Laclos's Objects of Affection: Venerating the Family During the French Revolution

Abstract

In 1793, Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, author of Les Liaisons Dangereuses , was imprisoned for having suspicious political connections. Distraught, Laclos relied upon correspondence and material objects to maintain his sense of self and his connection to his family. His letters home reveal a series of emotional practices, most notably the adoration of material objects that reminded him of his relatives. Laclos's attention to these objects paralleled devotional practices, including the veneration of relics. He turned love for his family into a kind of religion, revealing new facets of sentimentalism and secularization during the eighteenth century, especially during the French Revolution.