"Pamela" and the "Memoires pour servir a la vie de Monsieur de Voltaire" are accounts of the author's own life, concentrating particularly on his relationship with the king of Prussia. They were composed in the 1750s, one of the most turbulent decades in Voltaire's life, which opened shortly after the death of Mme Du Chatelet with an extended visit to Prussia, and ended with his installation at Ferney with Mme Denis. It was a decade of extreme contrasts shaped by his relationship with Frederick the Great, a period of supreme, seemingly unassailable celebrity and of public humiliation, of independence and exile, of power and vulnerability. The texts are unusual in the works of Voltaire, for two reasons: they are both written as first-person narratives, dealing with the actions and emotions of the writer; and they were both unpublished during the lifetime of the author. "Pamela", a reworking of letters to Mme Denis during his years in Prussia (which were long thought to be authentic), gives a very carefully constructed view of the period, where attitudes are modified, chronology manipulated, details omitted. The same is true of the "Memoires", where the perspective is different, but still issues are simplified, and evidence changed at will. Through these two texts, Voltaire speaks directly to posterity, as he seeks to claim the authority to write about himself, to create and control his image.

'It has taken me a long time, my dearest Aza, to fathom the cause of that contempt in which women are held in this country ...' Zilia, an Inca Virgin of the Sun, is captured by the Spanish conquistadores and brutally separated from her lover, Aza. She is rescued and taken to France by Deterville, a nobleman, who is soon captivated by her. One of the most popular novels of the eighteenth century, the Letters of a Peruvian Woman recounts Zilia's feelings on her separation from both her lover and her culture, and her experience of a new and alien society. Francoise de Graffigny's bold and innovative novel clearly appealed to the contemporary taste for the exotic and the timeless appetite for love stories. But by fusing sentimental fiction and social commentary, she also created a new kind of heroine, defined by her intellect as much as her feelings. The novel's controversial ending calls into question traditional assumptions about the role of women both in fiction and society, and about what constitutes 'civilization'. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

A critical edition of "Le Misanthrope." The introduction examines the interlocking levels of comedy apparent both in the play's literary texture and in the original performance, and discusses the history of its reception, showing how it is constantly adapted to the values of changing times.