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== Entry by [[Anne Defrance]], 2007 ==
 
== Entry by [[Anne Defrance]], 2007 ==
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Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville was born into nobility in 1650 or 1651, at Barneville-La-Bertrand. Her father died when she was very young and her mother, Judith-Angélique de Saint-Pater, remarried with the marquis de Gudanes. Either because she was widowed or estranged from him, she lived with the marquis de Courboyer, a wealthy Protestant merchant. Around the age of 15 or 16, young Marie-Catherine married François de La Motte, Baron d’Aulnoy, aged 46. It was apparently an arranged union. Her husband was a famous free-thinker and a protégé of the Duke of Vendôme. The Duke’s death caused d’Aulnoy’s financial difficulties. Marie-Catherine gave birth to Marie-Angélique, then Dominique-César, who both died in infancy, then Marie-Anne (1668), who would later become Madame de Hèere, and Judith-Henriette (1669), later Marquise de Bargente. Presumably running away from her abusive husband, and pregnant with Marie-Anne, Mme d’Aulnoy took refuge at her mother’s in Paris. Baron d’Aulnoy fled his creditors and Colbert’s agents. With the help of two other gentlemen, Mme de Gudanes and Courboyer hatched some plot meant to get rid of the young woman. Although Baron d’Aulnoy was arrested for lèse-majesté in 1669, the plot was exposed and two of the accomplices executed. As he was released from jail in January 1670, Baron d’Aulnoy became permanently estranged from his wife.  
 
Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville was born into nobility in 1650 or 1651, at Barneville-La-Bertrand. Her father died when she was very young and her mother, Judith-Angélique de Saint-Pater, remarried with the marquis de Gudanes. Either because she was widowed or estranged from him, she lived with the marquis de Courboyer, a wealthy Protestant merchant. Around the age of 15 or 16, young Marie-Catherine married François de La Motte, Baron d’Aulnoy, aged 46. It was apparently an arranged union. Her husband was a famous free-thinker and a protégé of the Duke of Vendôme. The Duke’s death caused d’Aulnoy’s financial difficulties. Marie-Catherine gave birth to Marie-Angélique, then Dominique-César, who both died in infancy, then Marie-Anne (1668), who would later become Madame de Hèere, and Judith-Henriette (1669), later Marquise de Bargente. Presumably running away from her abusive husband, and pregnant with Marie-Anne, Mme d’Aulnoy took refuge at her mother’s in Paris. Baron d’Aulnoy fled his creditors and Colbert’s agents. With the help of two other gentlemen, Mme de Gudanes and Courboyer hatched some plot meant to get rid of the young woman. Although Baron d’Aulnoy was arrested for lèse-majesté in 1669, the plot was exposed and two of the accomplices executed. As he was released from jail in January 1670, Baron d’Aulnoy became permanently estranged from his wife.  
 +
 
During her husband’s trial, pregnant Marie-Catherine may have stayed at the Bastille for a few days after her daughter’s birth. After spending a year in a convent, possibly until Spring 1692, she travelled through Flanders (1672-73) and England (1675). In Paris, she gave birth to two daughters, Thérèse-Aimée (1676) and Françoise-Angélique-Maxime (1677). She may have travelled to Spain with the latter (1679-1680). (the reality of that particular Spanish trip, which inspired some of her works, as well as the exact dates of it, is still a historical moot point). Another stay in England (1682) marked her encounter with Saint-Évremond. Around 1685 possibly, and unquestionably by the year 1690, Mme d’Aulnoy settled permanently in Paris.
 
