''Thérèse Philosophe'' (''Therese the Philosopher'') is a 1748 French novel ascribed to Jean-Baptiste de Boyer, Marquis d'Argens, or, according to a minority opinion,

Denis Diderot Denis Diderot (; ; 5 October 171331 July 1784) was a French philosopher, art critic, and writer, best known for serving as co-founder, chief editor, and contributor to the along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert. He was a prominent figure during th ...

and others. It has been chiefly regarded as a

pornographic Pornography (colloquially called porn or porno) is sexually suggestive material, such as a picture, video, text, or audio, intended for sexual arousal. Made for consumption by adults, pornographic depictions have evolved from cave paintings ...

novel, which accounts for its massive sales in 18th-century France. The novel represents a public conveyance (and arguably perversion) for some ideas of the

Philosophes The were the intellectuals of the 18th-century European Enlightenment.Kishlansky, Mark, ''et al.'' ''A Brief History of Western Civilization: The Unfinished Legacy, volume II: Since 1555.'' (5th ed. 2007). Few were primarily philosophers; rathe ...

Summary

The narrative starts with Therese, sexually precocious in spite of herself, from solid bourgeois stock, being placed by her mother in a convent when she is 11 years old. There she eventually becomes sick because her pleasure principle is not permitted to express itself, putting her body into disorder, and bringing her close to the grave until her mother finally yanks her out of the convent at age 23. She then becomes a student of Father Dirrag, a Jesuit who secretly teaches materialism. Therese spies on Dirrag counseling her fellow student, Mlle. Eradice, and preying on her spiritual ambition in order to seduce her. Through flagellation and penetration, Dirrag gives Mlle. Eradice what she thinks is spiritual ecstasy but is actually sexual. "Father Dirrag" and "Mlle. Eradice" are named after

anagram An anagram is a word or phrase formed by rearranging the letters of a different word or phrase, typically using all the original letters exactly once. For example, the word ''anagram'' itself can be rearranged into the phrase "nag a ram"; which ...

s of Jean-Baptiste Girard and Catherine Cadière, who were involved in a highly publicized trial for the illicit relationship between priest and student in 1730. After that she spends time with Mme. C and the Abbé T., and spies on them on multiple occasions, while they discuss libertine political and religious philosophy just before they engage in, and sometimes during, various acts of sex. (Abbé T. is clearly the same character as figures in another, eponymous, coming-of-age, soft-core libertine novel published that same year or possibly one year earlier: ''Ecclesiastical Laurels'', or ''Abbot T.'s Campaigns with the Triumph of the Nuns'', attributed to Jacques Rochette La Morlière; this latter novel is one of several titles listed towards the end of ''Therese the Philosopher'' as belonging to the library owned by the count, which library he loans to Therese as part of a bet.) Therese's sexual education continues with her relationship with Mme. Bois-Laurier, an experienced prostitute, who is also a virgin much to her clients' surprise, delight and also disappointment. Many a John will try to break through her maidenhead, without success. This section of the novel constitutes an arguably hilarious variation on the whore dialogues that were common in early pornographic novels. Finally, Therese meets the unnamed Count who wants her for his mistress. She refuses him intercourse, out of her fear of death in childbirth (not unreasonable at the time) and also because she finds masturbation to be sufficiently pleasurable in and of itself. He makes a bet with her. If she can last two weeks in a room full of erotic books and paintings without masturbating, he will not demand intercourse with her. Therese loses and becomes the Count's permanent mistress.

Philosophical and social concepts

For all of its printed debauchery, the work has some philosophical merit in its underlying concepts. Between the more graphically adult sections of the novel, philosophical issues would be discussed amongst the characters, including

materialism Materialism is a form of monism, philosophical monism according to which matter is the fundamental Substance theory, substance in nature, and all things, including mind, mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. Acco ...

hedonism Hedonism is a family of Philosophy, philosophical views that prioritize pleasure. Psychological hedonism is the theory that all human behavior is Motivation, motivated by the desire to maximize pleasure and minimize pain. As a form of Psycholo ...

and

atheism Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the Existence of God, existence of Deity, deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the ...

. All phenomena are matter in motion, and religion is a fraud, though useful for keeping the working classes in line. The book not only draws attention to the

sexual repression Sexual repression is a state in which a person is prevented from expressing their own sexuality or sexual orientation. Sexual repression can be caused by an emotional conflict, in which a person feels guilt, shame, or distress regarding their ...

of women at the time of the enlightenment, but also to the exploitation of religious authority through salacious acts.

