French Fiction, Literary Styles & Movements - Fiction, Humorous Fiction

Persian Letters

Name: Persian Letters
Author: Charles de Secondat Montesquieu
ISBN: 9781411459359

by Montesquieu

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Overview

In this 1721 satire, two Persian noblemen, Usbek and Rica, travel to France, commenting on their adventures in letters to family and mullahs back home. This early model for the epistolary novel sends up Parisian culture and society, including cafés, salons, the theater, fashion, religion, royalty, and even the emerging mass media of prints and periodicals.

About the Author, Charles de Secondat Montesquieu

Charles de Secondat, Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755) was a cogent political thinker, who formulated the theory of separation of government powers. He was also a forerunner in the development of the science of anthropology, theorizing that climate influences human society. His works include The Spirit of Laws, which greatly influenced America’s Founders.