The Consecration of the Writer, 1750-1830: Le Sacre De L'Ecrivain (European Horizons) - Softcover

Benichou, Paul

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0803261527 ISBN 13: 9780803261525

Publisher: University of Nebraska Press, 1999

Synopsis

The Consecration of the Writer is the definitive study of the first stages of a phenomenon that has profoundly affected world literature: the process by which modern writers ceased to speak as representatives of some religious or political power and instead seized the mantle of spiritual authority in their own right, speaking directly to and in the name of humanity. Paul Bénichou identifies three great moments in this process: the advent of the Enlightenment faith in philosophy and the rise of its literary concomitant, the man of letters; the literary creations of the counterrevolution and their surprising involvement in the elevation of the status of poetry; and, finally, the fusion of these tendencies in the early phases of romanticism in France. Bénichou deepens our understanding of romanticism by showing that it was a revision of the Enlightenment faith rather than a reaction against it. The extraordinary depth of Bénichou’s research, the originality of his conclusions, and the importance of his methodological reflections make this study an essential reference in the contemporary return to literary history.

About this title

About the Author:

Paul Bénichou is a graduate of the École Normale Supérieure. He taught at Harvard from 1959 to 1979 and is the author of the classic Morales du grand siècle. Mark K. Jensen is an associate professor of French at Pacific Lutheran University and has written numerous essays on nineteenth-century French literature and the work of Bénichou.

Review:

"If indeed there is a return to literary history, Paul Benichou's work might well serve as a model. Over several decades, with fanfare he pursued a vast project ... Le Sacre de l'ecrivain, which inaugurated this magisterial project, has now been finally translated into English, and one can only wonder why this remarkable book was not translated years ago... A special credit is due the translator Mark K. Jensen, whose English version has a natural flow. The modern relevance of Benichou's study is manifest in every chapter."--TLS, June 16, 2000

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Nebraska Press
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0803261527
• ISBN 13: 9780803261525
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 454