Sciences sociales

23192 — No place, 1726. Titles printed in red and black. 3 parts in one volume. (18), 200 pp.; (6), 200 pp.; (6), 224 pp. 8vo. Contemporary polished calf, spine richly gilt with red label and gilt lettering, all edges red, front joint split but solid, head and foot of spine damaged. INED 3346 (edition published in 1767); Conlon 25:572. Second edition, considerably augmented. The first edition, published the previous year in Cologne, had one volume only (see Conlon). A celebrated work by the Anglophile Swiss author Beat de Muralt (1665-1749) who influenced Voltaire, Rousseau, and Albrecht von Haller. Although the book had circulated widely in manuscript before publication, it proved to be a pioneer work in shifting Swiss and German interests from French classicism to English achievements and attitudes. Muralt had in fact travelled in France and England as early as 1694-1695. While in England he picked up some deistic views which on his return to Bern caused his banishment. It is one of the earliest detailed portraits in French of English society, it provides the reader with a vibrant foreigner's-eye view of late 17th century social life in England and France (but mainly of course in London and Paris) and it questions the perceived intellectual superiority of the French and in a sense this book preceeds the 'Anglomania' which surfaced during the century.The work was refuted by the abbé Desfontaines (in 1726) who wrote an Apologie du caractère des Français et des Anglais.Stamp neatly erased from first title-page, the first title-page has added in a contemporary hand the name of the author, the last title-page contains only the title, not giving the year of publication.