Antoine Furetière
Encyclopedia
Antoine Furetière French
scholar and writer, was born in Paris
.
and after various promotions became abbé of Chalivoy in the diocese of Bourges in 1662. In his leisure moments he devoted himself to letters, and in virtue of his satires—Nouvelle Allégorique, ou histoire des derniers troubles arrivés au royaume d'éloquence (1658) and Voyage de Mercure (1653)—he was admitted as a member of the Académie française
in 1662. The academy had long promised a complete dictionary
of the French language; and when the members heard that Furetière was on the point of issuing a work of a similar nature, they interfered, alleging that he had purloined from their stores and that they possessed the exclusive privilege of publishing such a book.
After much recrimination on both sides, Furetière was expelled in 1685; but he took revenge in his satire, Couches de l'académie (Amsterdam, 1687). His Dictionnaire universel was posthumously published in 1690 (Rotterdam, 2 vols.). It was revised and improved by the Protestant jurist Henri Basnage de Beauval
(1656–1710), who published his edition (3 vols.) in 1701, and it was superseded only by the compilation known as the Dictionnaire de Trévoux
(Paris, 3 vols., 1704; 7th ed., 5 vols., 1771), a lexicon with which some Jesuits were occasionally affiliated and that drew heavily from the Dictionnaire universel.
Furetière also wrote Le Roman bourgeois (1666), which cast ridicule on the fashionable romances of Madeleine de Scudéry
and of Gauthier de Costes, seigneur de la Calprenède
, and described the everyday life of his times, especially the legal profession. Because of its similarity to Paul Scarron's Le Roman comique (1651, 1657), it was translated into English as Scarron's City Romance in 1671. With a self-conscious narrator who comments on his techniques and disregards the conventions the novel, it anticipates Laurence Sterne's Tristram Shandy in many ways. A collected Fureteriana appeared in Paris eight years after his death.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
scholar and writer, was born in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
Biography
He studied law and practised for a time as an advocate, but eventually took ordersHoly Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
and after various promotions became abbé of Chalivoy in the diocese of Bourges in 1662. In his leisure moments he devoted himself to letters, and in virtue of his satires—Nouvelle Allégorique, ou histoire des derniers troubles arrivés au royaume d'éloquence (1658) and Voyage de Mercure (1653)—he was admitted as a member of the Académie française
Académie française
L'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
in 1662. The academy had long promised a complete dictionary
Dictionary
A dictionary is a collection of words in one or more specific languages, often listed alphabetically, with usage information, definitions, etymologies, phonetics, pronunciations, and other information; or a book of words in one language with their equivalents in another, also known as a lexicon...
of the French language; and when the members heard that Furetière was on the point of issuing a work of a similar nature, they interfered, alleging that he had purloined from their stores and that they possessed the exclusive privilege of publishing such a book.
After much recrimination on both sides, Furetière was expelled in 1685; but he took revenge in his satire, Couches de l'académie (Amsterdam, 1687). His Dictionnaire universel was posthumously published in 1690 (Rotterdam, 2 vols.). It was revised and improved by the Protestant jurist Henri Basnage de Beauval
Henri Basnage de Beauval
Henri Basnage de Beauval was a French Huguenot historian and lexicographer, known also as a journal editor.-Life:He was born at Rouen, son of the advocate Henri Basnage de Franquesnay and brother of Jacques Basnage. After the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes, he made some attempts to stay in...
(1656–1710), who published his edition (3 vols.) in 1701, and it was superseded only by the compilation known as the Dictionnaire de Trévoux
Dictionnaire de Trévoux
The Dictionnaire de Trévoux, as the Dictionnaire universel françois et latin was unofficially and then officially nicknamed because of its publication in the town of Trévoux , appeared in several editions from 1704 to 1771...
(Paris, 3 vols., 1704; 7th ed., 5 vols., 1771), a lexicon with which some Jesuits were occasionally affiliated and that drew heavily from the Dictionnaire universel.
Furetière also wrote Le Roman bourgeois (1666), which cast ridicule on the fashionable romances of Madeleine de Scudéry
Madeleine de Scudéry
Madeleine de Scudéry , often known simply as Mademoiselle de Scudéry, was a French writer. She was the younger sister of author Georges de Scudéry.-Biography:...
and of Gauthier de Costes, seigneur de la Calprenède
Gauthier de Costes, seigneur de la Calprenède
Gauthier de Costes, seigneur de la Calprenède was a French novelist and dramatist. He was born at the Château of Tolgou in Salignac-Eyvigues . After studying at Toulouse, he came to Paris and entered the regiment of the guards, becoming in 1650 gentleman-in-ordinary of the royal household...
, and described the everyday life of his times, especially the legal profession. Because of its similarity to Paul Scarron's Le Roman comique (1651, 1657), it was translated into English as Scarron's City Romance in 1671. With a self-conscious narrator who comments on his techniques and disregards the conventions the novel, it anticipates Laurence Sterne's Tristram Shandy in many ways. A collected Fureteriana appeared in Paris eight years after his death.