The French Metaliterary Lexicon (16th–17th Centuries) - Literary Theory, Linguistics and Stylistics

French Literature Reviews - 2026

The French Metaliterary Lexicon (16th–17th Centuries)
Literary Theory, Linguistics and Stylistics

The French Metaliterary Lexicon (16th–17th Centuries)
Studies edited by Michel Jourde and Jean-Charles Monferran

Droz
Collection "Cahiers d'Humanisme et Renaissance"
Geneva, 2006.
ISBN 2-600-01062-9
EAN 13: 9782600010627
280 p.
27 €

The French 16th and 17th centuries significantly reshaped the vocabulary used to describe the mechanics of literary texts, particularly regarding the designation of genres, tropes, figures of speech, versification, and styles. The French Metaliterary Lexicon traces the history of these shifts, which serve as key witnesses to "literary knowledge" and its boundaries. These modifications stem from various linguistic and discursive operations: borrowings from other languages or specialized scholarly lexicons, competition among different approaches to literature (grammatical, rhetorical, poetic), and the establishment of nomenclatures.
Michel Jourde and Jean-Charles Monferran have brought together twelve contributions, each dedicated to a specific entry deemed exemplary. These studies are preceded by an introduction analyzing the main stakes of the naming process undertaken during the 16th and 17th centuries. They are followed by a bibliographic guide and an index of the two hundred and fifty terms from the metaliterary lexicon discussed or analyzed within the volume.

Table of Contents:

  • The history of the French metaliterary lexicon (16th–17th centuries): key issues
  • The word "composition" around 1550: between technical lexicons and common language
  • The quarrels of eloquence: oratorical art and scribal consciousness in the 17th century
  • Comedy and propriety in the preface to Guillaume des Autels's Amoureux Repos
  • The use of the word "life" in Guillaume Colletet: from the praise of the "illustrious" to the critique of the French poet
  • The names of the theatrical character from Laudun to d'Aubignac
  • Poetic essays: uses and meanings of the word "essay(s)" in the titles of poetry collections in the late 16th and early 17th centuries
  • From the "word" of the hymn to the "name" of the hinne: the nominalist approach to a Ronsardian genre
  • The "bare style" of travel accounts
  • Prosopopoeia or direct speech: terminological uncertainty at the root of 17th-century narratological reflection
  • Translation or metaphor? The stakes of a terminological question in 16th- and early 17th-century rhetorics, arts of poetry, and linguistic treatises
  • Naming the verse: the lexical moment of French versification (1548–1620)
  • Thomas Sébillet's diastoles
  • Practical guide in lieu of bibliography

The 16th and 17th centuries in France represent a period of significant transformation regarding how literature was conceptualized and categorized. During this era, humanistic inquiry and the rise of vernacular literary theory led to efforts to define the mechanics of writing, including tropes, genres, and versification. The French Metaliterary Lexicon (16th–17th Centuries), edited by Michel Jourde and Jean-Charles Monferran, traces the history of these shifts in vocabulary, which serve as witnesses to literary knowledge and its boundaries. Readers interested in the history of philology or the development of early modern critical language may find this collection relevant.

This volume contains twelve contributions that examine the processes through which specific literary terms were adopted, adapted, or contested. By examining entries such as composition, prosopopoeia, and the naming of theatrical characters, the studies highlight the competition between grammatical, rhetorical, and poetic approaches to defining the text. These modifications stem from various linguistic and discursive operations, including borrowings from other languages or specialized scholarly lexicons and the establishment of nomenclatures. The volume includes an introduction, a bibliographic guide, and an index of two hundred and fifty terms.