Jean Potocki’s ”Voyages”: from Mythic Orient to

Conquered Orient

Daniel Beauvois

To cite this version:

Daniel Beauvois. Jean Potocki’s ”Voyages”: from Mythic Orient to Conquered Orient. Will L.McLendon. L’HENAURME SIECLE : A Miscellany of Essays on Nineteenth-Century FrenchLiterature, 46, Carl Winter Universitatsverlag, pp.13-26, 1984, Reihe Siegen, 3-533-03436-4.<hal-01078211>

HAL Id: hal-01078211

https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01078211

Submitted on 30 Oct 2014

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J eanPot ocki ’ s Vの，ageS：

f l omMyt hi cOri ent t oConqueredOri ent

DANI ELBEAUVOI S

Thereaderwhoknowsonl yt heManuscri t t I VuVi aSaragossel

i si mmedi at el yst ruckbyt hepredomi nant t oneof t heseaccount s

of J eanPot ocki ，st ravel s：anal ogl eSandresembl ancest ot hef a－

mousnovel aret obef bundoneveryhand・muSareadi ngort he

砂age㌔cannrst of al l poi nt upt ousseveral f bt heaut hor ’ s

sourcesandal l owusadi 鯖erent approacht ohi snct i onal works・

Ehl t Pot ocki wasnot amanl i mi t edt oonegenre，andhi st ravel s

openupperspect i vest hat areasri chast hoseof hi snoveLWhen－

evert heyl eavet hest r i ct l yl i t erarydomai nt heset ravel st hrowa

great deal of l i ght ont hemanwhomadet hemaswel l asont he

peri odduri ngwhi chhel i ved・

I bt ock買上わI am

Weshal l begi nwi t ht hel i t eraryanal ogi es・Thegeographi cal

l ocat i onsi nwhi cht heheroesof t heManuscri t t rOuZ毒Li SaragOSSe

moveabout －Wi t ht hesol eexcept i onof Mexi co－aref ami l i ar

onest ot heaut hor．Eveni rhehasnot l enanaccount of every

si ngl espot hevi si t ed，Wedoknowt hat Pot ocki went t oSpai n・

I t al y，Mal t a，Tuni si a，MoroccoI Egypt ，andTart ary・Wi t hout ex一

ccpt i on，t hi si st heworl dof t heperi pheryof t heMedi t erranean，

andi t st i l l t ouchesI sl amat cl osehandorat adi st ance．

l Fi rst publ i shedanonymousl yi nFrench，Part i al l yi nSai nt Pet ersburg・

part i al l yi nPari s，bet ween1805and1814・Thi sl argel yf brgot t ennovel

wasresurrect edbyRogerCai l l oi s，Whopubl i shedsel ect i onsrromi t i n

1958（Pari s：Gal l i mard）．AnEngl i sht ransl at i onof t heent i renovel by

El i sabet hAbbot t appearedi nt wovol umes：meSara90SSaManuserQt

（NewYorkAvonBooks，1960）；meNewDecamerOn：j i J rt hert at eLS

bomt heSam90SSaManusでrQt （NewYork：Ori onPress，1967）・

2I nt hi sessayal l ref erencesaret omyedi t i onorJ eanPot ocki ，sVのageS

（Pari s：Fayard，1980），2voI s．，Wi t hi nt roduct i onandnot es・Vol ・I con－

t ai ns：砂ageSenTt L均ui eet enEgyPt e，enHo〃ande，auMaTOe；Vol ・I I

cont ai ns：砂ageSenCdueaseet enα i ne・

13

Havi ngest abl i shedt hi snrst pnnci pl e，Whi chi ndeeddef i nes

t heuni t yandexot i ci smof t henovel ，l et usexami newhat t he

t ravel sreveal about t hi somnl PreSent Ori ent ・Theyconvi nceus

t hat t het ravel ernot onl yvi si t edt heOri ent but al sost eepedhi m－

Sel f i nOri ent al cui t ure・Heowest hi st ast enrst of al l t ohi sgeo－

graphi cori gi n‥ hi snat i veprovi nceof Podol i a，t heeast emmost i n

Pol andbef brei t spart i t i on，i si ndi rect cont act wi t ht heMosl ems，

t heTurks，andt heTart ars．I f i nFrancet heOri ent hasbeena

f ashi oneversi ncet heLet t I eSI セrsanes3andmemousandand

OneNi ghLs（ast ransl at edi nt oFrenchbyGal l and），f brPot ocki i t

i saf ami l i aruni verse．HespeaksTurki sh，knowst hef undamen－

t al sof Arabi candPersi an，andevenpract i ceswri t i ngt hesel an－

guages・Onseveral occasi onsduri ngt hecourseof hi sl i f ehewi l l

proposeest abl i shi ngschooI sof Ori ent al l anguages・4

Everyreaderof t heManuseri t t rowi aSam90SSeCaneaSi l y

PerCei vet hat Mosl em ci vi l i zat i on has more t han al ocal －cOl or

rol e・Assoonashel eavesf brTurkey，i n1784，Pot ocki i nsi st st hat

hei sal ready“ noumparl ’ et udedel ’ hi st oi reet del al i t t erat ure

desOri ent aux’ ’ （I ，56）．Duri ngt hi st r i pherei t erat es：くくl esl ect ures

quej ’ ai f ai t esdepui spresdedeuxansm，Ont rendusi r i cheen

PenSeeSOri ent al esqueJ en，ai euquel apei ned，engrouperquel －

