French Literature Reviews - 2026
Th. Victoria, Un livre de feu dans un siècle de fer. Les lectures de l'Apocalypse dans la littérature française de la Renaissance
Medieval and Renaissance Studies
Un livre de feu dans un siècle de fer. Les lectures de l'Apocalypse dans la littérature française de la Renaissance
Thierry Victoria
Louvain: Peeters Publishers, coll. "Bibliotheca Ephemeridum Lovaniensium", 2009.
EAN 9789042921320
Publisher's description:
In an "iron century" of portents and prodigies, which questioned the heavens and scrutinized the Scriptures, how was the Apocalypse interpreted—with its descriptions of plagues and cataclysms, as well as its accounts of grand visions and eternal weddings? This question served as the guiding thread of the investigation, aiming to provide a comprehensive synthesis of the reception of this biblical book in French Renaissance literature.
To account for the hermeneutic context surrounding the readings of the Apocalypse, it was first necessary to examine exegetical commentaries (I), and then to analyze the various ways the Johannine text was borrowed in the literature of religious polemics (II). Next, the study explored the apocalyptic intertext in works that opened onto the horizon of the end times (III), before finally considering the rich reception of this scriptural source in spiritual literature (IV).
This study investigates how sixteenth-century French writers and thinkers engaged with the biblical book of Revelation during a turbulent historical period. The author examines the broader hermeneutic framework by analyzing contemporary exegetical commentaries and exploring how the Johannine text functioned within polemical religious writings of the era, while also considering the reception of this scriptural source in spiritual literature.
The research traces the reception of the Apocalypse across multiple literary expressions, moving from theological commentary to polemic, imaginative literature, and devotional texts. Readers interested in Renaissance hermeneutics, sixteenth-century religious thought, and the influence of biblical eschatology on French literature may find this systematic overview relevant.