Talk given by Ethel Groffier, Emeritus Researcher, Paul-André Crépeau Centre for Private and Comparative Law and hosted by ROAAr, McGill Library.
When: February 27, 2018
Location: Colgate Seminar Room, McLennan Library Building, Rare Books and Special Collections (4th floor), 3459 rue McTavish, Montreal, QC, H3A 0C9, CA
Description
French description below.
Ethel Groffier gave an engaging and illustrated tour through the work and art of James Forbes (1749-1819). Groffier focused on three of Forbes' works: an account of his "grand European tour," a collection of letters describing France on the eve of the first empire, and a beautifully illustrated book on India. Read together, Forbe's works throw an interesting light on two of the main events of the time: the effect of the French revolution on European countries and the rocky development of the British colonial empire. They also raise questions about Forbes' reaction to some of the controversies that divided public opinion in England. Was Forbes completely blind to the exactions of the East India Company? Did he really believe that Christianisation would make Indians happy? And, above all, how do we judge people of the past?
Ann Marie Holland curated an exhibition of material from Rare Books and Special Collections. This included a selection of Forbes' watercolour illustrations. These beautiful illustrations and volumes can be consulted on-site at McGill's Rare Books and Special Collections.
The collection can be consulted in the Rare Books Reading room Monday to Friday, 10 AM to 6 PM. Contact ann.marie.holland [at] mcgill.ca (Ann Marie Holland), Liaison Librarian Enlightenment Collections, for reference guidance.
Ethel Groffier a donné une visite intéressante et illustrée à travers le travail et l'art de James Forbes (1749-1819). Groffier se concentre sur trois œuvres de Forbes: un récit de sa «grande tournée européenne», un recueil de lettres décrivant la France à la veille du premier empire, et un livre magnifiquement illustré sur l'Inde. Lus ensemble, ces travaux de Forbes jettent un éclairage intéressant sur deux des principaux événements de l'époque: l'effet de la révolution française sur les pays européens et le développement de l'empire colonial britannique. Ils posent également des questions sur la réaction de Forbes à certaines controverses qui ont divisé l'opinion publique en Angleterre. Forbes était-il complètement aveugle aux exactions de la Compagnie des Indes orientales? Croyait-il vraiment que la christianisation rendrait les Indiens heureux? Et surtout, comment jugeons-nous les gens du passé?
La conférence s'accompagnait d'une exposition de matériaux de nos collections spéciales préparé par Ann Marie Holland. Inclus étaient une sélection des aquarelles de Forbes. Ces illustrations et volumes étonnantes peuvent être consultées sur place chez le département de livres rares et collections spéciales à McGill.
Bio
Born in Brussels, Ethel Groffier has a Doctorat en droit from the University of Brussels and a D.C.L. from McGill University. After working in Geneva Switzerland, then at the Civil Code Revision Office of Quebec, Groffier taught at McGill’s Faculty of Law specializing in Conflict of Laws and legal terminology from 1972-1996. In 2000, she was appointed Emeritus Researcher at the Paul-André Crépeau Centre for Private and Comparative Law. Her research interests include the Enlightenment.
