French Literature Reviews - 2026

T. de Quincey, Essays on Rhetoric, Language, and Style
Literary Theory, Linguistics and Stylistics

Thomas de Quincey,

Essays on Rhetoric, Language, and Style
Paris, José Corti, 2004, 230 p., 20 €

Publisher's overview:

Beneath their apparent diversity, these essays, published between 1828 and 1851, set forth a coherent, comprehensive, and unified theory of rhetoric according to De Quincey—a true theory of persuasion whereby literary work transcends the classical domain of the representation of ideas to enter that of their presentation. From the influence of language on its users—which De Quincey brilliantly demonstrates across Greek, Hebrew, Latin, and major European languages—to his exposition of the unique contributions made by specific writers, nations, and genres to the history of humanity, De Quincey continually astonishes us with the vigor of his arguments. One of the most delightful proofs of the "untimeliness" of these essays is his relentless analysis of the publishing and reading world: "The very multiplication of books increasingly confirms the failure of the object. The number of readers has grown, and the means of publication are more abundant; yet, while increasing in an even greater proportion when considered individually, books receive a progressively narrower individual share of public attention. The inegalitarian nature of publishing means that a vast number of books never find a single reader. The majority of books are never opened; five hundred copies may be printed [...] perhaps five will be glanced at without particular attention. Popular newspapers, which publish a large quantity of mixed articles and essays and place them in an equally vast number of hands, must [...] delude the public into believing that here, at least, all articles will be read. Such is not the case. One or two will be read because they appeal to a specific interest in their subjects. Only a single one is occasionally read for the skill with which it treats a topic. No, no; every year consigns its own literature to the grave. Since Waterloo, some fifty thousand books and pamphlets have been added to the shelves of our national literature, not including foreign imports. Of those fifty thousand volumes, perhaps two hundred will survive; perhaps twenty will endure over the next two centuries; five or six thousand may have been read with indifference; the rest have not even been opened."

Thomas de Quincey stands as one of the prominent essayists of the nineteenth century, whose critical writings engaged deeply with the Romantic tradition and classical scholarship alike. During this period, British periodicals served as the primary venue for extended literary criticism, allowing writers like De Quincey to shape contemporary tastes and debate the shifting boundaries between poetic expression and public discourse. His reflections on rhetoric and language draw upon a long-standing intellectual heritage that links classical eloquence with modern developments in European literature and philosophy.

Readers interested in nineteenth-century critical prose and the history of rhetoric may find this volume a relevant addition to their studies. The Essays on Rhetoric, Language, and Style collect texts published between 1828 and 1851 that set forth a unified theory of rhetoric, exploring the influence of language across Greek, Hebrew, Latin, and major European languages while analyzing the publishing and reading world of the period.