The 17th Century in Literature

Classical Theatre and Social Comedy

• Molière dominated the French stage with comedies like The Misanthrope, Tartuffe, The Pretentious Young Ladies, and The Imaginary Invalid, exposing hypocrisy and the flaws of his time. 
• Pierre Corneille revolutionized tragedy with Le Cid (1637), followed by Horace and Cinna. 
• Jean Racine embodied the height of classical tragedy with Phèdre, and retired from theatre after its failure. 
• In England, William Shakespeare wrote his great tragedies in the early 17th century (Hamlet, Macbeth), remaining a central literary figure. 
• Ben Jonson, Shakespeare’s rival, shaped English theatre with works like The Alchemist. 
• Spanish playwright Lope de Vega, founder of the Comedia nueva, was one of the most prolific writers in history. 
• Italian playwright Giambattista Guarini contributed to Baroque theatre with Il Pastor Fido, a pastoral tragicomedy.

Novels and Narrative Forms

• Miguel de Cervantes began Don Quixote while in prison, creating a foundational work of the modern novel. 
• Madame de La Fayette shaped French literature with The Princess of Cleves (1678) and The Princess of Montpensier (1662). 
• Paul Scarron explored burlesque fiction with The Comic Novel (1651–1657). 
• Madeleine de Scudéry contributed to the rise of précieux novels with works like Clélie. 
• Fénelon’s Telemachus (1699) was a pedagogical novel inspired by antiquity and critical of absolute power. 
• Cyrano de Bergerac mixed satire and imagination in his Imaginary Voyages, published posthumously in 1655. 
• Charles Perrault formalized the fairy tale genre with Tales of Mother Goose (1697), laying its literary foundations.

Moral Thought and Philosophy

• Blaise Pascal’s Pensées (1670), published after his death, reflected on faith, reason, and the human condition. 
• François de La Rochefoucauld offered a sharp view of human nature in his Maxims (1665). 
• Jean de La Bruyère criticized the morals of his time in The Characters (1688). 
• René Descartes transformed philosophy with Discourse on the Method (1637) and his maxim “I think, therefore I am.” 
• Thomas Hobbes, in Leviathan, defended the need for a strong sovereign to prevent chaos. 
• Pierre Bayle’s Historical and Critical Dictionary (1697) paved the way for Enlightenment thought. 
• Bernard de Fontenelle popularized science with Conversations on the Plurality of Worlds (1686).

Poetry, Fables, and Style

• Jean de La Fontaine published The Fables between 1668 and 1694, blending satire, morality, and entertainment. 
• Nicolas Boileau codified classicism in The Art of Poetry (1674), promoting clarity, restraint, and imitation of the Ancients. 
• The sonnet and alexandrine became favored poetic forms in this era of structured verse. 
• Baroque poetry persisted at the century’s start, before being eclipsed by classical ideals.

Characters and Literary Figures

• Alceste, from The Misanthrope, represents the disillusioned idealist in conflict with society. 
• Rodrigue, hero of Le Cid, is torn between love and honor. 
• Hamlet, Shakespeare’s prince, embodies existential doubt and reflection. 
• Phèdre, in Racine’s tragedy, is destroyed by forbidden passion. 
• Telemachus, in Fénelon’s novel, symbolizes the enlightened prince seeking virtue. 
• Don Quixote, both tragic and comic, pursues a misguided ideal in a pragmatic world.

Memoirs and Testimony

• Saint-Simon, in his posthumously published Memoirs, provides a sharp chronicle of Louis XIV’s court. 
• Donneau de Visé, with Le Mercure galant (from 1672), mixed news, society reports, and satire.
• Europe-America Relations and Historical Context
• The century was marked by colonial expansion, religious missions, and power struggles. 
• Religious and political censorship shaped literary dissemination, pushing some authors to publish anonymously or posthumously. 
• Literature and power were closely intertwined: whether praising, advising, or criticizing rulers, writers played a key role in Ancien Régime society.