Élie Catherine Fréron facts for kids

Élie Catherine Fréron (born January 20, 1718 – died March 10, 1776) was a French writer and critic. He was known for disagreeing with many popular thinkers of his time, especially those from the Enlightenment. He used his own magazine, called Année littéraire (which means "Literary Year"), to share his ideas. Fréron played a big part in a movement called the Counter-Enlightenment, which was all about challenging the new ideas of the Enlightenment.

Early Life and Education

Fréron was born in Quimper, a town in Brittany, France. He went to school with the Jesuits, who were a group of Catholic priests known for their excellent schools. He was a very bright student and learned quickly. Because he was so smart, he became a professor at a famous college called Louis-le-Grand before he was even 20 years old!

A Critic's Career

Fréron started his writing career by contributing to a magazine called Observations sur les écrits modernes. This magazine was run by a writer named abbé Pierre Desfontaines. Desfontaines was a strong opponent of Voltaire, who was one of the most famous and influential writers of the Enlightenment.

Even though Fréron had admired Voltaire at first, working with Desfontaines quickly made Voltaire dislike Fréron. This started a long-lasting rivalry between the two writers.

In 1746, Fréron decided to start his own magazine, which he called Lettres de la Comtesse de .... However, this magazine was stopped by the authorities in 1749. But Fréron didn't give up! He quickly launched a new one, Lettres sur quelques écrits de ce temps. This magazine was also briefly stopped in 1752 because Fréron had written something critical about Voltaire.

After that, in 1754, he started his most famous magazine, L'Année littéraire. This magazine became very popular and was published for many years. It is said that the temporary stopping of this magazine shortly before his death in 1776 made him very sad and might have even contributed to his passing.

Rivalry with Voltaire

Fréron is mostly remembered today for his strong criticisms of Voltaire and other Enlightenment thinkers, like those who wrote the Encyclopédie. Voltaire, being a very famous and powerful writer, didn't take these attacks lightly. He fought back against Fréron in many ways.

Voltaire wrote short, witty poems called epigrams about Fréron. He even mentioned Fréron in some of his plays. Voltaire also wrote a very harsh satire (a type of writing that uses humor or exaggeration to criticize people) called Le Pauvre diable (The Poor Devil) that was aimed at Fréron.

Voltaire even made Fréron the main character in a comedy play called L'Ecossaise (The Scottish Girl). In this play, Fréron's magazine, Année littéraire, was jokingly called L'Âne littéraire, which means "The Literary Ass." Fréron is also briefly mentioned in Voltaire's famous novel Candide, where the main character meets a rude critic at a theater. Another attack on Fréron, called Anecdotes sur Fréron ..., was published anonymously but is generally believed to have been written by Voltaire himself.

Other Writings

Besides his famous magazines, Fréron also wrote several books. These included:

• An Ode sur la bataille de Fontenoy (1745), which was a poem about a famous battle.
• A history book called Histoire de Marie Stuart (1742), about Mary, Queen of Scots.
• Another history book, Histoire de l'empire d'Allemagne (1771), about the German Empire.

Fréron was also the father of Stanislas Fréron, who later became a well-known politician during the French Revolution.

Works

• 1742: Histoire de Marie Stuart, with abbé de Marsy.
• 1745: Ode sur la bataille de Fontenoy.
• 1746: Lettres de la comtesse de ***.
• 1749–1750 and 1752–1754: Lettres sur quelques écrits de ce temps, with Joseph de La Porte, 13 volumes.
• 1753: Opuscules, 3 volumes.
• 1754–1790: L'Année littéraire, 290 volumes.
• 1771: Histoire de l'empire d'Allemagne, 8 volumes.

Images for kids

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  Élie Fréron