ques－uneS〉〉（1，68）・I n1791i nMoroccowenndhi mpursui ng

rareedi t i onsof Hebrewt ext s，SuChast hecomment aryof t hemt ・

mudbyJ ehoudahLevi el Khozah，OrArabi conessuchasGi LZf hr

et BaTmeki ・I rt hephi l osophyof t het wosi st ersBmi naandZi －

bedde，t hebeaut i 請l andperverset empt resseswhoconst ant l ybe－

Sei geAl phonsevanWorden，5i ssoi nvi t i ng，i t i sbecausePot ocki

ref usest oseet heOri ent al onl yast heBarbari ananddest royerof

t heChri st i ancul t ・Hi sapproachat t empt st obesympat het i c，and

at t i mesi seveni dyl l i c．Theverymanneri nwhi cht henarrat i ves

Ort heManuseri t t roweGSara90SSearei nt roducedof t enbet rays

3publ i shedi n1721byMont esqul eu．

4Exerci sesi nhi shandwri t i ngaret obef bundi nt heJ agel l onneLi brary

i nKrakow，Ms・3314・I V・38・Hedel i ght si nwri t i ngi nArabi ct oMari e

Pot ocka，neeRzewuska，Whosebrot herWacl awi sanardent st udent

Of t hi ngsori ent al ・Seet hei rcorrespondance：Archi vesof t heP．A．N．，

Krakow，No6183．

5YoungFI emi shheroof t heManuscri i i ′ VWi aSara90SSe・

14

t hei rOri ent al ori gi nswi t ht hat くくVeri t e… l qui I parai t chercher

pl ut 6t as’ epancherqu’ aserepandre，〉〉Wi t ht hepoet rywhi chi s

くくempl oyee… aramenerSanSCeSSeal anat ure，〉〉t hoseal l egori es

くくi nvent eesdansl ’ Ori ent pourmet t rel apenseeal ’ abri despre一

mi eresf ureursdudespot i sme” （1，73）．Thegent l e，eVenrhyt hmi c，

t onewhi chf earsexcessandavoi dst heくくet at depret ent i on》i n

Whi cht heso－Cal l edci vi l i zedOcci dent al sowi l l i ngl yensconses

hi msel f i sproof t hat Pot ocki ，havi ngbeenshapedbyhi st ravel s，

al ways seeks t o at t ai nくく1’ et at de si mpl i ci t e》he has observed

amongt heMoor；of Morocco，Whomhehascast ast heheroesor

hi snovel （herewemayrecal l t heGomel ezcl anort heCeut aof

Vel asquez，t he mat hemat i ci an）．Such a t one nat ural l y owes a

great deal t ocl assi cFrenchsobri et y，al somuchadmi redbyPo・

t ocki ，but whocansayj ust what part t heal l usi veapol oguesi n

t hemannerof Saadi pl aymal l t hi s？

Thwel andMovement

I nanyconsi derat i onof t hest mct ureOf Count J ean’ snovel

One CannOt hel pnot i ci ngt hat t hewayt het ext i s cut upi nt o

” days》（《j ournees〉〉）i sasconvent i onal ast hedi vi si onort hel et －

t ersi nhi s砂ageenTt I rquLe．Theepi st ol aryf bmof t heaccount

i sasart i nci al ast hedi aryst ruct uref bundi nt he砂ageauMa－

roe，Orl at eri nt hel 句yagedansLesSt pesdAsl nakhan et du

Caucase（1791）．Much more basi c herei s t he wel l ・knowni n－

nuenceof t hepi caresquenovel andt heeducat i onal novel ，but

t he one and t he ot her arei ncbncei vabl e wi t hout t he t ravel ex－

peri ence．Whenwereadof t het r i bul at i onsof VanWorden，i t i s

Pot ocki weseei nt he Si erraMorena：i revert het ravel not eshe

madei n Spai nandPort ugal t umupagal nWeShal l doubt l ess

haveani mport ant sourceof t he肋nuseri t t roul i Li Sara90SSe・6

Even wi t hout t hemi t i s easy t o see what a maJ Orpart t raVel

rout esandroadspl ayi nt heManuscri t ：What host sof gypsl eS，

wanderers，andbandi t s，and al l of t hemi t i nerant st oo！Move－

6Theset ravel not eshavenot yet comet ol i ght ，but i n1877t heywerei n

t hcarchi vesof Wi l andwcast l e．SeeH．Ski mborowi czi W．Gerson，AL・

bumwi dok（5wi pani qt くれWarszawa，1877・

15

ment ，Wi t hi t scorol l ary，enCOunt er，aret heverybasesof t henov－

el ；andi ndeedt heyconst i t ut edt hegui di ngprl nCi pl eort heau－

t hor ’ sl i f e．Fenel on，t Obesure，hadal readybasedt heeducat i on

Of hi sTel emaqueont ravel ，and Bart hel emy，WhomPot ocki so

much admi red，al so sent t he young hero of hi sAnaeha鳩i s en

G毒eeout ont ot hehi ghwaysof t heworl d，f ol l owl ngt hemodel

of Lesage’ sGi l Bl as．But howmanyaut horshaveext endedt hei r

Wbnde¢ahre t hroughout t hei r ent i rel i f e and made t hei r en－

COunt erSWi t ht heOt hert hepnnci pl eof al l enri chment ？

Wi t hout t hi st ravel f t vert hekal ei doscopI CmOVement Of t he

Manusel ・i t t l ・OWi aSam90SSeWOul dnot exi st ；nOrWOul dt henu－

merousmi sl 鳩enab′ met hroughwhi cht het r i pwi t hi nat r i pman－