During her husband’s trial, pregnant Marie-Catherine may have stayed at the Bastille for a few days after her daughter’s birth. After spending a year in a convent, possibly until Spring 1692, she travelled through Flanders (1672-73) and England (1675). In Paris, she gave birth to two daughters, Thérèse-Aimée (1676) and Françoise-Angélique-Maxime (1677). She may have travelled to Spain with the latter (1679-1680). (the reality of that particular Spanish trip, which inspired some of her works, as well as the exact dates of it, is still a historical moot point). Another stay in England (1682) marked her encounter with Saint-Évremond. Around 1685 possibly, and unquestionably by the year 1690, Mme d’Aulnoy settled permanently in Paris.
 +
 
Her first works, published between 1690 and 1691, were quickly successful. In December 1692, she started to attend Mme de Lambert’s salon in the rue de Richelieu, where she met with Choisy, Fénelon and Mademoiselle Bernard, Mademoiselle La Force and Mme de Murat. She started her own salon in the rue Saint-Benoît (unkwnown dates). According to Mme Du Noyer, it was in that salon of hers that she hosted several English people from the Protestant diaspora. In such salons, d’Aulnoy’s  fairytales may have been read out loud before they were published in 1697. Marie-Catherine died on 12 or 13 January 1705 at her rue Saint-Benoît home. The funeral took place at Saint Sulpice. She will be survived by four daughters, none of whom seems to have had children.  
 
Her first works, published between 1690 and 1691, were quickly successful. In December 1692, she started to attend Mme de Lambert’s salon in the rue de Richelieu, where she met with Choisy, Fénelon and Mademoiselle Bernard, Mademoiselle La Force and Mme de Murat. She started her own salon in the rue Saint-Benoît (unkwnown dates). According to Mme Du Noyer, it was in that salon of hers that she hosted several English people from the Protestant diaspora. In such salons, d’Aulnoy’s  fairytales may have been read out loud before they were published in 1697. Marie-Catherine died on 12 or 13 January 1705 at her rue Saint-Benoît home. The funeral took place at Saint Sulpice. She will be survived by four daughters, none of whom seems to have had children.  
 +
 
Mme d’Aulnoy’s works marked the coming of age of an oral genre finding its way onto the written page : that of the fairytale narrative, very much in favour at court.  Her fairytales, as were those written by contemporary authors, drew on the sources and roots of folklore as well as the literary tradition of mythological narratives, tales of chivalry, Renaissance epics and baroque novels. Although they entailed a return to the past, they also questioned the  courtly values and institutions (marriage, for instance) of Mme d’Aulnoy’s time.  
 
Mme d’Aulnoy’s works marked the coming of age of an oral genre finding its way onto the written page : that of the fairytale narrative, very much in favour at court.  Her fairytales, as were those written by contemporary authors, drew on the sources and roots of folklore as well as the literary tradition of mythological narratives, tales of chivalry, Renaissance epics and baroque novels. Although they entailed a return to the past, they also questioned the  courtly values and institutions (marriage, for instance) of Mme d’Aulnoy’s time.  
 +
 
Pastiche and parody sometimes feature prominently in her works, namely in the narratives framing the fairytales, thereby operating a specular relationship between the two. There are also debates reflecting the criticism of several contemporaries against fairytales and novels; and Mme d’Aulnoy mischievously plays with those critiques by placing only secondary and ridiculous characters in her tales.  
 
Pastiche and parody sometimes feature prominently in her works, namely in the narratives framing the fairytales, thereby operating a specular relationship between the two. There are also debates reflecting the criticism of several contemporaries against fairytales and novels; and Mme d’Aulnoy mischievously plays with those critiques by placing only secondary and ridiculous characters in her tales.  
 +
 
Her other works include historical or courtly novels, and apocryphal memoirs. She was the most prolific tale-writer of her time. Half a century after her death, several writers followed in her tracks (Caylus for instance). Her most famous tales were re-written and popularized by the "Bibliothèque bleue", although for years they were overshadowed by the enduring popularity of Perrault’s tales. In the twentieth century, some of her stories were adapted for children, which accounts for the general misconception that Mme d’Aulnoy was originally a writer of children’s stories. More so than her novels, her tales are now the subject of much academic scrutiny. The gender studies school of thought and approach, especially in the USA, has greatly contributed to such a growing interest, showing that Mme d’Aulnoy’s works shed light on the war of the sexes at the time.  
 
