Hippolyte Adolphe Taine (, 21 April 1828 – 5 March 1893) was a French historian, critic and philosopher. He was the chief theoretical influence on French naturalism, a major proponent of

sociological positivism Positivism is an empiricist philosophical theory that holds that all genuine knowledge is either true by definition or positive—meaning ''a posteriori'' facts derived by reason and logic from sensory experience.John J. Macionis, Linda M. G ...

and one of the first practitioners of

historicist Historicism is an approach to explaining the existence of phenomena, especially social and cultural practices (including ideas and beliefs), by studying their history, that is, by studying the process by which they came about. The term is widely u ...

criticism. Literary historicism as a critical movement has been said to originate with him. Taine is also remembered for his attempts to provide a scientific account of literature. Taine had a profound effect on

French literature French literature () generally speaking, is literature written in the French language, particularly by citizens of France; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of France other than Fr ...

; the 1911 ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' asserted that ''"the tone which pervades the works of

Zola Zola may refer to: People * Zola (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * Zola (musician) (born 1977), South African entertainer * Zola (rapper), French rapper * Émile Zola, a major nineteenth-century French writer Plac ...

, Bourget and

Maupassant Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant (, ; ; 5 August 1850 – 6 July 1893) was a 19th-century French author, remembered as a master of the short story form, as well as a representative of the Naturalist school, who depicted human lives, destin ...

can be immediately attributed to the influence we call Taine's."'' Out of the trauma of 1871, Taine has been said by one scholar to have ‘forged the architectural structure of modern French right-wing historiography’.

Early years

Taine was born in

Vouziers Vouziers () is a commune of the Ardennes department, northern France. Vouziers is the burial place of the pioneer First World War fighter pilot Roland Garros, after whom the Stade Roland Garros in Paris (the location of the French Open ten ...

into a fairly prosperous Ardennes family. His father, a lawyer, his uncle, and his grandfather encouraged him to read eclectically and offered him art and music lessons. In 1841, Taine, then aged 13, lost his father and was sent to a boarding school in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, in the Institution Mathé, whose classes were conducted in the Collège Bourbon, located in the Batignolles district. He excelled in his studies and in 1847 obtained two

Baccalauréat The ''baccalauréat'' (; ), often known in France colloquially as the ''bac'', is a French national academic qualification that students can obtain at the completion of their secondary education (at the end of the ''lycée'') by meeting certain ...

degrees (Science and Philosophy) and received the honorary prize of the concours. He was awarded a first in the entrance examination of the letters section of the

École Normale Supérieure École may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France * École, Savoi ...

, to which he was admitted in November 1848. Among the 24 students in the letters section, he is the classmate of

Francisque Sarcey Francisque Sarcey (8 October 1827 – 16 May 1899) was a French journalist and dramatic critic. Career He was born in Dourdan, Essonne. After some years as schoolmaster, a job for which his temperament was ill-fitted, he entered journalism ...

(who, in his ''Souvenirs de jeunesse'' ("Memories of Youth") painted a portrait of young Hippolyte at the Rue d'Ulm campus) and

Edmond About Edmond is a given name related to Edmund. Persons named Edmond include: * Edmond Canaple (1797–1876), French politician * Edmond Chehade (born 1993), Lebanese footballer * Edmond Conn (1914–1998), American farmer, businessman, and politician ...

. But his attitude—he had a reputation for stubbornness—and his intellectual independence from then fashionable ideas— embodied by

Victor Cousin Victor Cousin (; 28 November 179214 January 1867) was a French philosopher. He was the founder of "eclecticism", a briefly influential school of French philosophy that combined elements of German idealism and Scottish Common Sense Realism. As ...

—caused him to fail the examination for the national Concours d’Agrégation in philosophy in 1851. After his essay on

sensation Sensation (psychology) refers to the processing of the senses by the sensory system. Sensation or sensations may also refer to: In arts and entertainment In literature *Sensation (fiction), a fiction writing mode *Sensation novel, a British ...

was rejected, he abandoned the social sciences and turned to literature. Having relocated outside Paris, he took up teaching positions in Nevers and Poitiers, during which time he continued his intellectual development. In 1853, he obtained a doctorate at the Sorbonne. His thesis, ''Essai sur les fables de

La Fontaine Jean de La Fontaine (, , ; 8 July 162113 April 1695) was a French fabulist and one of the most widely read French poets of the 17th century. He is known above all for his '' Fables'', which provided a model for subsequent fabulists across Eu ...

'', which would be later published in revised form in 1861. His subsequent "Essay on Livy" won a prize from the

Académie française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

in 1854. Taine adopted the positivist and scientist ideas that emerged around this time. After defending his doctorate, he was automatically transferred to Besançon, but he refused this assignment. He settled first in Paris, where he enrolled in the medical school. From there, he went on a medical cure in the Pyrénées in 1855, after which he wrote his famous ''Voyage aux Pyrénées'', and began contributing numerous philosophical, literary, and historical articles to the ''Revue des deux Mondes'' and the ''Journal des débats'', two major newspapers at the time. He then took leave and travelled to England, where he spent six weeks. In 1863 he published his ''History of English Literature'' in five volumes. Bishop

Félix Dupanloup Mgr. Félix Antoine Philibert Dupanloup (3 January 180211 October 1878) was a French ecclesiastic. He was among the leaders of Liberal Catholicism in France. Biography Dupanloup was born at Saint-Félix, in Haute-Savoie, an illegitimate son of ...

