Dialogues and Addresses

by Madame de Maintenon, translated by John J. Conley, S.J.

University of Chicago Press, 2004
Cloth: 978-0-226-50241-0 | Paper: 978-0-226-50242-7 | Electronic: 978-0-226-50240-3
DOI: 10.7208/chicago/9780226502403.001.0001

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ABOUT THIS BOOKAUTHOR BIOGRAPHYTABLE OF CONTENTS

ABOUT THIS BOOK

Born Françoise d'Aubigné, a criminal's daughter reduced to street begging as a child, Madame de Maintenon (1653-1719) made an improbable rise from impoverished beginnings to the summit of power as the second, secret wife of Louis XIV. An educational reformer, Maintenon founded and directed the celebrated academy for aristocratic women at Saint-Cyr. This volume presents the dialogues and addresses in which Maintenon explains her controversial philosophy of education for women.

Denounced by her contemporaries as a political schemer and religious fanatic, Maintenon has long been criticized as an opponent of gender equality. The writings in this volume faithfully reflect Maintenon's respect for social hierarchy and her stoic call for women to accept the duties of their state in life. But the writings also echo Maintenon's more feminist concerns: the need to redefine the virtues in the light of women's experience, the importance of naming the constraints on women's freedom, and the urgent need to remedy the scandalous neglect of the education of women.

In her writings as well as in her own model school at Saint-Cyr, Maintenon embodies the demand for educational reform as the key to the empowerment of women at the dawn of modernity.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

John J. Conley, S.J., is a professor of philosophy at Fordom University. He is the author of TheSuspicion of Virtue: Women Philosophers in Neoclassical France and the translator and editor of Jacqueline Pascal's A Rule for Children and Other Writings, the latter published by the University of Chicago Press.

Preface

Series Editors’ Introduction

List of Abbreviations

Volume Editor’s Introduction

Volume Editor’s Bibliography

Volume Editor’s Introduction

On the Cardinal Virtues

On Courage

On True Glory

On True Wit

On Eminence

On Reason

On Piety

On Privilege

On Constraint

On the Necessity of Dependence

On the Drawbacks of Marriage

On the Different States in Life

On Current Discussions

On Education at Saint-Cyr

Volume Editor’s Introduction

Of the Cardinal Virtues

Of Politeness

Of Civility

Of True Glory

Portrait of a Reasonable Person

Of the Utility of Reflection

Of Religious Vocations

Of the Single Life

Of Friendship

Of the World

How to Maintain a Good Reputation

Of Avoiding the Occasions of Sin

Against Religious Innovations

Of Education and of the Advantages of a Demanding Upbringing

Volume Editor’s Introduction

Of the Education of Ladies

Of Solid Education

Of the Danger of Profane Books

Of the Proper Choice of Theatrical Pieces for Pupils

Series Editors’ Bibliography

Index