Abstract:Anicet Charles Gabriel Lemonnier's Première lecture, chez Madame Geoffrin, de l' "Orphelin de la Chine," tragédie de Voltaire, en 1755 (1812) frequently appears in books, articles, and websites as an illustration of the famous salon of Mme Geoffrin. Most scholarship on the painting focuses on its status as a false "document," and situates it within the context of Post-Revolution nostalgia for the ancien régime. These discussions ignore two key parts of this work's history: its purchase by Joséphine de Beauharnais, and the critical reaction to its exhibition at the Salon of 1814. This essay explores these two interconnected aspects. First, I situate Joséphine's interest in the broader cultural context of salonnières' use of art to promote a feminocentric history of the salon. Second, I consider how critics fixated on the painting's anachronism, and deemed that aspect necessary to its success. Ultimately, I argue that the criticism and eventual dismissal of the work is rooted in broader interpretations of the anecdotal genre scenes, and women's interest in those subjects, as "feminine."

中文翻译：

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历史、轶事和准确性：Anicet Charles Gabriel Lemonnier 的首演演讲，杰夫林夫人，de l'“Orphelin de la Chine”，伏尔泰悲剧，en 1755

摘要：Anicet Charles Gabriel Lemonnier 的首演演讲，chez Madame Geoffrin, de l' "Orphelin de la Chine," tragédie de Voltaire, en 1755 (1812) 经常出现在书籍、文章和网站中，作为著名的 Mme 沙龙的插图杰夫林。大多数关于这幅画的学术研究都集中在其作为虚假“文件”的地位，并将其置于革命后对旧制度的怀旧情绪中。这些讨论忽略了这件作品历史的两个关键部分：它被 Joséphine de Beauharnais 购买，以及对其在 1814 年沙龙上的展览的批评反应。本文探讨了这两个相互关联的方面。首先，我将约瑟芬的兴趣置于更广泛的文化背景中，即沙龙使用艺术来促进沙龙以女性为中心的历史。第二，我考虑了评论家如何关注这幅画的时代错误，并认为这对它的成功是必不可少的。归根结底，我认为对这部作品的批评和最终驳回源于对轶事风俗场景的更广泛解释，以及女性对这些主题的兴趣，如“女性化”。