agest oeaset hedi mcul t yof seei ngeveryt hi ngf bronesel f ．The

f bmof t het al eembeddedwi t hi nat al et husappearedwel l be－

f bret heManuseri t ，i nf act asearl yas1784，i nt he砂ageenTt I r－

qui e．Al ongt hewayt herei sal wayssomeonewhohasseensome－

t hi ngmoreandwhoseaccount smust beworkedi nt ot hewhol e，

al l of whi ch，Whet herhereort here，bri ngsusbackt oanOri ent

act ual l yexperi encedandwi t nessedbyt hesamesharpobserver．

Forwhat coul dbemoreOri ent al t hant het al eorf abl ei nsert ed

Wi t hi nt henarrat i ve？

I nMorocco“ t r i pswi t hi nat r i p’ ’ haveadeci del ydocument ary

Charact ert hat wi l l becomemorepronouncedi nt he Caucasus，

but i nTurkeyandi nEgypt t hemannerof t uml ngt heext emal

St Oryl Squi t eaki nt ot hat usedbyVanWorden’ swayf ari ngcom－

Pani ons：《J enesai st ropcomment voust rouverezl esapol ogues

Ori ent aux．Pourmol ，J eraf rbl edel eurmani ere，et j em’ ysui ses－

Saye，》Pot ocki wri t est ohi smot herf t omConst ant i nopl e（I ，68）．

叫ast hel egendwoul dhavei t ，t heManuscri t t l ・OWi aSaI u90SSe

WaS nrSt cOnCei ved as a sort orext ensi on of The Thousandand

OneNi ghl s，Whi cht heaut horusedt ot el l t ohi ssi ckwi f e，t hen

One Can eaSi l y see t he persi st ence of t he obsessi on wi t h t he

Ori ent ．

Enl i ght enedacumen高m

Moret hant hef bmi t i st hebasi cmat eri al t hat est abl i shest he

ki ndshi pof t het ravel sandt henovel ．Thecent ral t hemeof t he

16

Manuscri l t I VWi aSal l a90SSe，t hekeyt ot hesi xt y－Si x“ days’ ’ ，t he

Gomel ezt reasure，i st obef bund qui t ei nt act i n“ TheTri al or

Draco’ ’ ，af abl ei ncl udedi nt he“ Sevent hLet t cr ’ ’ of t heレb）′ age

enTt ‘ rqui e（1，66）・I t i st hei deaof t herel at i vi t yof rel i gi ons．J ust

asAl phonsei sput t ot het est ，unbeknownst t ohi msel f 言norder

t obri ngabout perhapsaharmoni oussynt hesi sorChri st i ani t y

andI sl am，SODracoi ssummonedbyavi zi rt ost at ewhi chrel i －

gl Oni st hebet t er・Nowhenndst hesameresponset ot hesame

quest i on，andi t i sonef l equent l yencount eredi nPodol i a：t hef u－

t i l i t yof t he st ruggl esbei weent hecross andt hecrescent （and

t here wi l l be ot her exampl es，SeVerel y repressed by t he Tzar

around1827）．7Thegol dmi net hat wassupposedt oi nsuret he

f ut ureandpowerof t heGomel ezcl anof coursennal l yt umsout

t obeexhaust edandusel ess）t husbeari ngwi t nesst ot hevani t yof

t heMoori shrel i gi on’ Sgoal of t ryi ngt odomi nat et heChri st i anor

J ewi shf ai t hs・Thi si deai srul l ypresent i nDraco，sparabl e，i nt he

St OryOrt hemi nerswhoくくaVai ent crudecouvri runemi nedeme－

t auxprecl euX．Secreusant chacundesrout esdi f Terent es，i l ses－

perai ent t ousparveni runJ Ouras’ enrendrel esmai t res．Apresun

t ravai l l onget assi dul eursl ampess’ et ai ent et ei nt es，mai sl eurar－

deuret ai t t el l eque，l oi ndes’ enapercevoi r，i l scr i ai ent encore

COmmeauparaVant ：〈C’ est mol qul ai t rouvel ’ or，l esaut resn’ out

quel ecui vreet l ’ et ai n〉〉〉（1，67）．

I nt hi svai nquest f brt heAbsol ut e，t heI deal ，t heSynt hesi sof

rel i gi onsorphi l osophi es，Onei sst ruckbyt herepet i t i vecharact er

Ort hemi net heme，t hesubt erraneanchamber，t hebowel sof t he

eart h・Mayi t not besi gni ncant t onot et hat J eanPot ocki ，nndi ng

hi msel f i narui nedt oweri nMorocco，SeemSt OSuggeSt al ready

i nwhat di rect i onhewi l l l ayout t hei nt r i gueorhi sManuseri t ？

J ecommenceam’ arrangerdanSmat Ourrui nee．Cet t epi t t oresqueet

mel ancol i quedemeuremerappel l el esgoul esqui ，Sel onl amyt hol o一

gi edesMi l t eet UneNui t s，habi t ai ent l esedi ncesabandonnes．Ac∂t e

dcmacasemat e，i l yauneport equl cOndui t aunsout errai nt res

7I n1827t heUni versi t yof Wi l no（Vi l na）creat edacommi t t eet oj udge

andcondemnt heaut hororat reat i sedeal i ngwi t ht henecessi t yof a

Syncret i cuni onof Chri st endomandI sl am．meaut hor，l i kePot ocki ，

WaSPodol i an・SeeDani el Beauvoi s，Lumi eresel soci i t i enEurqpede

l t st I 803－1832（Pari s－Li l l e，1977），VOl ．l I ，855．

17

prof bnd．C’ et ai t aut ref bi sunedecest err i bl esmat amoresodl ’ onen・

