INVESTIGADORES
ZORRILLA Natalia Lorena
congresos y reuniones científicas
Título:
Criminal associations in Sade's La Nouvelle Justine and Histoire de Juliette
Autor/es:
ZORRILLA, NATALIA LORENA
Reunión:
Seminario; 2019 ISECS seminar for Early Career Scholars; 2019
Institución organizadora:
International Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies
Resumen:
Comprised of various challenges and critiques to some of Enlightenment?s ethico-political proclamations, Sade?s esoteric work depicts cruel and murderous libertinage as a rational way of life. In fact, Sade?s libertine characters in La Nouvelle Justine (NJ) and L?Histoire de Juliette (HJ)regularly advocate for extremely individualist philosophical views, championing ?isolisme?. However, these characters tend to form different communities, often living in groups, and consolidating their friendship through sacrificial orgies. Moreover, some of them command criminal societies with the aim of spreading vice and libertinage, thus protecting themselves through these networks of impunity.This paper seeks to explore the tension between the libertines? (theoretical) isolisme and their (practical) gregarious lifestyle, by focusing on the dynamics and the problematic nature of criminal associations in Sade?s NJ and HJ, and developing a double approach that aims at studying both its theoretical aspects and its dramatization within the novels. Arguing against the predominance of individualism in Sadean libertinage, we will show that the collective dimension of the libertines? way of life, far from being subsidiary or a necessary stepping stone towards the achievement of the individual?s Absolute Sovereignty, reveals thesecharacters? diverse intra-species predatory strategies. First, we will examine the various nuances of isolisme in NJ and HJ, through which Sadean libertines of different socio-economic status attack the foundations of the social contract. We will study how they subvert two key notions of Modern Political Thought, namely, the state of nature?s latency in civil society and the suspension of hostilities as one of the conditions for peaceful and durable social bonds. The libertines? exaltation of the state of nature does not, however, entail solitude. In fact, these characters know that by working together they are moreeffective in their murderous quests. But are these criminal associations viable?Thus secondly, we will address the debate concerning the fragility, instability, and lack of sustainability of these criminal libertine groups by comparing the libertine characters? arguments and by taking into account Justine?s and Juliette?s questions and critiques. We ask: ismutuality solely based on ?virtuous? reciprocity? If we interpret Sade?s narrative representation of social discord in NJ and HJ as a ?cynic? reply to the social contract theory, the sustainability of criminal libertine associations seems to respond, accordingly, to what is known as the ?bandof thieves? argument?, which first appeared in Plato?s Republic (351c-352d). Later, during the eighteenth century, Shaftesbury, Rousseau, and Diderot, among others, produced their own versions of it.The ?band of thieves argument? proposes that a criminal gang whose members treat one another unjustly will not be able to subsist in time. Justine is one of its most persistent supporters. On the contrary, throughout her own transformation as a libertine woman, her sister Juliette experiences the practical rebuttal of the argument. At the same time, the way sheunderstands libertine friendships (and the suspension of hostilities within them) evolves. For instance, during her first libertine experiences, Juliette evokes the notion of the ?bonne foi desBohèmes? ?a sort of empathy toward those who are as corrupted as her? as the motivation that keeps her from stealing Noirceuil?s riches. Later in the novel, we find that the principle of not harming other vicious creatures like her (e.g., the ?mild poisoning? of Minski), rather thanbeing a mere sentiment, stems from a rational philosophical approach to libertinage and destruction as a way of life.In parallel, as the novel advances, the criteria for the identification of true libertines become stricter, and many of those who exhibit weaknesses (hints of humanity) are no longer thought to belong and are murdered (e.g.: Sbrigani?s chivalry-motivated killing). Perfidy and betrayal arenot uncommon within libertine groups; as a matter of fact, they constitute their purging mechanism. Nevertheless, we also find some small collective libertine ?units? (couples and friendships, such as Juliette?s relationship with la Durand), which stay strong throughout the passage of time.Thirdly, we will study the variations in libertine associations (e.g., structure, predatory method), as well as their common characteristics. While isolated mansions of horror are the dwelling of some libertine predators (e.g.: Bandole, the monastery in NJ), contained groups of three or four libertines can successfully move from one place to another, relying on the cosmopolitan network of libertine alliances (that constitute the Sadean fictional universe) to find their killalong the way. However, whether it be small units, international (corrupt) political coalitions, treasonous factions, entire courts, or sodalities of vice, in all of them, libertine individuals come together through the ritual of the sacrificial orgy. In effect, the consummation of victimsplays a large role in maintaining the libertine groups? cohesion and unity. Is this a form of religiosity or can these rites be understood as sensual rapacity, in a materialist atheist way?The dramatic socio-political transformations occurring during the last years of the siècle des Lumières coincided with an intense ideological and cultural inquiry about the foundations of society, the legitimacy of authority, and the different spheres of sociability. Sade participated inthis collective discussion by identifying the Enlightenment?s theoretical blind spots. On one hand, the philosophes strove to set up a secular (universal) morality of virtue, dismissing mischievous individuals as ultimately ineffective due to their ensuing isolation. On the otherhand, Sade not only showed that collaboration and association between ?méchants? and criminals was conceivable but also created various representations of these libertine communities, many of which seemed to satirise and/or critically depict eighteenth-century France.