![](http://www.tumblr.com/share/photo?source=http%3A%2F%2Flibbymurphy.com%2Fhumancomedy%2Fstorage%2Fcache%2Fimages%2F000%2F021%2F195179171%2Clarge.jpg%3F1382211474&caption=%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E%3Ca href="http%3A%2F%2Flibbymurphy.com%2Fhumancomedy%2Falbums%2Fparis-carnival%2Fcontent%2Fy-aurait-il%2F" title="Y aurait-il quelque indiscrétion"%3EY aurait-il quelque indiscrétion%3C/a%3E%3C/strong%3E%3C/p%3E%3Cp%3EPaul Gavarni
(French, 1804–1866)
Y aurait-il quelque indiscrétion[…]? (Would it be indiscreet[…]?), ca. 1853
Lithograph
Gift of Eugene L. Garbaty, 1951.79.171
These middle-aged Pierrots are hopelessly out of touch with youth culture. Rather than leave their daily concerns behind them in the spirit of carnival, they huddle around talking “shop.”
By the time Gavarni returns from his time in London, his enthusiasm for the masked ball has waned. Just as he turned his attention from the seductive lorette to the hag-gard lorette vieillie, during this period, he turned from the flirtatious débardeur to the aging Pierrot. A type with a long and rich history, the Pierrot figure was given new life by the great 19th-century pantomime artist Jean-Gaspard De-burau (1796-1846), who played the sad clown at the Théâtre des Funambules.
... Y aurait-il quelque indiscrétion à demander à ces messieurs leurs avis sur la composition du nouveau ministère ?
… Would it be indiscreet to ask these gentlemen their opinion about the composition of the new ministry?
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The Human Comedy: Chronicles of 19th-Century France
Y aurait-il quelque indiscrétion
Paul Gavarni (French, 1804–1866) Y aurait-il quelque indiscrétion[…]? (Would it be indiscreet[…]?), ca. 1853 Lithograph Gift of Eugene L. Garbaty, 1951.79.171
These middle-aged Pierrots are hopelessly out of touch with youth culture. Rather than leave their daily concerns behind them in the spirit of carnival, they huddle around talking “shop.”
By the time Gavarni returns from his time in London, his enthusiasm for the masked ball has waned. Just as he turned his attention from the seductive lorette to the hag-gard lorette vieillie, during this period, he turned from the flirtatious débardeur to the aging Pierrot. A type with a long and rich history, the Pierrot figure was given new life by the great 19th-century pantomime artist Jean-Gaspard De-burau (1796-1846), who played the sad clown at the Théâtre des Funambules.
... Y aurait-il quelque indiscrétion à demander à ces messieurs leurs avis sur la composition du nouveau ministère ?
… Would it be indiscreet to ask these gentlemen their opinion about the composition of the new ministry?