Download or read book Legendary Lives in La Princesse de Clèves written by Janet Letts and published by Rookwood Press. This book was released on 1998 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Weighing debates over reasons for the inclusion of apparently extraneous narratives in the 1678 novel by Comtesse Marie- Madelaine de Lafayette, the author presents her case that details on historical personages such as Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII, Henri II, and Catherine de Medici were intended to influence readers rather than convey "a sort of sentimental education for the heroine." She relies primarily on French language references, passages she excerpts and translates, the literary information base of early readers, and a 16th-century chronology. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR