French Literature Reviews - 2026

The Kisses of the Enlightenment
Other Literary Studies

The Kisses of the Enlightenment. Studies compiled by Alain Montandon. Presses Universitaires Blaise Pascal.

In our cultural imagination, the eighteenth century is the age of the kiss—whether it be the formal hand-kiss executed according to the most refined rituals of etiquette and social grace, or the libertine kiss stolen in boudoirs or behind a shrub along a winding garden path. Yet upon closer inspection, while libertines kiss sparingly, others more than make up for it: whether in fairy tales, where the transformative power of the kiss is exploited in every conceivable way; in parodic works; or at the end of the century, when an extreme sentimentality blossoms, imbuing kisses with a new flavor as they are moistened with tears.

As a paradigm of the sensibility in which the century took such pride, the kiss pertains equally to physical, moral, and social responsiveness. Much like tears, gestures, sighs, and sobs, it forms part of an erotic and sentimental semiotics possessing such a rich spectrum that it gives rise to countless ambivalences, misinterpretations, misunderstandings, and confusions.

Thus, this volume of osculological studies guides the reader from gallant kisses to kisses of the heart, examining their theatrical as well as narratological functions from Marivaux to Pigault-Lebrun, via Dorat, Casanova, Diderot, Sade, Destouches, Voltaire, Nivelle de la Chaussée, Fielding, Sterne, La Morlière, Duclos, Crébillon fils, and many others.

(From the back cover)

The eighteenth century is frequently characterized by a fascination with the nuances of human interaction and the display of refined emotion. Within the broader tradition of sentimental and libertine literature, physical gestures such as the kiss, the sigh, or the tear functioned as a specialized language of the body. As a paradigm of the sensibility in which the century took pride, the kiss pertains to physical, moral, and social responsiveness, forming part of an erotic and sentimental semiotics that gives rise to ambivalences and misinterpretations.

This volume of osculological studies examines the theatrical and narratological functions of the kiss from Marivaux to Pigault-Lebrun, including works by authors such as Dorat, Casanova, Diderot, Sade, Voltaire, and Fielding. It traces the evolution of the kiss from gallant exchanges to the sentimentality of the late eighteenth century. Readers interested in the history of manners, the evolution of eighteenth-century literary tropes, or the semiotics of gesture may find this collection relevant.