Jean Desmarets facts for kids
Jean Desmarets de Saint-Sorlin (born in 1595, died in 1676) was a famous French writer and playwright. He was one of the first members of the Académie française, a very important group that helps shape the French language and literature. He held the fourth seat in this academy starting in 1634.
About His Life
Jean Desmarets was born in Paris, France. When he was about 30 years old, he met Cardinal Richelieu. Richelieu was a powerful leader in France. Desmarets became part of a group of writers who helped Richelieu with his ideas for literature.
Desmarets really enjoyed writing novels. His romance novel L'Ariane was very successful in 1632. This success led him to join a special group of writers. They met at the home of Valentin Conrart. This group later became the Académie française. Desmarets became the first leader, or chancellor, of this important academy. He was also related to Marie Dupré.
Because of his success, he received important government jobs. He became a royal advisor, a financial controller for military affairs, and a secretary for the fleet in the Levant (the eastern Mediterranean Sea).
His Writings
Cardinal Richelieu asked Desmarets to start writing for the theatre. He wrote a comedy called Les Visionnaires (1637). Many people thought this play was a masterpiece. It even featured slightly disguised real people from that time.
He also wrote a prose-tragedy called Erigone (1638). Another play was Scipion (1639), which was a tragedy written in verse.
His long epic poem, Clovis (1657), is quite special. In this poem, Desmarets chose to use Christian ideas instead of the usual pagan (ancient Greek or Roman) stories. He believed Christian themes should be used in literature. Because of this view, he wrote several works supporting the "Moderns." This was part of a famous argument called the Quarrel of the Ancients and the Moderns. This argument was about whether ancient or modern writers were better.
In his later years, Desmarets focused mostly on religious poems. One of his most well-known religious works is his verse translation of the Office de la Vierge (1645). He strongly disagreed with the Jansenists, a religious group. He wrote a book against them called Réponse à l'insolente apologie de Port-Royal (1666). He passed away in Paris on October 28, 1676.
See also
- Guirlande de Julie
In Spanish: Jean Desmarets de Saint-Sorlin para niños
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