Equanimity - if not a poetics, then what?: "Reading La Rochefoucauld I realize I have no idea what he means by 'amour-propre' -- is that supposed to cover the entire spectrum from gluttonous vanity to self-preservation, or what?"

... just when I was about to observe that nobody reads La Rochefoucauld anymore. There is a high level of generality in his maximes. I understand amour-propre as basic self-regard/pride/dignity. La Roch seems to view it as a basic part of everybody's personality, but at the same time as something to be criticized generically. That is, he cannot imagine human personality without this factor, yet finds much to criticize in it. All other apparent motives seem to boil down to the attempt to preserve a basic image of oneself (for oneself and in the eyes of others as well.) The target of his satire is just about everyone, not merely those whose flaws are obvious.