Every epoch has had its favorite flowers. If we would form a
correct opinion of the ideas, manners, and habits of a nation,
we have only to look at its bouquets. We pride ourselves on
being the first to advance the following aphorism: Flowers are
the expression of society.—from "The Fashion of Flowers," in Les
Fleurs Animées "Will you never, ladies, take pity on those poor
flowers, which are the most frequent tribute laid at your feet!
Will you not remember that they are severed from their parent
stems; that they have been brought to you that you may see them
die, and inhale their last fragrant sighs." And each floral
maiden is an expression of her designated flower, culled from
the garden of French Romanticism and its sentimental swoons.
Published in 1847, Les Fleurs Animées imagines a world where the
flowers reclaim the meanings bestowed upon them by a covetous
Victorian audience, and become actresses in their own drama.
They become nuns, nurses, village maidens. Exotic Lady Tulip
bewitches, while fair youn