Volume I of Oeuvres de Molière, avec des remarques grammaticales, des Avertissimens et des Observations sur chaque Pièce par M. Bret. A Paris, Par la Compagnie des libraires associés. M.D.CC.LXXIII. 1788

Printed in Paris in 1773, Jean-Michel Moreau’s engraving captures a scene from Molière’s play, "Les Précieuses Ridicules". Note the elaborate costumes and exaggerated gestures, emblematic of the précieuses—women who affected refined language and manners. The fan, prominently displayed, serves as more than an accessory; it’s a shield, a weapon of coquetry, and a symbol of social fencing. We see this emblem echoed across time, from ancient depictions of goddesses wielding palm fronds to the fluttering fans in Kabuki theater, each instance capturing a dance of power and concealment. Consider, too, how the mask—worn here to mock—has ancient roots in Dionysian rites, a tool for shedding identity, for unleashing primal impulses. The image hints at the cyclical nature of social satire: the eternal return of human folly, masked in the fashions of each age, prompting a collective, perhaps subconscious, need for periodic unmasking.