f emai t l esescl aveschret i enset dont i l est t ant quest i ondansl esro－

mansespagnoI s，OuVrageSOdi l yabi cndel ’ i magi nat i on，mai spas

aut ant quedansl escont esquej ’ ai ci t espl ushaut et qu’ i l f aut t ou・

j oursl i rel orsquel ’ onset rouveavecdesArabes．（1，294）

Thi st ext dat i ngf l om179l oI 脆rsusal readyt hef ul l apparat usor

t he請t urenovel ：t heHi spano－Moori shset t i ng，t hehi st ori cal re－

COl l ect i ons，t he myt hol ogi cal creat ures，al l brought t oget heri n

SuChawayt hat f t arandt rembl i ngj oi nI brcesandmergewi t h

t hemarvel ous．

Great nessand脇ni yd“ Knowl eくねe

I t i sknownt hat Pot ocki ’ St r i pt oSpai nf ol l owedcl oseupon

hi st r i pt oMorocco．Andt hereseemst obel i t t l edoubt t hat t he

essent i al mat eri al of hi s Mt znuseri t i rowi Li Sara90SSeWaS t he

harvest gat heredduri ngt heset ravel s；but i t i squi t esurpnsl ngt O

l eam t hat t he of t en pessi mi st i c phi l osophy expressedi n t he

novel byVel asquezorHervasi si nf bct t hat of t heyoungt ravel er

i nMorocco．Pot ocki ，amarVel ousi l l ust rat i onof t hegoveml ng

i deaof Paul Hazardont ravel sasasourceof 18t h一ccnt uryrel a－

t i vi sm，neVerSt OpS pOi nt i ngout t hat hi speregri nat i ons arere－

sponsi bl ef brhi sskept i ci smI f DonBel i a18verynat ural l yhi t s

upont heOri ent al parabl eof t het i gerandt hesheepf acedwi t h

t hewi spof grassi nordert oexpresst herel at i vi t yof j ust i ce，i t i s

becausePot ocki const ant l ycomesbackt ohi sOri ent al remi ni s－

CenCeS．mei nvent oryof t hesei magesandparabl esremai nst obe

t aken．But ，i nt heot herdi rect i on，andst art i ngwi t ht het ravel s，i t

i sj ust aseasyt oant i ci pat epreci sel ywhat t hegeneral doubt ex－

pressedi nt heManuseri t wi l l be．Not onl yrel i gi ons，nOt Onl yj us－

t i ce，but sci encei t sel f i st akent ot askbyanerudi t ePot ocki as

earl yas1791，Whenhei sonl yt hi rt yyearsol d・Arewenot i ndeed

ent i t l edt oseeanrst roughsket chof t hepi l gr i mHervas－t hepi l 一

gri m，yet anOt heri magel i nkedt ot ravel ！－i nt het al eof 耽蒔Z，

whi chf bl l owscl oseupont het r i pt oMorocco Thi sent i rest ory，

whi chevol vesaroundt he“ t ropsavant AbouHani f ah’ ’ whogoes

8Acharact eri nt heManuscTi l l rOWi GSara90SSe（《Hi st oi redut err i bl e

pel eri nHervaset desonpere，1’ omni sci ent i mpi e》）・

18

t o Bagdad《POurypubl i er l esoi xant e－di xi emevol umedeson

Bahl ・－al －nOur，Oul ’ OceandesLumi eres，》（1，313）of rersapren－

gurat i onof t hel assi t udeort heくくOmni sci ent bl asphemer〉〉f aci ng

knowl edgedi si ncarnat e，f aci ngsci ent i ncandencycl opedi csums

t hat canneverbeget happl neSS．Haf t z，i ncamat i ngPot ocki here，

decl ares：くくJ emesui sbeaucoupoccuped’ et udesabst rai t eset j e

VOyageauj ourd’ hui aut ant pourm’ endi st rai requepouraj out er

l aconnai ssancedeshommesauxconnai ssancesquej ’ ai pul SeeS

dansl esl i vres〉〉（1，317）．Pot ocki t hus descri bes hi s st eps as a

quest anal ogoust oVanWorden’ S；heseekspeopl eout i norder

t oexperi ment ，t OSt udyreal l i f eandt hepossi bi l i t i esof happ1－

Grat 第6at i oni nAmbi gui 砂

Experi encl ngl ovet husbecomesi nevi t abl eand，heret oo，1m－

agery as wel l as sent i ment s echo back and f b巾h bet ween t he

砂ageSandt heManyscri t t I uVi GSaragosse．Thest oryent i t l ed

Abdul et Zei l a，1nCl udedi nt hel 旬′ ageen Zt I rqui e，Wi t hi t sgar－

l andof sul t anas，f ai nt i ngsdowni naci st em－Whi chi s，af t eral l ，

at unnel of sort s－andi t serot i ccel ebrat i ons，madeal l t hemore

pl easi ngf brbei ngunexpect ed，ant i ci pat est hedel i ght st hat t he

l asci vi oussi st ershol di nst oref bryoungAl phonsevanWorden：

くくD帥1’ enf bnt del agrappes’ uni ssai t dansl eurscoupesal aml e

desnuees，1’ amouret ai t dansl eursyeux，l esdouxproposdans

l eursbouches．Abdul cmt uni nst ant avoi rgo証eparavancel es

pl ai si rsduGehennet 〉〉（I ，I I I ）．Not onl ydoest hi sdel i ght f ul l yf h－

VOl ousst yl eaccompanyt hesamet ypeof scenesonei t herhand，

