Les lettres de Lord Chesterfield : decency, ou salvation by « Les Grâces »
This contribution explores the notion of « decency » in Lord Chesterfield’s letters to his son. Against the familiar assumption that decency is an inherently English disposition, the discussion first introduces Chesterfield as G Orwell’s inverted image. The study of Chesterfield’s decency proceeds t...
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| Language: | English |
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Presses universitaires de Rennes
2015-02-01
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| Series: | Revue LISA |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/lisa/8051 |
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| author | Thierry Labica |
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| author_sort | Thierry Labica |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This contribution explores the notion of « decency » in Lord Chesterfield’s letters to his son. Against the familiar assumption that decency is an inherently English disposition, the discussion first introduces Chesterfield as G Orwell’s inverted image. The study of Chesterfield’s decency proceeds to look at six characteristic features of the notion which is seen to contain an admonition to depart from Englishness. The resulting departure from the (English) particular in the direction of the (gallocentric) universal involves a historical bifurcation between earlier expectations of ‘decent’ outward manifestations of (ciceronian or Christian) inwardness and the sheer social gymnastics of dissimulation. The discussion ultimately offers a Marxian interpretation of this version of decency now set against the dual horizon of commodity relations and human perfectibility, and concludes with Chesterfield’s negative invention of a territory of inward intimacy now left to be recaptured by later romantic and nationalistic nostalgias. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-fd5dc3a5d9e24dcba6dd4f94298f6c00 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1762-6153 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2015-02-01 |
| publisher | Presses universitaires de Rennes |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Revue LISA |
| spelling | doaj-art-fd5dc3a5d9e24dcba6dd4f94298f6c002025-01-06T09:02:54ZengPresses universitaires de RennesRevue LISA1762-61532015-02-011310.4000/lisa.8051Les lettres de Lord Chesterfield : decency, ou salvation by « Les Grâces »Thierry LabicaThis contribution explores the notion of « decency » in Lord Chesterfield’s letters to his son. Against the familiar assumption that decency is an inherently English disposition, the discussion first introduces Chesterfield as G Orwell’s inverted image. The study of Chesterfield’s decency proceeds to look at six characteristic features of the notion which is seen to contain an admonition to depart from Englishness. The resulting departure from the (English) particular in the direction of the (gallocentric) universal involves a historical bifurcation between earlier expectations of ‘decent’ outward manifestations of (ciceronian or Christian) inwardness and the sheer social gymnastics of dissimulation. The discussion ultimately offers a Marxian interpretation of this version of decency now set against the dual horizon of commodity relations and human perfectibility, and concludes with Chesterfield’s negative invention of a territory of inward intimacy now left to be recaptured by later romantic and nationalistic nostalgias.https://journals.openedition.org/lisa/8051Bacon FrancisChesterfielddecencydecorumCiceroinwardness/outwardness |
| spellingShingle | Thierry Labica Les lettres de Lord Chesterfield : decency, ou salvation by « Les Grâces » Revue LISA Bacon Francis Chesterfield decency decorum Cicero inwardness/outwardness |
| title | Les lettres de Lord Chesterfield : decency, ou salvation by « Les Grâces » |
| title_full | Les lettres de Lord Chesterfield : decency, ou salvation by « Les Grâces » |
| title_fullStr | Les lettres de Lord Chesterfield : decency, ou salvation by « Les Grâces » |
| title_full_unstemmed | Les lettres de Lord Chesterfield : decency, ou salvation by « Les Grâces » |
| title_short | Les lettres de Lord Chesterfield : decency, ou salvation by « Les Grâces » |
| title_sort | les lettres de lord chesterfield decency ou salvation by les graces |
| topic | Bacon Francis Chesterfield decency decorum Cicero inwardness/outwardness |
| url | https://journals.openedition.org/lisa/8051 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT thierrylabica leslettresdelordchesterfielddecencyousalvationbylesgraces |