Victor Hugo, Marion De Lorme

Matthew McMahan (Tufts University)
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Victor Hugo’s

drame

about the famous seventeenth-century courtesan

Marion de Lorme

(1831) interweaves two thematic threads that tie together a plot concerning the effect of public policy on the private passions of an ill-fated love. The first thread tells the story of a man with no name (Didier) who loves a woman with no honour (Marion de Lorme). The second provides two visions of monarchy: an impotent King (Louis XIII) castrated by a tyrannical priest (Cardinal Richelieu). The stories intertwine when Marion de Lorme’s lover, the orphan Didier, is sentenced to death by Cardinal Richelieu, an act both she and the King are powerless to stop. At the play’s inception, the portrayal of Louis XIII would lead to censorship, delaying its performance by two years.

Though Marion de Lorme was

2583 words

Citation: McMahan, Matthew. "Marion De Lorme". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 12 July 2016 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=11218, accessed 29 March 2024.]

11218 Marion De Lorme 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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