Dangerous Liaisons

Dangerous Liaisons is an epistolary novel (i.e., a story told through a series of letters) first published in 1782, seven years before the start of the French Revolution, by Pierre-Ambroise-François Choderlos de Laclos. The story revolves around the scheming and manipulative activities of two aristocrats, the Marquise de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont. They take pleasure in seducing and ruining the reputations of others, using their wit and charm to manipulate those around them. The novel explores themes of love, power, sexuality, and morality. The novel has been adapted into numerous films, such as the 1988 film of the same name starring John Malkovich, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Glenn Close. The novel has also been adapted into many plays and operas.

This guide uses the 2007 Penguin Classics edition, translated by Helen Constantine.

Content Warning: The source material contains allusions to sexual assaults, death by suicide, and a miscarriage.

Plot Summary

The novel opens with a series of letters between the Marquise de Merteuil and the Vicomte de Valmont, discussing their latest conquests and scheming to further their own reputations. Merteuil wishes to avenge herself of a past slight received from the Comte de Gercourt, who is engaged to Madame de Volanges’s 15-year-old daughter, Cécile.