Grundy's description of Fritz showing up in Algarotti's life works as an amusing antidote (she notes Algarotti must have thought he hit the jackpot - a princely patron who was young, smart, charismatic and sexually compatible! - and with some Schadenfreude reports how that turned out).
Lolsob.
she did tease Algarotti about him when they were resuming relations in their final years, during the 7 Years War in the later 1750s:
I saw that when I was reading their letters, and I wondered if that was aimed at Fritz, or if I was just reading too much into it! Good to know.
one of the local gangsters named Palazzi managed to first trick, then threaten her (to the point where she wasn't allowed to go anywhere without his "protection") , helping himself to a considerable part of her money, until she finally managed to get free and rid of him. (He later ended up imprisoned and executed for murder; this really could have ended lethally.)
Yikes! I thought I saw something along these lines when I was scanning it, but I didn't stop to read the episode, because I knew you'd be on it. :)
Grundy always tries to balance Montagu the writer with Lady Mary the person, and makes the case that it's as a writer she has become immortal.
*nod* That's what I'd gathered from the reviews.
Useful for Enlightenment crossovers: like Hervey, Lady Mary met and befriended Voltaire when he was in England.
18th century: *everyone* walks into a bar and either knows everyone or knows someone who knows/is related to/has slept with them.
Incidentally, while Halsband in the 70s knows so little of Émilie that he thinks Voltaire was the only one writing about Newton and that Émilie was "catty" to Algarotti the second time he visited because his work about Newton was a rival to Voltaire's
Sigh. Well, to be fair, in 1736, Émilie and Voltaire were collaborating on a volume about Newton, for which she did the research and walked him through the technical parts, while he did the writing. When it was published, he was listed as the author, with an indication in the foreword/whatever that she was really a co-author. It was published in 1738, and Algarotti's book in 1737, so I can see why it would be seen as Voltaire's and the two books would be seen as rivals (and this is ringing a bell).
Ah, yes, from the Algarotti dissertation:
The success the Newtonianismo achieved in comparison to Voltaire‘s 1738 Éléments de la philosophie de Neuton caused the latter to turn on Algarotti and seek to discredit his book through his correspondence.
Whereas Émilie's magnum opus on Newton wasn't started until after Algarotti's visit (my sources are all agreeing on approximately 1744-1746), and wasn't finished until her death and published until the 1750s.
But if you're writing about her, Voltaire, Algarotti, and their work on Newton, you should still mention it!
Also, Algarotti's second visit to Cirey was in 1736, when both books were still in draft form, and there was no rivalry or disappointment yet. So that can't have been the cause of her being unhappy with him that year.
Grundy knows just a little more and thinks Émilie was annoyed that Algarotti didn't dedicate his "Newton for Dummies" to her.
The Algarotti dissertation, Bodanis, and Zinsser all agree that she was upset that he didn't dedicate it to her. Dissertation writer cites a letter from Émilie to Algarotti; Zinsser cites several letters to Algarotti and Maupertuis. Bodanis cites a letter in which she's pleased that Voltaire *did* dedicate his work to her a year later.
There's also some controversy over the portrayal of the Marquise in Algarotti's work. She's a thinly veiled allusion to Émilie, but it's apparently been argued that she's less intelligent and therefore arguably an insult to the real person. The Algarotti dissertation author has counterargued that the fictional Marquise is perfectly intelligent if you read closely, just not yet informed about Newtonianism.
But Zinsser reports that Émilie was offended because of the fictional Marquise's personality, and the constant references to love and eroticism in the text, which seem to have felt as condescending and irritating to her as they would to me. Though coming from Algarotti, who totally would have written an erotic ode to the lone eagle filled with double entendres... :P
Hm. Just noticed this: Algarotti author: Voltaire trashed Algarotti's book because he was jealous of its success! Émilie author: Voltaire trashed Algarotti's book because he was defending Émilie's honor!
Émilie: I'm defending my honor by writing a better book than both of you put together.
Neither mentions Émilie's own work on Newton, or Émilie's work in general. Anglocentrism to the end.
That's the really unforgivable part! Even Algarotti dissertation writer describes her work with appropriate praise.
Lady Mary and Wilhelmine were in Italy at the same time! And they definitely could have met. (If they have, I don't recall it from the letters posted at the travel letters website, but I could easily have missed it - I haven't read every single one. If they haven't, well, maybe they kept it secret for Reasons!
Ooh! Could be.
Hmm. The complete Lady Mary letters, edited and published by Halsband, are apparently available in 3 volumes for $80, which is cheaper than the $150 I had previously been finding.
I'm still tempted, but I should probably hold off for now. Unless other people are *extremely* interested. :P
Anyway, thank you very much for the write-up! You're the best of all possible readers!
