Lettres juives
Argens, Jean Baptiste de Boyer, marquis d' [Argens, Jean Baptiste de Boyer, marquis d'.] Lettres juives, ou correspondance philosophique, historique, et critique, entre un Juif voyageur à Paris & ses correspondans en divers endroits. La Haye: chez Pierre Paupie, 1736-7. (8)240; (8)240; (8)199, 220-260; xvi, 240; (16)240; (16)244 pp. Six vols., sm. 8vo, contemporary calf, gilt, spines gilt, contrasting red and green morocco labels (spines a trifle rubbed). A complete run of 180 numbers of an exceedingly popular and influential periodical, bound up with the general title-pages, dedicatory epistles, and prefaces which were furnished gratis after each 30 issues; published twice a week, on Monday and Thursday, with each number consisting of 8 pages, except for Letter 151, which had 12 pages (an error in the pagination of Letter 85 affects the numbering of Vol. III). The Marquis d'Argens spent his early years in the army, but after receiving a wound in the Philipsbourg campaign, he settled in Holland and decided to pursue a literary career, of which the Lettres juives was the first substantial manifestation. Choosing for a model the Lettres persanes of Montesquieu, and adopting the guise of a Jewish observer, writing to two Jewish friends, he set out to describe and satirize the customs and institutions of contemporary European society; in doing so he was also much influenced by the writings of Voltaire and Bayle, especially the former's Lettres philosophiques. The scheme devised by d'Argens was not without its perils, and to avoid the scrutiny of both his family and his enemies, he moved from place to place within Holland, living successively in Amsterdam, the Hague, Utrecht, and Maarssen. He did not deal directly with the publisher Paupie, but submitted his numbers through an intermediary Prosper Marchand, who provided much criticism and advice to sharpen the satire. The Lettres juives were an immediate success, and were quickly pirated and imitated; an English translation ran serially in both the Gentleman's Magazine and Fog's Weekly Journal, before appearing in book form in 1739 as The Jewish Spy. There were a fair number of reprints over the next forty years, but in these the text has been significantly revised. In the 1750's the writings of d'Argens were widely cited by the philosophes in their battle against "infamy," and Voltaire remained a particular admirer, referring to these letters at one point as "ces verités courageuses." In fine condition; complete runs of the original numbers are very uncommon. Sgard, Dictionnaire des journaux, 1600-1789, 829; Cioranescu 8303. 1736
£2250
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