Note 170 — III. OF WOMEN.
Henri Van Laun translation
At the time La Bruyère wrote, nearly every fashionable lady had, besides her father-confessor, a spiritual director, who was her “guide, philosopher, and friend.” Boileau, in his tenth satire, says:—
“Mais de tous les mortels, grâce aux dévotes âmes, Nul nʼest si bien soigné quʼun directeur de femmes.”