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Re: Lady Mary Wortley Montagu (III)
Date: 2020-09-09 03:11 am (UTC)Lolsob.
she did tease Algarotti about him when they were resuming relations in their final years, during the 7 Years War in the later 1750s:
I saw that when I was reading their letters, and I wondered if that was aimed at Fritz, or if I was just reading too much into it! Good to know.
one of the local gangsters named Palazzi managed to first trick, then threaten her (to the point where she wasn't allowed to go anywhere without his "protection") , helping himself to a considerable part of her money, until she finally managed to get free and rid of him. (He later ended up imprisoned and executed for murder; this really could have ended lethally.)
Yikes! I thought I saw something along these lines when I was scanning it, but I didn't stop to read the episode, because I knew you'd be on it. :)
Grundy always tries to balance Montagu the writer with Lady Mary the person, and makes the case that it's as a writer she has become immortal.
*nod* That's what I'd gathered from the reviews.
Useful for Enlightenment crossovers: like Hervey, Lady Mary met and befriended Voltaire when he was in England.
18th century: *everyone* walks into a bar and either knows everyone or knows someone who knows/is related to/has slept with them.
Incidentally, while Halsband in the 70s knows so little of Émilie that he thinks Voltaire was the only one writing about Newton and that Émilie was "catty" to Algarotti the second time he visited because his work about Newton was a rival to Voltaire's
Sigh. Well, to be fair, in 1736, Émilie and Voltaire were collaborating on a volume about Newton, for which she did the research and walked him through the technical parts, while he did the writing. When it was published, he was listed as the author, with an indication in the foreword/whatever that she was really a co-author. It was published in 1738, and Algarotti's book in 1737, so I can see why it would be seen as Voltaire's and the two books would be seen as rivals (and this is ringing a bell).
Ah, yes, from the Algarotti dissertation:
The success the Newtonianismo achieved in comparison to Voltaire‘s 1738 Éléments de la philosophie de Neuton caused the latter to turn on Algarotti and seek to discredit his book through his correspondence.
Whereas Émilie's magnum opus on Newton wasn't started until after Algarotti's visit (my sources are all agreeing on approximately 1744-1746), and wasn't finished until her death and published until the 1750s.
But if you're writing about her, Voltaire, Algarotti, and their work on Newton, you should still mention it!
Also, Algarotti's second visit to Cirey was in 1736, when both books were still in draft form, and there was no rivalry or disappointment yet. So that can't have been the cause of her being unhappy with him that year.
Grundy knows just a little more and thinks Émilie was annoyed that Algarotti didn't dedicate his "Newton for Dummies" to her.
The Algarotti dissertation, Bodanis, and Zinsser all agree that she was upset that he didn't dedicate it to her. Dissertation writer cites a letter from Émilie to Algarotti; Zinsser cites several letters to Algarotti and Maupertuis. Bodanis cites a letter in which she's pleased that Voltaire *did* dedicate his work to her a year later.
There's also some controversy over the portrayal of the Marquise in Algarotti's work. She's a thinly veiled allusion to Émilie, but it's apparently been argued that she's less intelligent and therefore arguably an insult to the real person. The Algarotti dissertation author has counterargued that the fictional Marquise is perfectly intelligent if you read closely, just not yet informed about Newtonianism.
But Zinsser reports that Émilie was offended because of the fictional Marquise's personality, and the constant references to love and eroticism in the text, which seem to have felt as condescending and irritating to her as they would to me. Though coming from Algarotti, who totally would have written an erotic ode to the lone eagle filled with double entendres... :P
Hm. Just noticed this:
Algarotti author: Voltaire trashed Algarotti's book because he was jealous of its success!
Émilie author: Voltaire trashed Algarotti's book because he was defending Émilie's honor!
Émilie: I'm defending my honor by writing a better book than both of you put together.
Neither mentions Émilie's own work on Newton, or Émilie's work in general. Anglocentrism to the end.
That's the really unforgivable part! Even Algarotti dissertation writer describes her work with appropriate praise.
Lady Mary and Wilhelmine were in Italy at the same time! And they definitely could have met. (If they have, I don't recall it from the letters posted at the travel letters website, but I could easily have missed it - I haven't read every single one. If they haven't, well, maybe they kept it secret for Reasons!
Ooh! Could be.
Hmm. The complete Lady Mary letters, edited and published by Halsband, are apparently available in 3 volumes for $80, which is cheaper than the $150 I had previously been finding.
I'm still tempted, but I should probably hold off for now. Unless other people are *extremely* interested. :P
Anyway, thank you very much for the write-up! You're the best of all possible readers!