The Orient in Diderot's Indiscreet Jewels

Abstract

After the translation or adaptation of “Thousand and One Nights” into French by Antoine Galland, the Orient that has always been a center of interest for the Occident gained a new meaning and this gave birth to a series of books starting with “Thousand and One”. In French literature, one of the most important effects of this trend is undoubtedly the emergence of “le roman galant” that was inspired by the Orient and created by Crébillon fils. Although Diderot explained his main purpose of writing “The indiscreet Jewels” as to write an extension to “Thousand and One Nights” like Crébillon fils, the main reason was to criticise the social and political structure like many other contemporary writers did at that time. However, Diderot added to his criticism the ethics dimension in an oriental scenery, and he created an unexpected impact.