克莱芙王妃 (1678)

《克莱芙王妃》（法语：La Princesse de Clèves）是一本法国小说，1678年3月匿名出版。它被许多人视为现代典型心理学小说的始祖，是一部伟大的经典作品。它的作者通常被认为是拉斐特夫人。

小说背景发生在1558年10月至1559年11月之间，法国亨利二世的宫廷以及其他一些地方。小说以非凡的精确度再现了那个时代，几乎每个角色都是历史人物。

La Princesse de Clèves (French pronunciation: [la pʁɛ̃sɛs də klɛv]; "The Princess of Cleves") is a French novel which was published anonymously in March 1678. It was regarded by many as the beginning of the modern tradition of the psychological novel and a classic work. Its author is generally held to be Madame de La Fayette.

The action takes place between October 1558 and November 1559 primarily at the royal court of Henry II of France, as well as in a few other locations in France. The novel recreates that era with remarkable precision. Nearly every character—though not the heroine—is a historical figure. Events and intrigues unfold with great faithfulness to the documentary record, and the novel is generally regarded as one of the first examples of Western historical fiction.

Synopsis

Mademoiselle de Chartres is a sheltered heiress, sixteen years old, whose mother has brought her to the court of Henri II to seek a husband with good financial and social prospects. When old jealousies against a kinsman spark intrigues against the young ingénue, the best marriage prospects withdraw. The young woman follows her mother's recommendation and accepts the overtures of a middling suitor, the Prince de Clèves. After the wedding, she meets the dashing Duke de Nemours. The two fall in love, yet do nothing to pursue their affections, limiting their contact to an occasional visit in the now-Princess of Clèves's salon.

The duke becomes enmeshed in a scandal at court that leads the Princess to believe he has been unfaithful in his affections. A letter from a spurned mistress to her paramour is discovered in the dressing room at one of the estates, but this letter was actually written to the Princess' uncle, the Vidame de Chartres, who has also become entangled in a relationship with the Queen. He begs the Duke de Nemours to claim ownership of the letter, which ends up in the Princess's possession. The duke has to produce documents from the Vidame to convince the Princess that his heart has been true.

Eventually, the Prince de Clèves discerns that his wife is in love with another man. She confesses as much. He relentlessly quizzes her—indeed tricks her—until she reveals the man's identity. After he sends a servant to spy on the Duke de Nemours, the Prince de Clèves believes that his wife has been both physically and emotionally unfaithful to him. He becomes ill and dies (of his illness and of a broken heart). On his deathbed, he blames the Duke de Nemours for his suffering and begs the Princess not to marry him.

Now free to pursue her passions, the Princess is torn between her duty and her love. The duke pursues her more openly, but she rejects him, choosing instead to enter a convent for part of each year.

Characters

Mademoiselle de Chartres / Madame de Clèves / The Princess of Clèves – The Princess at the center of the story. The daughter of Madame de Chartres and the niece of the Vidame de Chartres, she struggles throughout the novel with her duty as a wife to Monsieur de Clèves and her love for the Duke de Nemours.

Madame de Chartres – The mother of the Princess of Clèves. She supports her daughter's marriage to Monsieur de Clèves and warns her daughter against a romantic attachment to the Duke de Nemours. Her death leaves the Princess without a confidante advising restraint.

Monsieur de Clèves / The Prince of Clèves – The husband of the Princess de Clèves. He has "prudence rare in the young" and, although he lacks the beauty and style of the Duke de Nemours, has financial stability and high stature at court. Madame de Chartres views him as an attractive match for her daughter. While the Princess feels affection for him, Monsieur de Clèves loves her so profoundly that learning of her feelings for the Duke de Nemours wounds him beyond measure. In reality, Cleves was a duchy, not a principality. Anne of Cleves was Queen of England in 1540 and died in 1557, immediately before the events of the novel.