Portraits of Celebrated Women |
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Common terms and phrases
admiration affection already appeared attempt beautiful became become beginning called caused century character charm close conversation critic daughter death Delphine desire dream early especially expression eyes fact father Fayette feeling follow France French genius give grace hand happiness heart hope human idea imagination influence interest Italy kind La Fayette least less letters light literary lived longer manner merely mind Mlle moral mother nature Necker never noble observation occasion once opinions original Paris passed passion perfect period person philosophical political present published question reason received remained remark Roland romance says seems seen sentiment Sévigné short side society soon sort soul speak spirit Staël style talent taste tender things thought tion tone turn whole woman writing young youth
Popular passages
Page 375 - These shall the fury Passions tear, The vultures of the mind, Disdainful Anger, pallid Fear, And Shame that skulks behind; Or pining Love shall waste their youth, Or Jealousy with rankling tooth That inly gnaws the secret heart, And Envy wan, and faded Care, Grim-visaged comfortless Despair, And Sorrow's piercing dart. Ambition this shall tempt to rise, Then whirl the wretch from high To bitter Scorn a sacrifice And grinning Infamy. The stings of Falsehood those shall try And hard Unkindness...
Page 376 - Th' unfeeling for his own. Yet, ah ! why should they know their fate, Since sorrow never comes too late, And happiness too swiftly flies ? Thought would destroy their paradise ! No more ; — where ignorance is bliss, 'T is folly to be wise.
Page 375 - That fly th' approach of morn. Alas ! regardless of their doom The little victims play ; No sense have they of ills to come Nor care beyond to-day : Yet see, how all around them wait The ministers of human fate, And black Misfortune's baleful train ' Ah, show them where in ambush stand, To seize their prey, the murderous band...
Page 71 - ... in literature, to strike boldly, aim high, and shout 'through trumpets and speaking-tubes. The modest 'graces will perhaps come back after a while, and 'come with an expression appropriate to their new 'surroundings. I would fain believe it; but while 'hoping for the best, I feel sure that it will not be 'to-morrow that their sentiments and their speech
Page 224 - If it were not for respect to human opinions, I would not open my window to see the Bay of Naples for the first time, whilst I would go five hundred leagues to talk with a man of genius whom I had not seen.
Page 71 - ... rare form of interior life : otherwise it will be, in one respect, far inferior to the civilization which preceded it, and will barely satisfy the needs of a whole family of souls. In stirring times, in moments of incoherent and confused inauguration like the present, it is natural to make for the most important point, to busy one's self with the general working, and everywhere, even in literature, to strike boldly, aim high, and shout through trumpets and speaking-tubes. The modest graces will,...
Page 15 - Until then daydreaming had been more natural and more personal, and at the same time less self-centered. To daydream was, for Mme. de Sevigne, to think of her daughter in Provence, of her son in Crete or with the king's army, of absent or dead friends; it was to say: "As for my life, you know it; I spend it with five or six friends whose company I like, and doing a thousand things I am obliged to do, which is no small matter. But I am vexed at the idea that while we do nothing the days go by, and...
Page 163 - Mais un jour vous saurez ce qu'éprouvé le cœur. Quand un vrai sentiment n'en fait pas le bonheur; Lorsque sur cette terre on se sent délaissée, Qu'on n'est d'aucun objet la première pensée; Lorsque l'on peut souffrir, sûre que ses douleurs D'aucun mortel jamais ne font couler les pleurs. On se désintéresse à la fin de soi-même, On cesse de s'aimer, si quelqu'un ne nous aime; Et d'insipides jours, l'un sur l'autre entassés.
Page 158 - One day M. Suard, as he entered the saloon of the hotel Necker saw Madame Necker going out of the room, and Mademoiselle Necker standing in a melancholy attitude with tears in her eyes. Guessing that Madame Necker had been lecturing her, Suard went towards her to comfort her, and whispered, "Un caresse du papa vous dedommagera bien de tout fa.
Page 137 - What can be stranger than for me to hate anyone because he loves me, and from the moment I try to love him? Yet so it is, I give you a faithful record of my experience.
Bibliographic information
| Title | Portraits of Celebrated Women |
| Author | Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve |
| Edition | 2 |
| Publisher | Roberts, 1868 |
| Original from | Harvard University |
| Digitized | Jan 3, 2008 |
| Length | 384 pages |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |