Varia — Reading Notes

The Eternal Feminine and Its Antecedents

In the first essay, Repplier dismantles the novelty of the 'new woman' by invoking Christine de Pisan's La Cité des Dames from the fourteenth century, noting that 'the most curious thing about the arguments now advanced in behalf of progressive womanhood is that they have an air of specious novelty about them when they have all been uttered many times before.' She lists Judith, Zenobia, Cleopatra, and others to show that 'all femininity is as old as Lilith.' The essay's structure moves from a weary dismissal of journalistic cliché to a historical survey, then back to the present, creating a circular argument that reinforces her thesis: the 'eternal feminine' is not a modern invention.

The Fête de Gayant: A Case Study in Tradition

The essay on the Fête de Gayant offers a sharp contrast in subject but a similar method. Repplier describes the four-day festival in Douai, where a giant effigy, the Sire de Gayant, is paraded through streets that 'welcomed him four hundred years ago.' She notes that the Church twice banned the fête for being 'too secular, not to say licentious,' but the town's devotion prevailed. Her description of a child beggar—'with a swift corresponding gesture he turns his little tin canister upside down, and shakes it plaintively'—reveals her eye for detail and her willingness to let a small scene carry larger implications about thrift, performance, and national character.

Structure and Movement Across Essays

The collection's twelve essays shift between literary criticism, social commentary, and travel writing, but a consistent pattern emerges: each begins with a specific irritant or observation, then widens to historical or comparative context. In 'Little Pharisees in Fiction,' Repplier targets sanctimonious characters; in 'The Royal Road of Fiction,' she examines popular reading habits. The movement is not linear but associative, as when she links the 'new woman' debate to Christine de Pisan, or the Fête de Gayant to Guy Fawkes Day. This structure rewards readers who enjoy following a nimble, erudite mind as it connects disparate eras and texts.

Recurring Images: The Wearisome and the Festive

Two recurring images anchor the collection: the wearisome repetition of empty phrases and the festive energy of communal celebration. The opening essay's 'monotonous repetition' finds its counterpoint in the Fête de Gayant's 'prolonged rejoicing and festivity.' Repplier contrasts the 'jaded mother' on the trapeze with the 'placid' frugality of provincial French crowds. These images are not merely decorative; they serve her argument that genuine tradition outlasts journalistic fads. The child who 'chatters fluently' and the 'big balloon' ascending from the esplanade are rendered with enough specificity to feel observed, not invented.

Readers approaching Varia should expect a collection that rewards patience: Repplier's allusions range from medieval French texts to contemporary magazine culture, and her tone can be dryly amused or sharply critical. The essays are best read in order, as the opening polemic against the 'new woman' establishes a framework for the later, more descriptive pieces. Pay attention to the footnotes and asides—they often contain the most pointed observations.

There’s something gentle about rereading Repplier’s essays now—how she wearies of “new woman” as a phrase, preferring the mess of actual lives. It reminds me of sitting with The collected works of William Hazlitt, Vol. 05 (of 12) — Themes and Context, where his own irritations feel like old friends. Both writers seem to be talking to me across years, not needing me to answer.