TEN YEARS OF EXILE [Hardcover]

GERMAIN STAEL (Author), AVRIEL GOLDBERGER (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2000

Capturing eloquent observations of the Napoleonic period's most politically outspoken woman, this edition of Dix Années d´Exil is the powerful memoir of Germaine de Staël´s tumultuous years fleeing Napoleon. Translated by an award-winning scholar, Ten Years of Exile is the only unabridged English edition of this strong-minded and passionate woman´s personal and political journal.

During the French Revolution, Mme. de Staël´s salon became a brilliant center of political and intellectual life. Staël herself helped to introduce Napoleon to French society, yet like other liberals in the Constitutional Club, she soon came to oppose the increasingly powerful general. He in turn banished her from Paris in 1803 for her liberal ideas.

In exile, Staël continued to agitate against the new master of France. When Napoleon began his great Russian campaign, she fled across Austria and Poland to avoid his advancing armies. She arrived in Moscow only weeks ahead of Napoleon and then barely escaped to England. After Napoleon´s defeat, Staël returned to Paris and again received ministers, generals, and sovereigns in her revived salon.

As the author of beloved novels and widely read works on literature, history, and politics, Staël knew and corresponded with many of the leading intellectuals and politicians of her day, including Talleyrand, Schiller, and Goethe. Her memoir provides penetrating insights into the society of Napoleonic Europe and vivid portraits of the leading figures of the age, including the emperor himself.

Based upon the definitive 1996 French text edited by Simone Balayé and Mariella Bonifacio, this edition includes a new introduction by Simone Balayé and Avriel Goldberger. Supplemented with notes, a chronology, and a map of de Staël´s dramatic flight across Europe, Ten Years of Exile will intrigue readers interested in biography, French history, women´s studies, political and intellectual history, literature, and the Age of Napoleon.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Goldberger's translation is fluid.... Ten Years of Exile provides the best entry into Madame de Staël's thought and life. The new edition is invaluable."—The Hudson Review

"A much needed and anticipated authoritative work."—The Women's Review of Books

"A brilliant first draft of history, written by the woman whom Byron called 'the first female writer of this, perhaps of any age.'"—TLS

Language Notes

Text: English, French (translation) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 327 pages
• Publisher: Northern Illinois University Press (October 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0875802559
• ISBN-13: 978-0875802558
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,475,497 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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