Thecopy Bourlon de Rouvre with coat of arms bookplate and Henri Beraldi (III-1934, No. 9)
thus described: « Rare and beautiful copy in its period binding.
Paris, 1830.
Balzac, Honoré de. Physiology of Marriage or Meditations of an eclectic philosopher on marital happiness and unhappiness. Publishediby a young bachelor.s Paris, Levavasseur – Urbain Canel, 1830.
Paris, Levavasseur – Urbain Canel, 1830.
2 volumes in-8 of: (2) ff., pp. (vii)-xxxv, (2) ff., 328 pp. misnumbered 332; 352 pp. Half green dark morocco with corners, spine with raised bands decorated with gilt and blind motifs, sprinkled edges. Rbinding of the period.
203 x 126 mm.
Original edition “rare and sought after” (M. Clouzot) of this lucid and cruel book which can be considered as Balzac’s first personal work.
Carteret, I, p.58 ; Destailleur, 1363.
First printing copy with pagination error in volume I (p. 332 instead of 328).
Original edition, published anonymously, with an introduction signed H. B … c. It bears on the title page this phrase: Happiness is the goal that all societies must aim for.
Starting from some reflections Napoleon confided to the Council of State during the discussion of the Civil Code, Balzac sees marriage as a carnal adventure, necessarily disappointing, a matter of financial interests, whose main problem is adultery. Close to vaudeville with its anecdotes, the work appears as one of the keys to the Human Comedy, where the morals of marriage are the subject of social and political observation that is not without feminism. Among the numerous anecdotes relating to the ingenuity and artifices of lovers, Balzac relates, as his own, that of the meditation XXIV du No Tomorrow by Vivant Denon, of which he recalls, on page 204, the narrative printed in twenty-five copies by Pierre Didot. It is on copy No. 24 that the author took elements from this narrative that has the merit of presenting both high instructions to husbands ; and to bachelors the depiction of manners of the last century.
At the head of the errata of the second volume, Balzac mocks: To truly understand the meaning of these pages, an honest reader must reread the main passages several times ; because the author put all his thought into it. Rekindling his printing practice, the writer entertained himself by filling pages (207)-210 with a jumble of letters partly upside down, forming no intelligible sentence or word and abundantly crossed out with meaningless signs; they are arranged under a chapter title bearing Religions and Confession considered in their relation to marriage ; following is recalled La Bruyère’s quip: It is too much against a husband that devotion and gallantry : a woman should choose.
This edition has the peculiarity of having 4 largely unreadable pages, namely chapter I of the 15th meditation, dealing with “Religions and Confession considered in their relation to marriage” (pages 207 to 210 of volume 2), made up of upright and inverted letters, blocks, dashes, parentheses, etc.
“In volume II, Meditation XXV, chapter 1, in the fifth line, pages 207 to 210, there is an incoherent, enigmatic typographical composition, sort of whimsy in the style of Sterne, and of which Balzac gives, volume II, page 347, an explanation full of humor.” (Carteret, I, p.58)
Beautiful copy in period binding, from the prestigious libraries of Bourbon de Rouvre et of Henri Beraldi. It was bound without the leaflet warning to Readers.
At the sale Beraldi (III – 1934, No. 9) its binding was reproduced out of text and it was soberly described: “Rare and beautiful copy in its period binding.
