In the aftermath of the French Revolution, three women who have fled France--the straitlaced aristocrat Emilie, her lighthearted maid Jos phine, and the worldly Constance--try to make new lives for themselves in Altendorf, Germany. Their experiences, difficulties, and choices address the philosophical question, Are moral theories adequate guides to good conduct?
In her introduction to this late-eighteenth-century novel by Charri re, Emma...