Influence and adaptations

Dostoevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. () was a Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist and journalist. He is regarded as one of the greatest novelists in both Russian and world literature, and many of his works are considered highly influenti ...

referred repeatedly to the novel in his working notes for both ''

The Idiot ''The Idiot'' (Reforms of Russian orthography, pre-reform Russian: ; post-reform ) is a novel by the 19th-century Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was first published serially in the journal ''The Russian Messenger'' in 1868–1869. The titl ...

'' and '' The Possessed''.

George Steiner Francis George Steiner, Fellow of the British Academy#Fellowship, FBA (April 23, 1929 – February 3, 2020) was a Franco-American literary critic, essayist, philosopher, novelist and educator. He wrote extensively about the relationship between ...

, ''Tolstoy or Dostoevsky'' (Penguin 1967) p. 179 *''Thérése Philosophe'' was loosely adapted as the second segment of

Walerian Borowczyk Walerian Borowczyk (21 October 1923 – 3 February 2006) was a Polish film director described by film critics as a "genius who also happened to be a pornographer". He directed 40 films between 1946 and 1988. Borowczyk settled in Paris in 1959. A ...

's French anthology film '' Immoral Tales'' (1973). Therese was played by Charlotte Alexandra.

References

Sources

* Darnton, Robert. ''The Forbidden Best-sellers of Pre-revolutionary France'' W. W. Norton & Company, 1996 * Brumfield, William C. "''Thérèse philosophe'' and Dostoevsky's Great Sinner," ''Comparative Literature'', vol. 32 (summer 1980) 3:238-52.

* William C. Brumfield, « ''Thérèse philosophe'' and Dostoevsky's Great Sinner », ''Comparative Literature'', Summer 1980, n° 32 (3), p. 238-52 * Jacqueline Chammas, �
Le Clergé et l’inceste spirituel dans trois romans du XVIIIe siècle : ''Le Portier des Chartreux'', ''Thérèse philosophe'' et ''Margot la ravaudeuse''
», ''Eighteenth-Century Fiction'', Apr-July 2003, n° 15 (3-4), p. 687-704 * Catherine Cusset, « 'L’Exemple et le raisonnement': Désir et raison dans ''Thérèse philosophe'' (1748) », ''Nottingham French Studies'', Spring 1998, n° 37 (1), p. 1-15 * Gudrun Gersmann, « Das Geschäft mit der Lust des Lesers: ''Thérèse philosophe''-zur Druckgeschichte eines erotischen Bestsellers im 18. Jahrhundert », ''Das Achtzehnte Jahrhundert'', 1994, n° 18 (1), p. 72-84 * . * Jean Mainil, « Jamais fille chaste n’a lu de romans : lecture en cachette, lecture en abyme dans ''Thérèse philosophe'' », Éd. Jan Herman, Paul Pelckmans, ''L’Épreuve du lecteur : Livres et lectures dans le roman d’Ancien Régime'', Paris, Peeters; 1995, p. 308-16 * Natania Meeker, « 'I Resist no Longer': Enlightened Philosophy and Feminine Compulsion in ''Thérèse philosophe'' », ''Eighteenth-Century Studies'', Spring 2006, n° 39 (3), p. 363-76 * Nicolas Miteran, « La Fureur poétique des abbés ou les illusions dangereuses : les Discours édifiants dans ''Thérèse philosophe'' (1748) », Éd. Et intro. Jacques Wagner, ''Roman et Religion en France (1713-1866)'', Paris, Champion, 2002, p. 83-97 * Anne Richardot, « ''Thérèse philosophe'' : Les Charmes de l'impénétrable », ''Eighteenth-Century Life'', May 1997, n° 21 (2), p. 89-99 * Jeanne-Hélène Roy, « S(t)imulating Pleasure: The Female Body in Sade's ''Les Infortunes de la Vertu'' and ''Thérèse philosophe'' », '' Cincinnati Romance Review'', 1999, n° 18, p. 122-31 * Hans-Ulrich Seifert, «Der Heilige Strick ostface�, ''Thérèse philosophe'', ed. Michael Farin et Hans-Ulrich Seifert, Munich 1990, p. 423-446

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