170 de Bmxelles, May 13, 1877, pp. 148-49; and Per- encouraged by the recent appearance of Zola's Notes rot, Dessus et dessous, p. 282, who observes that Nana in feuilleton in Le Voltaire, starting in Oc- to Pages only pale-colored plain stockings were worn by re- tober 1879. spectable women. 76. Hofmann (Nana) reports tantalizingly but 75-78 In the following Goncourt journal entry of Dec. without follow-through that the police had to be 4, 1878 (Journal des Goncourts, Paris, 1956, vol. 2, called. I have not undertaken an analysis of the p. 1,274), a man makes known his sexual excite- critical reaction to Nana in 1877 that comes close ment with his wife by offering an erotic gift of to the scale or extent of my study of the reaction to special stockings: "II doity avoir pas mal de liber - Gervex's Rolla in 1878 (see below). This is not be- tinage dans les honnetes menages bourgeois. Au- cause I fancy one picture or event over the other, jourd'hui, une de ces bourgeoises que je vois chez but because art critical writing about Nana was re- Burty montrait a sa femme une serie de cartons grettably very limited. Indeed, the sparseness of remplis de bas excitants. . . . Done, il arrive de 1877 writings on Nana encouraged me to move certains jours ou Ton voit tout a coup son grave et on to a discussion of closely related displays in prudhommesque mari, qui est juge au Tribunal de Manet's 1880 exhibition at La Vie Moderne. Commerce, se precipiter soudain dehors, comme 77. "Le Monde Parisien," Le Soleil, May 3, s'il avait la plus grave affaire, et rapporter au bout !877» P-3- d'une heure une paire de bas de la derniere co- 78. "Plus que nue, en chemise, elle etale, la cotterie, demandant a sa femme de 1'essayer im- fille,/Ses appas et sa chair qui tente. La voila./ mediatement" (There must be a fair amount of Elle a mis son corset de satin et s'habille/Calme, libertinism in bourgeois marriages. Today, one of pres d'un monsieur, pour la voir venu la" ("Nana," the bourgeois women whom I see at Burty's was Le Tintamarre, May 13, 1877, p. 2). showing her maid a series of boxes filled with ex- 79. "Elle est cent fois infame cette grue" (ibid.). citing stockings. ... So it happens that on certain 80. Huysmans, "Nana," p. 148. This was three days one sees her somber and conventional hus- years prior to his writing on Forain, quoted and band, who is a Court of Commerce judge, sud- discussed in chap. 2. denly running outside, as though he had the most 81. "Le luxe des dessous entrevus . . ." (ibid., serious item of business to attend to, bringing p. 148). He especially admired the stockings home in an hour's time a pair of stockings of the (p. 149): "Observation profond: les bas que des most complete coquettry, demanding of his wife personnes peu habituees sans doute aux desha- that she try them on immediately). billes emphatiques des filles, trouvent invraisem- 72. D. A. Miller, "The Novel and the Police," blables et durement rendus, sont absolument GlyphS (1981): i39ff. vrais; ce sont ces bas a la trame serree, ces bas qui 73. For all its untypicality vis-a-vis the avant- luisent sourdement et se fabriquent, je crois, a garde record on this theme, Manet's avoidance of Londres" (Profound observation: the stockings certain conventions in Nana — emphasizing ap- that people undoubtedly unaccustomed to the pearance over action (although there is somewhat affected deshabille of prostitutes find unrealistic more "action" here than is usual in Impressionist and harshly rendered, are absolutely true; these figure paintings) — is a point of similarity with are tightly woven stockings, which have a dull most other pictures on the subject of prostitution shine and are manufactured, I believe, in Lon- turned out in the 18708 and early i88os by him don); "L'aristocracie du vice se reconnait au linge." and other members of the Impressionist circle. 82. "La soie, c'est la marque de fabrique des 74. The former was exhibited as La Toilette, courtisanes qui se louent cher. . . . Nana est done catalog no. 16; it is no. 22 in vol. 2 of Denis Rou- arrivee, dans le tableau du peintre, au sommet en- art and Daniel Wildenstein, Manet: Catalogue vie par ses semblables et, intelligente et corrom- raisonne, Lausanne, 1975. The latter was catalog pue comme elle est, elle a compris que 1'elegance no. 8; it is no. 264 in vol. 2 of Rouart and Wild- des bas et des mules . . . etait, a coup sur, 1'un des enstein. For a complete list of works included in adjuvants les plus precieux que les filles de joie La Vie Moderne exhibition, see La Vie Moderne, aient inventes pour culbuter les hommes" (ibid., Apr. 10, 1880, p. 239. p. 149). 75. The references to Nana were no doubt also 83. Cachin, Manet, p. 392.