but al sot hemoral t heyexpressi si dent i cal ．RogerCai l l oi shas

remarkedhowPot ocki ’ sdescri pt i onof pl easurei sal waysmore

Vi vi dwhent he si t uat i ons are ambi guous，OrmOre aCut e When

i nel uct abl e，Obj ect i ve ci rcumst ances maket heenJ Oyment i nno－

Cent ，aSi t were．Thei nnumberabl esi t uat i onsof t hi st ypet obe

f bundi nt he Manuscl ・i t ：t herol eof dreams，enChant ment s，SuCh

ast hemagl CSWeet St hat t ransf bmCel i aand Sori l l ai nt odae－

moni ct empt resses9－al l havet hei rprot ot ypei nt heaccount sor

9Twocharact ersi nくくHi st oi redut err i bl epel eri nHervas》（Seen．8）．The

nrst compl et e edi t i on or t he ext raordi nari l y nagment ed ori gi nal

Frencht ext of t heManuscri t t roweaSara90SSei snowbei ngprepared

19

t het ravel si nTurkey．TheOri ent seeni nt hesewri t i ngsi scol ored

Wi t ht hesameundennabl epoet ryi nwhi chdepravi t yresoI vesi t －

Sel f i nt oasmi l i nghedoni st i cmoral i t y．YoungFat mei smarri ed

t ohandsomeyoungCassem，but shei si nnowi segui l t yf brhav一

mgSpent af bwdel i r i ousmoment si nt hearmsof t heri chOmar，

Si nce she has unwi t t i ngl y beenl edi nt o t hi s si t uat i on by t he

Craf t yprocuressEmi na・10Thi sequl VOCal at t i t ude，qui t eexpect ed

i nt he18t hcent uryof ManonLescaut andMme．deMert eui l ，i s

avi dl ycul t i vat edi nt hesomewhat subl i mat edOri ent Pot ocki i n－

Si st sonseel ngi nTurkeyandMoroccobef brebei ngrepeat edad

i di ni t umi nhi sl i t erary鯖ct i ons．Al l t hesescenesarebat hedi n

t hei dyl l i cl i ght Mot herNat ureprovi desi nordert oabsol veal l

t heweaknessesof t henesh．Thesequenceof event sseemst obe

mat emi nded by t hat nat ural f brce，remi ni scent or Rousseau，

whi ch amount st o anew Provi dence．

I t woul dnodoubt bequi t epossi bl et ogomuchf u証herwi t h

t het hemat i ct ypol ogyt hat Pot ocki t hewri t erdrewf romt heex－

Peri encesof t heOri ent al i st t ravel er．At al l event shi ssenseof re－

l at i vi t yandhi smoral andpol i t i cal skept i ci smseem，al ongwi t h

hi ssenseof t hef bnt ast i c，f ear，andt rembl i ng，t Obet heessent i al

acqui si t i onsof t hi sexperi ence．

Hom Wbrds t oAct i on

Spi nnl ngt al esof t hi eves，Pi rat es，andl ovel yOri ent al mai d－

ens，howeverart i st i c，phi l osophi cal ，OrPrOf bundt heymayhave

been，nnal l ybegant oseemrat hermt i l et oPot ocki ．Byapart i cu－

l art wi st t hat wenndi nmost enl i ght enedmi ndsof t het i mePo・

t ocki ，arOund1795，begant opercei vel i t erat ureasal udi cact i vi t y

moreproperl yi ndul gedi nal most secret l yandqui t easi def rom

Seri ous pursui t s orpubl i c userul ness．Thi s bent doubt l ess ac－

COunt Sf brt heveryl i mi t edSai nt Pet ersburgedi t i onof t he1805

decameron，11，andt hef act t henot esof hi st ravel si nt heCau－

byM．・B．Zol t owska“ Wei nt raub．I nt hemeant i meweref ert ot hePol －

i sht ransl at i onby C．B．Chqi ecki ，Rekqpi sznal ezi ony wSara90SSi e，

edi t edbyM．Toporowski ，1950，111，104．

10砂ages，1，61．

i l Fort hebasi cract ssurroundi ngt he∞mpl i cat edpubl i cat i onof t he

MbnuseTi t t roul 毒GSara90SSe，See：RogerCai l l oi s，pref acet ot he1967

20

CaSuSandi nChi naremai nedunpubl i shedi nhi sl i f bt i me．More－

OVer，t hest yl eof t heset ravel account swri t t enaf t er1795di 鵬でs

radi cal l yf romt hat of t heearl i eronesandbearswi t nesst ot he

Veri t abl e di chot omy t hat i s t aki ng pl acei n Count J ean，s con－

Cept S．Whereast het r i pst oTurkey，Egypt ，andMorocco，under－

t akenwhen Pol and was st i l l i n exi st ence as a nat i on，Cl osel y

bl endt heaccount sorrea1－1i f eexperi enceandvari ousot hercon－

Si derat i ons，eVennct i on－t hat i st osayt heuserul wi t ht hepl eas－

urabl e－i t woul dseemt hat assoonasPot ocki begancomposl ng

t heManuseri t t rout ，i aSara90SSehei nvest edi ni t t hegreat erpart

Of what everbri l l i ance，f ant asy，andi magi nat i onhi sgeni usmay

have boast ed・Thi s mut at i on conci des wi t h Pot ocki ，s passl ng

OVert Ot heRussi ansi de，het hef bmercosmopol i t anPol enow

growl ngeVermOreCapt i vat edwi t hpowerandpol i t i cs．Not t hat

