What interests me, though, was how she has frequently commented about chocolate in her letters.
Chocolate did not become accessible to France until 17th Century. During Madame de Sévigné's time, chocolate was very expensive and very fashionable.
Some of her famous comments includes:
"You don't look very well - I think chocolate will give you a lift.".
"If you are not feeling well, if you have not slept, chocolate will revive you. But you have no chocolate! I think of that again and again! My dear, how will you ever manage?"
"Please believe that I love you as much as the chocolate we shall savor together".
However, the most amusing bit of gossip was:
"The Marquise of Coetlognon took so much chocolate, being pregnant last year, that she was brought to bed of a little boy who was as black as the devil."
What she failed to mention was that another fashionable household "items" at the time was a handsome, black, Moorish servingman. And part of that servingman's job description was no doubt to take evening chocolate drink to the mistress of the house! I really don't know whether the Marquise de Sévigné really believed that the chocolate caused the skin colour to change, or that she was just trying to hint at the scandal.
Anyway, enough gossip.
Marquise de Sévigné is also the name of a fine chocolatier, established since the 19th Century. The chocolates have won numerous awards and it was featured in the Salon du Chocolat when I visited last year.
The chocolate was very good, but they wouldn't let me to try them unless I fill in a feedback form for them!
For more information:
Madame de Sévigné's letters
http://www.amazon.com/Selected-Letters-Penguin-Classics-Sevigne/dp/014044405X/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195399577&sr=8-1
The chocolate
http://www.marquise-de-sevigne.com/
1 comment:
I totally agree with you that we can't be sure whether she truly thought the chocolate had anything to do with the baby's skin color or not, but i think it would have been worth mentioning that shortly after this event in her letters, her attitude toward chocolate switches completely and she urges her daughter not to eat it and talks about how difficult it is for her to stop eating it as well. Her opinion on chocolate never comes back to a positive one if i recall the letters correctly.
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