Correspondance de Gijsbert Karel van Hogendorp (1762-1834) avec sa mère Carolina van Haren (1741-1812). Une formation morale, intellectuelle et sociale par le biais du français langue seconde

Abstract

In eighteenth-century Holland French as a second language was widely adopted by the upper classes. An excellent case in point is provided by the Van Hogendorp family, whose archives comprise numerous documents illustrating their use of French. In this chapter we study the correspondence between Gijsbert Karel van Hogendorp (1762-1834) and his mother Carolina van Haren which enables us to bring out the paradoxical nature of the use of French: the language used in this exchange of letters and thus part of the young man's moral, social and intellectual upbringing is also the medium through which he becomes aware of his identity as a Durchman