Manon Lescaut

In the Foreword, Monsieur de Renoncour, narrator of the Memoirs and Adventures of a Man of Quality, explains why he has published the story of Des Grieux and Manon separately. Renoncour first argues that the story is extraneous, that “a narrative ought to be pruned of details that would otherwise make it heavy and confused” (2). He also claims that Des Grieux and Manon’s star-crossed love affair serves as “a terrible example of the power of the passions” (3) and hopes that it will help readers make better choices. Indeed, Renoncour claims, “it contains few events that cannot serve as an aid to moral instruction; and it does the public no small service […] to instruct while entertaining them” (3). Ultimately, the story is “a moral treatise, appealingly presented as a practical example” (4). Prévost ends this section in his own voice, noting that he has corrected “a great number of gross errors” and made some additions as well (4).

Renoncour explains how he first met Des Grieux. While travelling on an errand for his daughter, Renoncour stopped in Pacy, a town about 45 miles outside of Paris.