Dangerous Liaisons

Letters are not only representative of the novel’s epistolary format, but they are also a central motif, as they are the primary means of communication between the characters. In the 18th century, there were really only three ways to communicate with others: direct speech, using messengers, or writing letters. Thus, receiving a letter was no small event and was extremely personal and private, which is illustrated by the fact that all characters save every letter written to them. Furthermore, in the case of a rupture in their relationships, the characters ask for their letters back because those letters contain very personal information that they would not want to be made public.

Thus, letters are often used to convey deception, manipulation, and betrayal, and are a symbol of the characters’ ability to control one another by filtering the information they wish to provide while withholding that which they wish to keep secret. This is, of course, most obvious in the letters from Merteuil or Valmont, but even Danceny and Cécile have their own secrets and half-truths. Furthermore, letters allow the characters a means to express sentiments they may struggle to express in speech. Danceny claims that “a letter is a portrait of the soul” (363), even though the statement is, under the circumstances, rather ironic: For most of the characters, letters are the surest means of obscuring their “souls” and their real intentions.