Glory and Terror: Seven Deaths Under the French Revolution / Edition 1

by Antoine de Baecque

Overview

Glory and Terror is a vivid and often gory history of the darker side of the French Revolution. Through an examination of contemporary visual and literary representations of executions, funerals, processions and ceremonies it brings the often horrific events of the time to life. Honing in on seven real life cases, the author recounts and interprets: * the public autopsy performed on the corpse of Mirabeau * the exhumation and transportation of Voltaire's body to the Pantheon * the public torture, murder and subsequent mutilation of the Princesse de Lamballe * the agonizingly slow death of Robespierre. Anyone who enjoys dazzling cultural history in the vein of Robert Darnton, Carlo Ginzburg and Anthony Grafton will revel in this intelligent and original work.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780415926164
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	05/29/2001
Pages:	250
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Antoine de Baecque is Professor of History at the University of Saint Quentin in Yvelynes, France and author of several studies of France during the Revolution, including The Body Politic: Corporeal Metaphor in Revolutionary France . He serves as editor of the Cahiers du cinemaand is co-author of the biography, Truffaut, published by Knopf (1999).

Table of Contents

Introduction Sublime Abjection: The Ascendancy of Corpses Mirabeau ; or, The Spectacle of a Public Corpse Voltaire ; or, The Body of the Philosopher King Louis XVI ; or, The Sacred Remains Geffory ; or, The Fear of Others Robespierre ; or, The Terrible Tableau Madame Necker ; or, The Poetry of the Corpse Author's Acknowledgments Notes Index

Editorial Reviews

"A brilliant and fascinating book. De Baecque's historical method is original and provocative. His insights into the French Revolution are startling and fresh. And when it comes to the ghoulish recesses of the revolutionary imagination, he is one of the best guides since that contemporary expert in the macabre subject, the Marquis de Sade." — The New Republic
"Rewarding strong-stomached readers with a riveting tale, Glory and Terror limns the era at a visceral level." — The Chronicle of Higher Education

From the Publisher

This is an engrossing and highly original work by an acclaimed young scholar and biographer (coauthor of Truffaut). A professor of history at the University of Saint Quentin in Yvelynes, France, de Baecque brings to this study a keen understanding of the "theatre" of revolution. His thesis is that at key points in the French Revolution, the deaths or burials of several leading personalities were celebrated, commemorated, or treated in such a way as to lend meaning and symbolism to the prevailing mindset and temper of the Revolution at that time. Hence, the death of Mirabeau in 1791 seemed to symbolize the death of the first (moderate) stage of the Revolution. Similarly, the elaborate 1791 ceremonies surrounding the transfer of Voltaire's remains to Paris could be viewed as a sign of the "collective regeneration of the French people." De Baecque also aims to have readers comprehend the symbolism behind the vicious and barbaric assaults on the corpse of the Princess de Lambelle, or the treatment accorded the body of the dead King Louis XVI. Remaining "corpses" discussed include Geffroy, Robespierre, and Madame Necker. De Baecque also recounts the varying ways in which those of differing political persuasions came to remember and memorialize these deaths over time. A fascinating work for serious students of the French Revolution; recommended for academic libraries. Marie Marmo Mullaney, Caldwell Coll., NJ Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

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