LA LÉGENDE DES SIÈCLES
BY
VICTOR HUGO
EDITED BY
G. F. BRIDGE, M.A.
GENERAL PREFACE
Encouraged by the favourable reception accorded to the'Oxford Modern French Series,' the Delegates of theClarendon Press determined, some time since, to issue a'Higher Series' of French works intended for Upper Formsof Public Schools and for University and Private Students,and have entrusted me with the task of selecting and editingthe various volumes that will be issued in due course.
The titles of the works selected will at once make it clearthat this series is a new departure, and that an attempt ismade to provide annotated editions of books which havehitherto been obtainable only in the original French texts.That Madame de Staël, Madame de Girardin, Daniel Stern,Victor Hugo, Lamartine, Flaubert, Gautier are among theauthors whose works have been selected will leave no doubt asto the literary excellence of the texts included in this series.Works of such quality, intended only for advanced scholars,could not be annotated in the way hitherto usual, since thosefor whom they have been prepared are familiar with manythings and many events of which younger students haveno knowledge. Geographical and mythological notes havetherefore been generally omitted, as also historical eventseither too well known to require elucidation or easily foundin the ordinary books of reference.
By such omissions a considerable amount of space has beensaved which has allowed of the extension of the texts, and oftheir equipment with notes less elementary than usual, and atthe same time brighter and more interesting, whilst great carehas been taken to adapt them to the special character of eachvolume.
The Introductions are also a novel feature of the presentseries. Originally they were to be exclusively written inEnglish, but as it was desired that they should be as characteristicas possible, and not merely extracted from referencebooks, but real studies of the various authors and theirworks, it was decided that the editors should write themin their own native language.
Whenever it has been possible each volume has beenadorned with a portrait of the author at the time he wrotehis book.
In conclusion, I wish to repeat here what I have said inthe General Preface to the 'Oxford Modern French Series,'that 'those who speak a modern language best invariablypossess a good literary knowledge of it.' This has beenendorsed by the best teachers in this and other countries, andis a generally admitted fact. The present series by providingworks of high literary merit will certainly facilitate theacquisition of the French language—a tongue which perhapsmore than any other offers a variety of literary specimenswhich, for beauty of style, depth of sentiment, accuracy andneatness of expression, may be equalled but not surpassed.
LEON DELBOS.
OXFORD, December, 1905.
INTRODUCTION
Victor Hugo's conception of the scheme of the series ofpoems to which he gave the title of La Légende des Siècles isthus described in the preface to the first scenes: 'Exprimerl'humanité dans une espèce d'oeuvre cyclique; la peindre successivementet simultanément sous tous ses aspects, histoire,fable, philosophie, religion, science, lesquels se résument enun seul et immense mouvement d'ascension vers la lumière;faire apparaître, dans une sorte de miroir sombre et clair—quel'interruption naturelle de travaux te