Her other works include historical or courtly novels, and apocryphal memoirs. She was the most prolific tale-writer of her time. Half a century after her death, several writers followed in her tracks (Caylus for instance). Her most famous tales were re-written and popularized by the "Bibliothèque bleue", although for years they were overshadowed by the enduring popularity of Perrault’s tales. In the twentieth century, some of her stories were adapted for children, which accounts for the general misconception that Mme d’Aulnoy was originally a writer of children’s stories. More so than her novels, her tales are now the subject of much academic scrutiny. The gender studies school of thought and approach, especially in the USA, has greatly contributed to such a growing interest, showing that Mme d’Aulnoy’s works shed light on the war of the sexes at the time.  
 
(translated by [[Denis Lagae-Devoldere]])
 
(translated by [[Denis Lagae-Devoldere]])

Latest revision as of 19:15, 15 May 2011

Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville
Title(s) Baronne d'Aulnoy
Spouses François de La Motte, baron d'Aulnoy
Also known as Madame d'Aulnoy
Comtesse d'Aulnoy
Biography
Birth date Around 1650
Death 1705
Biographical entries in old dictionaries
Dictionnaire Pierre-Joseph Boudier de Villemert
Dictionnaire Fortunée Briquet


Entry by Anne Defrance, 2007

Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville was born into nobility in 1650 or 1651, at Barneville-La-Bertrand. Her father died when she was very young and her mother, Judith-Angélique de Saint-Pater, remarried with the marquis de Gudanes. Either because she was widowed or estranged from him, she lived with the marquis de Courboyer, a wealthy Protestant merchant. Around the age of 15 or 16, young Marie-Catherine married François de La Motte, Baron d’Aulnoy, aged 46. It was apparently an arranged union. Her husband was a famous free-thinker and a protégé of the Duke of Vendôme. The Duke’s death caused d’Aulnoy’s financial difficulties. Marie-Catherine gave birth to Marie-Angélique, then Dominique-César, who both died in infancy, then Marie-Anne (1668), who would later become Madame de Hèere, and Judith-Henriette (1669), later Marquise de Bargente. Presumably running away from her abusive husband, and pregnant with Marie-Anne, Mme d’Aulnoy took refuge at her mother’s in Paris. Baron d’Aulnoy fled his creditors and Colbert’s agents. With the help of two other gentlemen, Mme de Gudanes and Courboyer hatched some plot meant to get rid of the young woman. Although Baron d’Aulnoy was arrested for lèse-majesté in 1669, the plot was exposed and two of the accomplices executed. As he was released from jail in January 1670, Baron d’Aulnoy became permanently estranged from his wife.

During her husband’s trial, pregnant Marie-Catherine may have stayed at the Bastille for a few days after her daughter’s birth. After spending a year in a convent, possibly until Spring 1692, she travelled through Flanders (1672-73) and England (1675). In Paris, she gave birth to two daughters, Thérèse-Aimée (1676) and Françoise-Angélique-Maxime (1677). She may have travelled to Spain with the latter (1679-1680). (the reality of that particular Spanish trip, which inspired some of her works, as well as the exact dates of it, is still a historical moot point). Another stay in England (1682) marked her encounter with Saint-Évremond. Around 1685 possibly, and unquestionably by the year 1690, Mme d’Aulnoy settled permanently in Paris.

Her first works, published between 1690 and 1691, were quickly successful. In December 1692, she started to attend Mme de Lambert’s salon in the rue de Richelieu, where she met with Choisy, Fénelon and Mademoiselle Bernard, Mademoiselle La Force and Mme de Murat. She started her own salon in the rue Saint-Benoît (unkwnown dates). According to Mme Du Noyer, it was in that salon of hers that she hosted several English people from the Protestant diaspora. In such salons, d’Aulnoy’s fairytales may have been read out loud before they were published in 1697. Marie-Catherine died on 12 or 13 January 1705 at her rue Saint-Benoît home. The funeral took place at Saint Sulpice. She will be survived by four daughters, none of whom seems to have had children.

Mme d’Aulnoy’s works marked the coming of age of an oral genre finding its way onto the written page : that of the fairytale narrative, very much in favour at court. Her fairytales, as were those written by contemporary authors, drew on the sources and roots of folklore as well as the literary tradition of mythological narratives, tales of chivalry, Renaissance epics and baroque novels. Although they entailed a return to the past, they also questioned the courtly values and institutions (marriage, for instance) of Mme d’Aulnoy’s time.

