The Lives of Tallyrand

Crane Brinton, a Professor of History at Harvard between 1943 and 1970, was among the first (the book was initially published in 1936) to attempt a postmodern examination of Talleyrand's role and influence in shaping the contours of France and Europe.Professor Brinton frankly admired Talleyrand inspite of his lying, thieving, and machivellian schemes. Brinton argues that Talleyrand (like Mozart, Voltaire, Pope, Chardin, and Walpole) was part of a society too wise, too sober, too gifted with various skills, to mistake Word for Deed. In many way, Brinton's book is also a commentary on the idealistic failures of the Enlightenment and the "age of reason."However, Brinton's book is primarily a study of the character and actions of the man who so profoundly influenced the destiny of the French Revolution and helped shape the contours of Europe as well. The requiste historical background is of course given, but it is the many-faceted personality of Talleyrand which the author has made it his task to portray --- and he has done so with discrimination and wit.I thoroughly enjoyed the book and it has become a permanent fixture in my library.