The monument, located in the Jardin du Luxembourg, is simply a pedestal about 12 feet tall with a medallion bearing Stendhal's likeness in relief. The words "A Stendhal" are engraved on the monument. A nearby placard reads:
"STENDHAL
Auguste Rodin (1840-1917)
Ce medaillon en bronze representant
Stendhal, integre a une simple stele, a ete
execute par Rodin d'apres un dessin du
sculpteur David d'Angers."
which translated means:
"Stendhal
Auguste Rodin (1840-1917)
This medallion in bronze represents
Stendhal, integrated in a single stele,
and was executed by Rodin
after a drawing by the sculptor David D'Angers."
Stendhal wasn't really appreciated during his lifetime. He didn't come into favor until the 19th century. He was writing in a realistic and analytic style while readers were still enamored of the Romantic writers. He spent much of his career in Italy.
Wikipedia (
visit link) further informs us:
"Stendhal was a dandy and wit about town in Paris, as well as an inveterate womaniser who was obsessed with his sexual conquests. His genuine empathy towards women is evident in his books; Simone de Beauvoir spoke highly of him in The Second Sex. He seems to have preferred desire to consummation. One of his early works is On Love, a rational analysis of romantic passion that was based on his unrequited love for Mathilde, Countess Dembowska, whom he met while living at Milan. This fusion of, and tension between, clear-headed analysis and romantic feeling is typical of Stendhal's great novels; he could be considered a Romantic realist.
Stendhal suffered miserable physical disabilities in his final years as he continued to produce some of his best work. As he noted in his journal, he was taking iodide of potassium and quicksilver to treat his syphilis, resulting in swollen armpits, difficulty swallowing, pains in his shrunken testicles, sleeplessness, giddiness, roaring in the ears, racing pulse and tremors so bad he could scarcely hold a fork or a pen. Indeed, he dictated Charterhouse in this pitiable state. Modern medicine has shown that his health problems were more attributable to his treatment than to his syphilis."