Pastiche and parody sometimes feature prominently in her works, namely in the narratives framing the fairytales, thereby operating a specular relationship between the two. There are also debates reflecting the criticism of several contemporaries against fairytales and novels; and Mme d’Aulnoy mischievously plays with those critiques by placing only secondary and ridiculous characters in her tales.

Her other works include historical or courtly novels, and apocryphal memoirs. She was the most prolific tale-writer of her time. Half a century after her death, several writers followed in her tracks (Caylus for instance). Her most famous tales were re-written and popularized by the "Bibliothèque bleue", although for years they were overshadowed by the enduring popularity of Perrault’s tales. In the twentieth century, some of her stories were adapted for children, which accounts for the general misconception that Mme d’Aulnoy was originally a writer of children’s stories. More so than her novels, her tales are now the subject of much academic scrutiny. The gender studies school of thought and approach, especially in the USA, has greatly contributed to such a growing interest, showing that Mme d’Aulnoy’s works shed light on the war of the sexes at the time. (translated by Denis Lagae-Devoldere)

Works

- 1690 : Histoire d’Hypolite, comte de Duglas, par Mme D***, Paris, L. Sevestre, 2 t. en 1 vol. (le 2e tome contient le premier conte de fées, sans titre à l’origine, mais plus tard appelé «L’île de la Félicité», p.143-181) -- éd. René Godenne, Histoire d’Hypolite, comte de Duglas, Genève, Slatkine, Paris, 1979, 2 t. en 1 vol. (reproduction en fac-similé de l’éd. de Paris, L. Sevestre, 1698). (Le conte de fées seul figure dans éd. Philippe Hourcade, Contes I..., voir infra et dans éd. Elizabeth Lemirre, Le Cabinet des fées, t.1, Contes de Madame d’Aulnoy, Arles, Picquier Poche, 1988.)
- 1690 : Mémoires de la Cour d'Espagne, Paris, Barbin, 2 vol.
- 1691 : Relation du Voyage d'Espagne, Paris, Barbin, 3 vol. (la troisième lettre contient un petit conte merveilleux: l’histoire de Mira, mais il ne s’agit pas d’un conte de fées; on peut le lire dans Contes I, voir infra et dans Le Cabinet des fées, voir supra).
- 1691 : Sentimens d'une âme pénitente (sur le psaume 50, Miserere Mei Deus; les deux poèmes chrétiens de 1691 et 1693 sont introuvables aujourd’hui).
- 1692 : Histoire de Jean de Bourbon, Prince de Carency, Paris, Barbin, 3 vol. (une édition paraît la même année à La Haye chez Moetjens, sous le titre Histoire de Jean de Bourbon).
- 1692 : Nouvelles espagnoles, par Madame D***, Paris, Barbin, 2 vol.
- 1693 : Nouvelles ou mémoires historiques contenant ce qui s'est passé de plus remarquable dans l'Europe tant aux guerres, prises de places, et batailles sur terre et sur mer qu'aux divers intérests des princes et des souverains qui ont agi depuis 1672 jusqu’en 1679, par Madame D***, Paris, Barbin, 2 vol. in-12 (texte attribué à Mme d'Aulnoy par le Dictionnaire des Ouvrages anonymes).