SuChpreoccupat i onshadbeenent i rel yf brei gnt ohi si nt erest sbe－

f bre，but t heyemergef romt hei rsecondaryandoccasi onal posi －

t i ons一〇nereCal l shi sact i vi t yduri ngt heGreat Di et of 1788－

1792－t Obecomeobsessi veandomnl PreSent ．

me Count ，s new sense orbel ongl ng t O a St rOng emPl re，

Whi chhequi ckl yput ont hesamef bot i ngwi t hundel t aki ngt o

f ederat eal l Sl avi cpeopl es，Sat i sneshi syearni ngf branewuni －

VerSal i t yl andhi s f ami l y，s hi ghposi t i onki ndl edhi s hopes oで

pl ayi ngamuchgreat erpersonal rol ei nt hi sendeavort hanhe

hadbeenabl et oi naPol andt hat nol ongerexi st ed．Unt i l about

1808everyt hi nghewri t esbearst hemarkof af everi shurget o

gl Ve PraCt i cal sanct i on t o hi s knowl edge of t hi ngs Ori ent al ．

Pret t yarabesquesnol ongersat i sf yhi mexcept i nt hesecret of hi s

St udy，l i kesomepl ayorsport t hat must bekept hi dden・No－

Wheredoeshespeakof hi sworkont he施nusel ・i t l rouz毒LaSal l a一

g0SSe，Whose“ romant i c’ ’ pl ot s（as he st yl esi t ），i ．e．novel i st i c

Pl ot s，arenot prOPeri nt erest sf bramanwhowi shest opursuea

Career．

edi t i on（Pa証S：Gal l i mard）；Wi l l L．McLendon，Une T勃i breuseea手

r i i reSOuSl 鯖′ 呼i reet t aResi aumt i on：l eComt edeCourchaI TPS（Pari s：

Let t res Modemes，1981），Ch．V；Wi l l L．McLendon，‘ ‘ AProbl emi n

Pl agi ari sm：Washi ngt onI rvi ngandCousendeCourchamps，’ ’ CoI TPa－

rat i yeLi t emt ure，XX（Spri ng1968），157－69．

21

Everyt hi ngundert akenbyPot ocki duri ngt he珊eenyearsf b1－

10wl ngt heannexat i onorhi sest at esbyRussi ai sdi ct at edbyt he

needf bract i on，byambi t i on，andservi cet ot heTzar・12Hesays

as much once moret o hi s brot her，OnOct ober17，1805，upOn

l eavi ngf brChi na：くくSi l ’ onneveut pasdemoi ，j ’ ai dansl al i t t e－

rat uredequoi meconsol erampl ement ．Mai sl aseul el i t t erat ure

qul medonnai t beaucoupdepl ai si rnemedonnai t pasdeconsi －

derat i on，qui est unbesoi nanot reage》（I I ，205）．At t hi st hevery

dawnof t he19t hcent uryt hest at usof t henovel i st i sl esst han

not hi ng，andCount Pot ocki l ooksel sewherei nhi shopet osat －

i sf yt hi sneedf brpubl i crespect whi chhef t el sacut el ybecause

t hereput at i ont hat hashoundedhi msi ncehi syout hi st hat of a

gent eel eccent hc・Whi l est i l l i nChi nahewri t esback：《J esui s…

f d重COnt ent … d’ avoi rmel eunpeudepol i t i queamasci ence，

carcel l e－Ci vousf ai t est i merdevospal rS，Si nont ousvosent ours

vousregardent commeunf buqul nepeut et rebonapersonne，

cequi al al ongueest f acheux〉〉（I I ，206）・Thesamenaggi ngI t ar

Orbei ngt akenf bramadmani st obeobservedi nt heerudi t eVe－

l asquezandhi sf at her，t WOCharact ersi nt heManuseri t l roul 毒d

Saγ agOSSe．

Thef 鵬t St l uCt urat Ant hrqz）Ot Ogおt

Andt hi si swhyt hest yl eort het ravel si nt heCaucasusandi n

Chi nachangessomuch・I nst eadof t hechaml ngeXcurSi onspre－

vi ousl yrecorded，al l pl acedundert hesi gnof f bnt asy，Phi l oso－

phy，OrPOet ry，WenOWhavet ext st hat arengorousl yresearched

andveri ned－t hennal versi onort het ravel si nt heCausasuswas

wri t t eni n18060r1807，t enyearSanert heact ual t r i p－andwri t －

t enf l omapreci seperspect i ve：t hesyst emat i cexpl orat i onof t he

count ri esvi si t ed，t hesedet ai l srecordedwi t haneyet opreparl ng

t hei nvasi on，t hent heannexat i onof t hedescri bedt err i t ori es・

Nat ural l yanaut horl i kePot ocki doesnot gi veupwri t i ngwel l

12Dani el Beauvoi s，《UnPol onai sauservi cedel aRussi e：J eanPot ocki

et l ，expansi onenTranscaucasi e1804－1805，〉〉Cdhi e” duMonderusse

et soV毒t i que，E．H．E．S．C．，19：1－2（j anv・－j ui n1978），175－89；et 《Le

Sysl はmeasi at i quedeJ eanPot ocki oul ereveori ent al dansl esempl reS

d，Al exandreI et Napol eon，〉〉t bi d．，20：3－4（j ui l ．－dec・1979），467－85・

22

j ust becausehechangesgoal s．Tobesuret heperspect i vehehas

adopt edrequl reShi mt obecomeanet hnol ogi st －t henrst per－

hapst oenvi sagei nsomodemamannera‘ ‘ gr i d，，of probl ems

encompassl ngl i f est yl es，habi t at ，cOnSumpt i onof goodsandex－

