A Short History of French Literature (from the Earliest Texts to the Close of the Nineteenth Century): By George Saintsbury ... |
Contents
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Common terms and phrases
admirable appeared ballades Bellay Boileau Bonaventure des Périers born Brantôme called Chansons Chansons de Gestes chapter character characteristics Charles chief chiefly chronicle classical comedy considerable contains contemporaries Corneille criticism curious D'Aubigné death decasyllable Descartes deserves died drama dramatist early edition eighteenth century excellence famous farce France François French literature French poetry imitated importance interest Italian Jean Jodelle kind language later Latin less letters literary history Louis Louis XIV Madame Madame de Sévigné Malherbe manner Marguerite Marot mediaeval memoirs mentioned merit middle ages Molière Montaigne moral novel original Paris peculiar perhaps period philosophical pieces Pierre plays Pléiade poems poet poetical political Pontus de Tyard popular prose published Rabelais Racine Regnier remarkable Renaissance rhétoriqueur romance Ronsard satire seventeenth century sixteenth century sonnets story style tion tragedy translated Trouvères verse vigorous Villon vols Voltaire writers written wrote
Popular passages
Page 433 - Les héros de Corneille disent de grandes choses sans les inspirer; ceux de Racine les inspirent sans les dire; les uns parlent et longuement afin de se faire connaître, les autres se font connaître parce qu'ils parlent.
Page 241 - Ils rampent bassement, foibles d'inventions, Et n'osent, peu hardis, tenter les fictions, Froids à l'imaginer : car s'ils font quelque chose, C'est proser de la rime, et rimer de la prose...
Page 5 - A ezo nos voldret concreidre li rex pagiens; ad une spede li roveret tolir lo chief. La domnizelle celle kose non contredist, volt lo seule lazsier, si ruovet Krist. In figure de colomb volat...
Page 186 - Ronsard, qui le suivit, par une autre méthode, Réglant tout, brouilla tout, fit un art à sa mode, Et toutefois longtemps eut un heureux destin. Mais sa muse, en français parlant grec et latin, Vit dans l'âge suivant, par un retour grotesque, Tomber de ses grands mots le faste pédantesque.
Page 4 - Pro Deo amur et pro Christian poblo et nostro commun salvament, d'ist di in avant, in quant Deus savir et podir me dunat, si salvarai eo cist meon fradre Karlo et in aiudha et in cadhuna cosa, si cum om per dreit son fradra salvar dift, in o quid il mi altresi fazet et ab Ludher nul plaid nunquam prindrai qui, meon vol, cist meon fradre Karle in damno sit.
Page 4 - Qu'elle Deo raneiet, chi maent sus en ciel, Ne por or ned argent ne paramenz, Por manatce regiel ne preiement; Niule cose non la pouret omque pleier La polle sempre non amast lo Deo menestier.
Page 301 - The precise origin of the fancy for writing fairy stories, which took possession of polite society in France at the end of the seventeenth century, has been the subject of much discussion, and cannot be said to have been finally settled. Probably the fables of La Fontaine, which are very closely allied to the style, may have given the required impulse. As soon as an example was set this style was seen to lend itself very well to the still surviving fancy for coterie compositions, and the total amount...
Page 241 - Qu'à regratter un mot douteux au jugement, Prendre garde qu'un qui ne heurte une diphtongue, Espier si des vers la rime est breve ou longue, Ou bien si la voyelle, à l'autre s'unissant, Ne rend point à l'oreille un vers trop languissant: Et laissent sur le verd le noble de l'ouvrage.
Page 183 - He also wrote numerous smaller poems, including one on the battle of Ivry. The ' First Week of Creation' is his greatest and most famous work. It went through thirty editions in a few years ; was translated into English by Sylvester, gave not a little inspiration to Milton, and was warmly admired by Goethe. Ronsard at first eagerly welcomed Du Bartas ; but his jealousy being aroused by the pretensions of the Calvinist party to set up their poet as a rival to himself, he resented this in an indignant...
Page 73 - Nibelunge," such as it was written down at the end of the twelfth, or the beginning of the thirteenth century, is