- 1693 : Le Retour d'une âme à Dieu (sur le psaume 102, Benedic anima mea), Paris, Vve de Théodore Girard (texte originellement intitulé Sentimens d'une âme qui retourne à Dieu; les deux poèmes chrétiens de 1691 et 1693 sont introuvables aujourd’hui).
- 1695 : Mémoires de la cour d'Angleterre, par Madame D***, Paris, Barbin, 2 vol. (quelques exemplaires portent le titre Anecdote secrette et galante de la cour d'Angleterre, Amsterdam, L'Honoré et Castellan, 1727).
- 1697 : Les Contes des fées, par Mme D***, Paris, Barbin et al., 4 vol. (t.1: Gracieuse et Percinet, La Belle aux cheveux d'or,L'Oiseau bleu, Le Prince Lutin; t.2: La Princesse Printanière, La Princesse Rosette, Le Rameau d'or, L'Oranger et 1'Abeille, La Bonne Petite Souris; t.3: Don Gabriel Ponce de Léon, nouvelle espagnole, Le Mouton, Finette Cendron, Fortunée; t.4: Babiole, Don Fernand de Tolède, nouvelle espagnole, Le Nain jaune, Serpentin vert) -- éd. Philippe Hourcade, Contes I, Paris, Société des Textes Français Modernes, 1997 (seule édition contemporaine qui propose les contes dans leur encadrement de nouvelles, le cas échéant).
- 1698 : Contes nouveaux ou les Fées à la mode, par Madame D***, Paris, Vve de Théodore Girard, 4 vol. (t.1: La Princesse Carpillon, La Grenouille bienfaisante, La Biche au bois; t.2: Le Nouveau Gentilhomme bourgeois, nouvelle, La Chatte blanche,Belle-Belle ou le Chevalier Fortuné; t.3: Le Nouveau Gentilhomme bourgeois (suite), Le Pigeon et la Colombe, La Princesse Belle-Etoile et le prince Chéri; t.4: Le Nouveau Gentilhomme bourgeois (suite), Le Prince Marcassin, Le Dauphin) -- éd. Philippe Hourcade, Contes II, Paris, Société des Textes Français Modernes, 1998.
- 1703 : Le Comte de Warwick, par Madame d'Aulnoy, Paris, Compagnie des libraires associez, 2 vol. (seul ouvrage publié sous son nom).
Déplorant que plusieurs ouvrages d’autres auteurs aient été publiés sous son nom, Madame d’Aulnoy a dressé par deux fois la liste de ses oeuvres, dans la préface de ses Nouvelles ou Mémoires historiques (1693) et dans celle de son dernier ouvrage, Le Comte de Warwick (1703).
- (autrefois attribué à Mme d’Aulnoy): Nouvelles d'Elisabeth Reyne d'Angleterre, Paris, Barbin, 1674 (attribution fausse d'après Foulché-Delbosc).
- (autrefois attribué à Mme d’Aulnoy): Mémoires des avantures singulières de la cour de France..., par l'auteur du Voyage et Mémoires d'Espagne, 2e éd., La Haye, J. Alberts, 1692.
- (autrefois attribué à Mme d’Aulnoy): Mémoires secrets de Monsieur L.D.D.O. ou les Avantures comiques de plusieurs grands princes de la cour de France, par Madame D***, Paris, J. Bredou, 1696.
- (autrefois attribué à Mme d’Aulnoy): Les Chevaliers errans et le génie familier, par Madame la comtesse D***, Paris, Ribou, 1709 (qui sont de Mme d’Auneuil).
- (autrefois attribués à Mme d’Aulnoy): plusieurs contes: La Princesse Arc-en-ciel, Les Illustres Fées, contes galans dédiés aux dames (Mailly) et, notamment, L’Isle inaccessible (Mailly), Le Roi magicien (Mailly), La Reine de l’isle des fleurs (Mailly), Le Prince Guérini (Mailly), Pauvre et fière, Petite Miette, Un Agneau parmi les loups.

