Lovelace, Don Juan, ladies' man - at the time of our grandparents, the so-called gallant courteous men. They knew how to deftly "approach the pen", that is, to kiss a lady's hand, to say a florid compliment, they were pleasant in communication and extremely seductive. The days of sophisticated gentlemen are long gone. But the words defining this type of men remained in our language, although they are used quite rarely. Get to know them better!
Dictionary tour
As always, to identify the meaning of the word, we turn to the explanatory dictionaries. And they said that the womanizer is a seducer of women, red tape (who drags them, that is, cares), is constantly looking for new love adventures, is unstable in relations with ladies. Synonyms for the word are the names “Casanova”, “Don Juan”, “reveler”, “libertine”, “smoothie”. Now Lovelace is a household name. However, it comes from its own - the name of the hero of the work of art.
Ah, these sentimental novels!
In the first half of the 18th century, sentimentalism reigned in Western literature. This direction was characterized by the writer’s increased attention to the psychological state of a person, his emotional experiences, the world of feelings - “sentiment”. Lovelace is the name of the protagonist of the moralizing sentimental novel of the
English writer Richardson, "Clarissa, or the Story of a Young Lady." A young girl, delicate, gentle, sensitive, romantic, becomes a victim of treacherous harassment and the seduction of an intelligent, prudent, cynical, treacherous aristocrat with the appearance of an angel. With the publication of the book in the community, the name Lovelace has taken root. This word has become a household name for windy men, striving for burdensome, promising nothing of love intrigue, flirting, adventure.
The charm of villainy
Richardson's novel was a wild success not only among the English reading public. Its content was well known to the educated part of the population of Western and Eastern Europe, as well as the New World. In Russia, ladies read to them, dreaming of a fatal hero-lover. Pushkin in "Eugene Onegin" says that his Tatyana fell in love with "deceits of both Richardson and Russo." The author of the work even complained that his negative hero, the womanizer man, is more popular than the virtuous and decent Clarissa. Critics of that time, like today's ones, are unanimous in their opinion that Richardson's Lovelace is one of the most striking, original, and interesting characters in English literature. This image of "Satan" in the "guise of a gentleman" - charming, witty, fearless, courageous and not knowing pity.
It is interesting
Having found out who the womanizer is, we will continue our research. From the pages of the novel, the name stepped into the big world and was picked up by other writers, already in the 18th century becoming a household word. However, having entered into widespread usage, it is written in Russian a little differently than in the original language. The English have the correct surname - Lovelace, which means “love lace”. That is, Richardson named the hero for a reason, and with a hint of his ability to weave love intrigues, the craftswomen weave lace: gracefully, subtly, cunning, sophisticated. The Russian version arose, perhaps, by analogy with the word "catch" - Lovelace. Synonyms for him were selected appropriate: lecherous, windy, don Juan. But the same Pushkin, an excellent expert in literature, who has a subtle linguistic instinct, in Onegin used the correct form of his surname - Lovlas. And Lovelys is a surname very widespread among the English!
I’ll recognize my dear by ...
Great examples of the smoothie were given to us by our Russian literature. Remember Onegin! He was a true genius of the "science of tender passion" - flirting and seduction. What Pushkin writes about this: from his youth, Eugene could “hypocrite, appear languid, languish, disbelieve, make him believe”, was “languidly silent” and “fieryly eloquent”. Onegin did not cost anything to disturb the hearts of the "coquette notes", to fall in love with himself, then, in the current language, to "quit." A womanizer guy would be what his current youth would have described him. And would, in fact, be right! Another wonderful example of heartbreaking is Pechorin from The Hero of Our Time. As he played by the notes he seduced Princess Mary. Managed to fall in love with Bela. For many years, Vera was the victim of his inconstant nature. As the hero himself correctly noted, his feelings for women were not a source of happiness and joy, but disappointment and unfulfilled hopes.
Psychological picture
Let's try to deduce the characteristic features of the real womanizer. First of all, these are men who are completely confident, initiative, able to take everything under their control - from the first steps of seduction to the end of the novel. It is easy for them to take and get to know the lady they like anywhere: in transport, cafes, on the street, company. And even if a woman is already married, or she has a fan - it does not matter, this fact will not stop the real Casanova. On the contrary, he will give the situation much-needed sharpness and piquancy to this type of men. After all, the lovelace, rather, is not interested in the final result, but in the process of “hunting” itself, the development of tactics and strategies and their phased implementation. Naturally, such men are damn charming, courteous. Some pretend to be romantic and act accordingly.
Armfuls of flowers, beautiful courtship, gifts, candlelit dinners - the womanizer and they themselves enjoy the intrigue that they lead. After all, often they are true aesthetics! And playing on the gentle strings of the female soul for such people is a real pleasure. Whether or not to succumb to seducers depends on the ladies themselves. You want vivid impressions, a holiday today, but without the hope that it will last tomorrow, then the womanizer is the ideal gentleman for you. Afraid to stay with a broken heart - stay away from him!