Petit manuel de la femme supérieure : secrets intimes by Gerard de Beauregard
"Petit manuel de la femme supérieure" by Gerard de Beauregard is a satirical conduct manual written in the late 19th century. With urbane irony, it teaches an ambitious Parisian lady how to manufacture the aura of “superiority” through stage-managed taste, conversation, and social strategy, valuing appearance and influence over original thought. The opening of the book adopts a mock-confidential tone to outline “secrets” for building a persona: never think for yourself; compile
safe opinions from perceived authorities; craft a recognizable “type” by borrowing the best traits from others; and keep a poised, smiling, selectively daring presence. It then designs the social “stage”: prefer an old hôtel in the faubourg Saint‑Germain; arrange a grand and a small salon, hang obliging ancestor portraits (even acquired or retouched), and install a spectacular bath and toilette to fuel tantalizing household gossip. Next comes the table as the true engine of power—serve many delicate dishes and rare wines to win stomachs and reputations. A whole chapter exalts the chaise longue and the artful revival of “vapors” to disarm visitors, followed by a creed of toilette: a morning ritual, a velvet robe that imposes, refined daywear (not gaudy “artist” reds), a pre‑Raphaelite “à la vierge” coiffure, and an evening décolleté that suggests more than it shows. The excerpt closes by sketching the ideal husband—amiable, well turned out, neither brilliant nor ridiculous—useful as a compliant collaborator who frequents his club while she reigns. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Beauregard, Gerard de, 1865- |
|---|---|
| Title | Petit manuel de la femme supérieure : secrets intimes |
| Original Publication | Paris: Dentu, 1897. |
| Credits | Laurent Vogel and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF/Gallica)) |
| Language | French |
| LoC Class | PQ: Language and Literatures: Romance literatures: French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese |
| Subject | Satire |
| Subject | French literature -- 19th century |
| Category | Text |
| EBook-No. | 77876 |
| Release Date | Feb 7, 2026 |
| Copyright Status | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 186 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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