Every major author in the eighteenth century knew La Rochefoucauld's Maximes; Voltaire reported that the French knew these maxims by heart. Now, for the first time, scholars of anglo-French literary relations can read eaxh maxim in this period translation together with its French original. For added convenience, the editor has also supplied an appendix containing the authentic Rochefoucauld maxims that did not appear in the 1749 translation. That translation, which was preceded by at least five previous translations of this immensely popular work, became the dominant translation for the next hundred years. When it was superseded by more reliable and authoriative translations, it fell into disuse and neglect. Yet for us today it has strong historical and literary significance because it was the first annotated translation of this work, and also because it was the first and perhaps only English translation in which the scattered maxims found in the duke's early traditions were now rearranged alphabetically by topic.
The editor's new annotatons, together with his historical and biographical introduction and bibliography, contribute significantly to the understanding of the reception and translation history of the duke's single masterpiece. Irwin Primer is a retired Professor of English at Rutgers Univsersity.