Selected bibliography

- Beeler, James Rush, «Madame d’Aulnoy, Historical Novelist of the Late Seventeenth Century», thèse de doctorat, Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill University of North Carolina, 1964.
- Defrance, Anne, Les Contes de fées et les nouvelles de Madame d’Aulnoy. L’écriture féminine à rebours de la tradition (1690-1698), Genève, Droz, «Histoire des idées et critique littéraire», 369, 1998 (thèse 1987).
- Jasmin, Nadine, Naissance du conte féminin. Mots et merveilles: Les contes de fées de Madame d’Aulnoy (1690-1698), Paris, Champion, «Lumière classique», 2002 (thèse 1999).
- Mainil, Jean, Madame d’Aulnoy et le rire des fées. Essai sur la subversion féerique et le merveilleux comique sous l’Ancien Régime, Paris, Kimé, 2001.
- Sermain, Jean-Paul, Métafictions (1670-1730). La réflexivité dans la littérature d’imagination, Paris, Champion, 2002.


Selected bibliography of images

- Le portrait le plus célèbre de Mme d’Aulnoy (réalisé après sa mort) est reproduit au début de chacun des deux volumes de l’édition des Contes par P. Hourcade (voir supra, oeuvres).

Reception

- «Plusieurs collections [de contes de fées] récemment publiées font voir combien l’on a été fécond dans ces bagatelles, et que quelquefois des personnes d’esprit et de mérite n’ont pas dédaigné de s’y exercer. On peut mettre de l’art et du goût jusque dans ces frivolités. Madame d’Aulnoy est celle qui paraît y avoir le mieux réussi.» (Jean-François de La Harpe, Lycée [1798-1804], Paris, Depelafol, 1825, t.VII, p.365)

- «Les mémoires contemporains nous représentent la comtesse d'Aulnoy comme une gracieuse et aimable femme, dont la demeure était le rendez-vous de la compagnie la plus élégante et la plus choisie. Elle ne débuta, néanmoins, que fort tard dans la carrière des lettres, car elle avait déjà quarante ans lorsqu'elle publia le meilleur de ses romans: Hippolyte comte de Douglas, suivi d'un grand nombre d'autres, que les désoeuvrés des provinces lointaines lisent encore faute de mieux. La Harpe n’hésite pas cependant à mettre ses quatre volumes de Contes de Fées au-dessus de ceux de Perrault. Il y a du mérite dans le Comte de Warwick et dans les Nouvelles espagnoles; sa Relation d'un Voyage en Espagne abonde aussi en détails piquants et en observations pleines de finesse. Mais lesMémoires historiques de ce qui s'est passé de plus remarquable en Europe de 1662 à 1679, ceux de la Cour d'Espagne, et surtout l'Histoire de Jean de Bourbon, prince de Carency, ne sont que des compilations indigestes, n'ayant rien d'historique que le titre et ne reproduisant que le mauvais côté des romans. On lui attribue encore plusieurs pièces de vers et le Recueil de Barbin, nouvelle compilation en cinq volumes. À tout ce fatras, presque constamment écrit sans esprit, sans goût, sans finesse, un seul ouvrage survivra, c'est le roman d’Hippolyte comte de Douglas. Il y a dans ce livre de l'imagination et de l'intérêt. On y trouve de la chaleur, du naturel dans le style, et des aventures attachantes. Toutefois, l'auteur est une de ces imitatrices de Mme de La Fayette fort inférieures à leur modèle pour l'art d'inventer et d'écrire.» («Aulnoy», dans Dictionnaire de la conversation et de la lecture, dir. W. Duckett, Paris, M. Lévy, 1852, t.II, p.231)

- «C’est Mme d’Aulnoy qui a lancé cette mode des contes de fées en insérant dans un de ses romans le premier conte de fées littéraire. Elle était d’abord romancière, mais elle devint une illustre conteuse, jusqu’à surpasser Perrault selon certains. Elle a réuni dans ce genre spécifique le romanesque et le merveilleux qu’elle aimait tant. Son style tendant naturellement vers l’exagération, elle a su mettre à profit les ressources du merveilleux. Son ton délibérément enfantin sied également au conte de fées, même s’il est adressé à un public adulte et féminin.» (Sophie Raynard, La Seconde Préciosité. Floraison des conteuses de 1690 à 1756, Tübingen, Gunter Larr Verlag, «Biblio 17», 130, 2002, p.62)

- «Madame d’Aulnoy, l’inauguratrice de la “mode des contes de fées”, peut être considérée comme une représentante exemplaire de la culture féminine des salons, car ses textes, en valorisant la sensibilité et l’imagination, font preuve d’une esthétique nouvelle [...]. En assimilant les discussions des salons, les contes de madame d’Aulnoy interrogent le statut et la place de la femme dans la société de l’époque et mettent à la disposition des lectrices une vision féminine et utopique de la réalité.» (Roswitha Böhm, «La participation des fées modernes à la création d’une mémoire féminine», dans Les Femmes au Grand Siècle. Actes du 33e congrès annuel de la North American Society for Seventeenth-Century French Literature, dir. D. Wetsel et F. Canovas, Tübingen, Gunter Narr Verlag, «Biblio 17», 144, 2002, p.119-121)

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