DiotimosReading Desk

Ethics

Heinous crime

forfait

A grave crime or outrage, not a fixed-price package or ordinary forfeit in a game.

From the book

The Gods Are Athirst

Anatole France · Diotimos Editions · 2026

Browse this book’s lexicon →

Meaning

Lemma.

A grave crime or outrage, not a fixed-price package or ordinary forfeit in a game. Gamelin’s horrible et vertueux forfait describes Orestes’ act as simultaneously atrocious and dutiful. Its force lies in refusing to dissolve the contradiction between sacred obedience and what human beings will never forgive.

Places to read

  1. Chapter VII, paragraph 9Frenchhorrible et vertueux forfait: Horrible and virtuous crime. The oxymoron belongs to Gamelin’s interpretation of Orestes.