Changes－but t hel i t eraryvei nconst ant l ybreakst hrough・Yet

t hi svei ni t sel f i si nt egrat edi nt ot hegeneral schemeof pol i t i cal

use請l nessandi scuri ousl ysubvert ed．

I nt hest eppest hat l eadhi mt oAst rakhan，f brexampl e，Po－

t ocki cannot remai ni nsensi t i ve t o t he ambi ence of t he Tumen

horde，t Obef bundal soamongt hegypsl eSOf Pandesownai nt he

Manuse訪．Hi st ast ef brt hef ant ast i candhi sぬsci nat i onwi t ht he

i rrat i onal f brcehi mt ot akenot eorvari ousphenomenat hat l ead

hi mawayf romhi s sci ent i nci nqui r i es・Take，f bri nst ance，t he

t hi evi ngdogt hat i sperhapsadevi l i ncamat eandt hat woul dj us－

t i f yone’ sprobi ngi nt ot heくくmet aPhysi quedel ’ hi st oi redesani －

maux〉〉（11，38）．I nAst rakhanheobservesamosai corOri ent al

PeOpl es and agal nl et s hi sl i t eraryacumen shi ne t hrough；al l

t hesepeopl es，hesays，haveat ast ef brl oveandl ovesongst hat

SurPaSSeSWhat onenndsi nMadri dorCadi z．merui nsof Dj i d－

Hadgi ，Ont hebanksort heVol ga，aWakenhi st ast ef brhorror

andshudderi ng．Si mi l arl y，i nChi na，duri ngabreaki nt hepol i t i －

Cal f abri c，Wel eamabout t headvent uresof youngGouri ev，Who

hasbeenat t ackedbyrobbersandboundt oat ree：くくSCeneSi nt e－

ressant esaunromanal aRadcl i f re，〉〉but t hescenei svi si bl ybe－

i ngput asi dei brrut ureuse（I I ，197）．

Wi t hout t hi sl i t erarysense and hi s st rongl magi nat i on，Po－

t ocki woul dnot havemanagedt oachi evet hedari ngandbri 1－

1i ant ext rapol at i onsof hi st ravel st ot heCaucasus，pnnCI Pal l yas

COnCemSt hei nt erpret at i onof myt hsandt hel i nksbet weenan－

ci ent andmodempopul at i ons．GeorgesDumezi l procedesi nt he

verysamef ashi onwhenhebui l dshi sf amousmodel of t r i 血nc－

t i onal ci vi l i zat i on（SOVrei gnt y／war／product i on）on a si mi l ar

met hodof compari son．Ant i ci pat i ngBergson，Pot ocki makesof

i nt ui t i on based on ani mmense cul t ure a means of acqumng

knowl edgeand，i nt hi srespect ，t heki nshi pbet weent het ast ef or

grandi osesyst emst hat appearsi nt heMdnuseri t t rowi ‘ Sal ・a－

90SSeandt heat t empt sat cul t ural synt hesest obef oundi nt he

t ravel st ot heCaucasusbearwi t nesst ot heuni t yof hi st hought ．

23

Thi swayorredi scovenngmyt hsundemeat ht hedet ai l sorrea1－

1i f bexperi encei si ndeedqui t est r l uCt ural i st ．

Knowl edgeandI I nperi ahsm

Evenwhenhei sobservl ngPhenomenat hat previ ousl ywoul d

most cert ai nl yhavef umi shedhi mpi ct uresquemat eri al s，Pot ocki

bendshi spent ot hei deol ogl cal goal shehasset f brhi msel f ’ ．me

count l esst hi evesandbandi t st hat aret al kedabout andwhomhe

Observesamongt heTchet chenes，t heI ngouchs，andt heTcher－

kessesarenol ongerendowedwi t ht hechamsof advent ure；i n－

St eadt heybecomei nst i gat orsandsupport ersort roubl est hat ob－

St ruct t he advent of Russi an orderand Govemment al Reason；

t heybl i ndl yki l l andmassacret hei rf el l owmen・Theport rai t sof

bandi t si nt he砂ageauCaucasehavet hent heopposi t econno－

t at i onof t hosef bundi nt he Manuseri t ，andt heyserveasl egal

j ust i ncat i ons f brRussi ani nt ervent i oni nくくl abal ance pol i t i que

duCaucase．》Thi si npart i cul ari swhat Al exanderPushki n，an一

〇t herent husi ast of Russi anexpani oni smi nt heTrans－Caucasus，

appreci at edi n Pot ocki ’ s account s when Kl aprot h publ i shed

t hemi n1829；henot esi nhi s砂agel i ErzerOum，Wri t t eni n1835

t hat t heCount ’ ssci ent i ncresearch“ i sascapt i vat i ngashi sSpan－

i shnovel s．，，13

ThePot ocki of t hel at t eryearsi st hus aprof bundl ydi vi ded

man，andt hi si nwardwaveri ngbet weenaworkof nct i ont hat i s

absorbi ngbut conndent i al andawi l l f brbri l l i ant pol i t i cal act i on

must surel yaccount i npart f brt hennal psychi cbreakdown・

Thepri dehederi vesf Tomknowl ngt hat hei st hebest Ori en－

t al i st i nt heRussi anEmpi rel eadshi mi nDecember1804t osol i －

Ci t f rom t he Tzar a posi t i oni n t he Asi at i c Depart ment ・No

SOOnerhasheobt ai nedt hi sappoi nt ment t hanhedreamsorbe一

