Getting Outside instead of Inside of Her Clothes

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Mher

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Hi, friends

Please, provide how you read the underlined part.

"Oh, Madame Joyeuse was a fool!" she exclaimed; "but there was really much sound sense, after all, in the
opinion of Eugénie Salsafette. She was a very beautiful and painfully modest young lady, who thought the ordinary
mode of habiliment indecent, and wished to dress herself, always, by getting outside instead of inside of her
clothes. It is a thing very easily done, after all. You have only to do so — and then so — so — so — and then so —
so — so — and then —"
"Mon dieu! Mam'selle Salsafette!" here cried a dozen voices at once. "What are you about? — forbear! — that
is sufficient! — we see, very plainly, how it is done! — hold! hold!" and several persons were already leaping
from their seats to withhold Mam'selle Salsafette from putting herself upon a par with the Medicean Venus, when
the point was very effectually and suddenly accomplished by a series of loud screams, or yells, from some portion
of the main body of the chateau.

Perhaps, the madam perceived nakedness as being dressed? The second paragraph contains a hint of it.
 

Charlie Bernstein

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Always tell us where quotes come from. That helps a lot. I had to look it up.

It's not clear why she thinks ordinary clothes are indecent. It's just clear that she's undressing. I don't see the hint in the second paragraph.

Since the story is about mentally ill people, it might just be an unusual idea she has about decency.
 

Mher

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Always tell us where quotes come from. That helps a lot. I had to look it up.

It's not clear why she thinks ordinary clothes are indecent. It's just clear that she's undressing. I don't see the hint in the second paragraph.

Since the story is about mentally ill people, it might just be an unusual idea she has about decency.
Sorry, friends. This is an excerpt from one of Poe's stories titled "The System of Dr. Tarr and Professor Fether." See the link to it: https://poestories.com/read/systemoftarr.
I guess the hint is that madam is trying to make herself look like the Medicean Venus which is a naked sculpture of Aphrodite.
 
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