves that an epistolary novel can only work through letters, and we can only imagine that in the type of society in which Laclos writes. However, when we look at the theatrical and cinematographic adaptations, some are very successful even though they are not based on epistolary writing. There is an extraordinary mechanism which means that the entire plot of the novel is based on completely timeless themes, such as the question of consent for example, which is central. My favorite adaptation is actually a film by Roger Vadim,
Les Liaisons Dangereuses 1960
(1959), which takes place between Paris, Megève and Deauville, in settings from the end of the 1950s with Jeanne Moreau, Gérard Philippe and Jean-Luc Trintignant. The director certainly uses a tape recorder and telegrams, but always with these essential questions: how do you seduce someone? How do we control the other? To what extent can intelligence and wickedness combined precipitate the downfall of individuals? Also, whatever the era, excellent transpositions can be achieved.
Dangerous Liaisons
are on the program for scientific preparatory classes.
If you had one piece of advice to offer them for understanding the work, what would it be?
The question of the value of words is central to
Les Liaisons Dangereuses
. If we understand that it is a novel which speaks of the manipulation of characters but also of the manipulation of words, of the manipulation of discourse, I believe that we have essential themes. It is by manipulating individuals and their language that we can make people believe things.
Dangerous Liaisons
is also a very good book for developing critical thinking, the students are lucky to have it in the program!