〇〇mi ngdi rect orof t heDepart ment ；hi sent i ret r i pt oChi nai n

1805－1806bearst hest ampof t hi sobsessi on．I nordert oj ust j 時

Suchanambi t i onhecani ndeedcongrat ul at ehi msel f onhavi ng

al readysuccessf ul l ycompl et edapart orhi s expansi oni st pr0－

13Al eksandrSergeyevi chPushki n・OewresCompt i t es（i nRussi an：ml ・

noesobTani esoeJ neni i Udl 巾at i t omah）（Moscow，1964），VI （prose），

632．

24

j ect s：t hankst ot hesupport orhi scompat ri ot andrel at i ve，t he

mi ni st erCzart oryski ，hehasmanagedt oresumet hecampal gn

agai nst Persi at hat wasi nt enupt edbyPaul I ・Andt heresul t i s

not negl i gi bl e‥ General Tsi t si anovhasgot t enhi msel f ki l l edat －

t acki ngBakou，but t hat ci t y，al ongwi t ht hewhol eorAzerbi ad・

J an，i shencef brt hRussi an・Hi sreadi ngl SnOWt umedt owardt he

West ernt heoret i ci ansof col oni zat i on，Hogendropl nPart i cul ar，

andt owardt heoret i ci ans of l i beral economi cs，Whomhei st he

nrst i n Russi at o di scover，al bei t somewhat obl i quel yt hrough

J ean－Bapt i st eSay．

Oncecanreadi l yunderst andwhyPot ocki ’ sl et t ersf l omChi －

na，eVent hought heyarewri t t eni nhi si ni mi t abl est yl eandare

St i l l rul l of ast ut eobservat i ons，nOl ongerhavemuchi ncommon

Wi t hnovel i st i cl i t erat ure．Theyare，neVert hel ess，qui t ei nt erest i ng

t oanal yzei nordert omarkj ust howt heEnl i ght enment vocabu－

l aryundergoes，at t hi sst age，i nt hemi ndsof ari st ocrat si nspi red

byJ osephdeMai st re－Mai st reandPot ocki wereconst ant l yi n

OneanOt her ’ scompanyi nSai nt Pet ersburg－aradi cal semant i c

reversal ．TheOri ent －andpart i cul arl yAsi a－nOl ongerhast he

rennedexot i ccharmt hat Pot ocki l ent i t i nhi snrst t ravel l ogs．I t

has t umedi nt o al and t o be col oni zed．‘ ‘ Ci vi l i zat i on’ ’ must be

brought i n，i ．e．，i t must beopenedt ot radewi t ht heonl ynat i on

t hat hasmanaged，af t ert heshi pwreckof al l val uesi nFrance，t O

preservet heBnl i ght enment ：t heRussi aof Al exanderI ．TheCau－

CaSi ancount ri es，Ameni aandGeorgl aeSpeCi al l y，aSWel l asSi －

beri aandChi na，needt obepol i ced，Whi chi st osayt heymust be

brought t orespect t hef orcesorordert hat t heRussi answi l l i m－

pose．Thepol i t i cal “ real i sm” expressedi nt heset ravel si snot h一

mgmOret hant hequi et cynl cl SmWereadi nt heみ，St emeAsi at i －

que t hat i s preoccupyl ng Pot ocki duri ng t hese same years；

Therei n our t ravel er ’ s mi ndi sl ul l ed and comf brt ed wi t h even

moregrandi oseandmoredi st urbi ngperspect i ves：i nsuccessi on

We nnd pl ans f br t hei nvasi ons of Persi a，I ndi a，and Chi na．

Rousseauandt he“ moral i st s’ ’ arerej ect edwi t hscom，andwi t h

great f anf arei t i sprocl ai medt hat ，i nanyevent ，《t Out eSOuVerai －

net eremont eauneusurpat i on．》14

14vQyageS，11，193，andi ngeneral t heent i reaccount of t het r i pt oChi －

na．

25

Af t erhi s prot ect orCzart oryski f bl l s f rom pol i t i cal gracei n

1806，What everef Tbrt sPot ocki makest omai nt ai nhi sposi t i oni n

Asi at i ca鮒l i rsaredoomedt of ai l ure．Af t er1808，Cut Of rf i omt he

POl i t i cal act i onhesomuchl ongedf branddepri vedof t hepossi －

bi l i t yof undert aki ngnewt ravel s，hepi nes，WaSt eSaWayunder

t hegnawl ngSkept i ci smwhi chhehasharboredf brsol ong，andi s

reducedt osui ci de．Andsot heaccount s of hi s t ravel st hrowan

i ndi spensi bl el i ght upont hat uni versal rel at i vi t y and doubt so

Of t enexpressedi nt heManuseTi t t l ・OuueaSara90SSe．Thet ravel s

al soat t est t ot heomnl preSent charact erof t heOri ent i nt hel i f e

andworksof anaut horwhot ooreadi l y一〇rt OOearl y－t hought

t hat hecoul dpassnoml i t erarydi l et t ant i smt ot hemost cyni cal

POl i t i cal domi nat i on，Andnnal l yt het ravel sbearwi t nesst ot hat

t err i bl yraremoment i nt hehi st oryof t hought whenreasonand

SenSi t i vi t y，f arf bmt hest eri l i zi ngl mPerat i vest hat aret of bl l ow，

mut ual l yconf ront oneanot herandf breshadowast r i ki ngl ymod－

emant hropol ogi cal t ot al i t y．

（TJ ansl at edb，Wi l l L．MeLendon）

26