, who had made it his career to oppose the election of agnostic intellectuals to the French Academy, opposed the latter's awarding Taine a prize for this work.Hippolyte TAINE , Académie française » rchive sur academie-francaise.fr In 1868, he married Thérèse Denuelle, daughter of Alexandre Denuelle. They had two children: Geneviève, wife of Louis Paul-Dubois, and Émile. The immense success of his work allowed him, not only to live by his pen, but also to be named professor of the History of Art and Aesthetics at the Ecole des Beaux Arts and professor of history and German at the

École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr The École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr (ESM, literally the "Special Military School of Saint-Cyr") is a French military academy, and is often referred to as Saint-Cyr (). It is located in Coëtquidan in Guer, Morbihan, Brittany. Its motto is ...

. He also taught at Oxford (1871), where he was a Doctor in Law. In 1878, he was elected member of the French Academy by 20 out of the 26 voters. Taine was interested in many subjects, including art, literature, but especially history. Deeply shaken by the defeat of 1870, as well as by the insurrection (and violent repression) of the

Paris Commune The Paris Commune (french: Commune de Paris, ) was a revolutionary government that seized power in Paris, the capital of France, from 18 March to 28 May 1871. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–71, the French National Guard had defended ...

, Taine became fully devoted to his major historical work, ''The Origins of Contemporary France'' (1875–1893), on which he worked until his death, and which had a significant impact. Conceived by Taine with the aim of understanding the France of his day, the six-volume work achieved originality in its use of a long perspective to analyse the causes of the French Revolution. In particular, Taine denounced the artificiality of the revolution's political constructions (the excessively abstract and rational ideas of Robespierre, for example), which, in his mind, violently contradicted the natural and slow growth of the institutions of a State. In 1885, while visiting the Hospital de la Salpêtrière, Taine and Joseph Delboeuf attended a session of hypnotism in which

Jean-Martin Charcot Jean-Martin Charcot (; 29 November 1825 – 16 August 1893) was a French neurology, neurologist and professor of anatomical pathology. He worked on hypnosis and hysteria, in particular with his hysteria patient Louise Augustine Gleizes. Charcot ...

induced vesications (blistering) by suggestion. Taine died on 5 March 1893. He was buried in the Roc de Chère National Natural Reserve,

Talloires Talloires (; frp, Talouères) is a former commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Talloires-Montmin. Due to its setting on La ...

, on the shores of

Lake Annecy Lake Annecy (french: Lac d'Annecy, ) is a perialpine lake in Haute-Savoie in France. It is named after the city of Annecy, which marks the start of the Thiou, Lake Annecy's outflow river.Jean-Daniel Stanley and Thomas F. Jorstad, ''Direct Sedimen ...

. Taine had bought the Boringes property in Menthon-Saint-Bernard (in Haute-Savoie), in order to work there every summer, and had served as councillor of the commune.

Assessment

Taine's writing on the Revolution has remained popular in France. While admired by liberals like

Anatole France (; born , ; 16 April 1844 – 12 October 1924) was a French poet, journalist, and novelist with several best-sellers. Ironic and skeptical, he was considered in his day the ideal French man of letters. He was a member of the Académie França ...

, it has served to inform the conservative view of the Revolution, since Taine rejected its principles as well as the

French Constitution of 1793 The Constitution of 1793 (french: Acte constitutionnel du 24 juin 1793), also known as the Constitution of the Year I or the Montagnard Constitution, was the second constitution ratified for use during the French Revolution under the First Repu ...

, on account of their being dishonestly presented to the people. He argued that the

Jacobins , logo = JacobinVignette03.jpg , logo_size = 180px , logo_caption = Seal of the Jacobin Club (1792–1794) , motto = "Live free or die"(french: Vivre libre ou mourir) , successor = Pa ...

had responded to the centralisation of the ancien régime with even greater centralisation and favoured the individualism of his concepts of regionalism and nation. Taine's alternative to rationalist

liberalism Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for c ...

influenced the social policies of the Third Republic. On the other hand, Taine has likewise received criticism from both sides of the political spectrum, his politics being

idiosyncratic An idiosyncrasy is an unusual feature of a person (though there are also other uses, see below). It can also mean an odd habit. The term is often used to express eccentricity or peculiarity. A synonym may be "quirk". Etymology The term "idiosyncr ...

, complex, and difficult to define. Among others, attacks came from the Marxist historian

George Rudé George Rudé (8 February 1910 – 8 January 1993) was a British Marxist historian, specializing in the French Revolution and " history from below", especially the importance of crowds in history.George Rudé (1964). ''The Crowd in History. A St ...

, a specialist in the French Revolution and in ‘

history from below A people's history, or history from below, is a type of historical narrative which attempts to account for historical events from the perspective of common people rather than leaders. There is an emphasis on disenfranchised, the oppressed, the p ...

’, on account of Taine's view of the crowd; and from the Freudian

Peter Gay Peter Joachim Gay (né Fröhlich; June 20, 1923 – May 12, 2015) was a German-American historian, educator, and author. He was a Sterling Professor of History at Yale University and former director of the New York Public Library's Center for Sch ...

who described Taine's reaction to the Jacobins as stigmatisation. Yet,

Alfred Cobban Alfred Bert Carter Cobban (24 May 1901 – 1 April 1968) was an English historian and Professor of French History at University College, London, who along with prominent French historian François Furet advocated a classical liberal view of the F ...

, who advocated a revisionist view of the French Revolution in opposition to the orthodox Marxist school, considered Taine's account of the French Revolution "a brilliant polemic". Taine's vision of the Revolution stands in contrast to the Marxist interpretations that gained prominence in the 20th century, as in the works of

Albert Mathiez Albert-Xavier-Émile Mathiez (; 10 January 1874 – 25 February 1932) was a French historian, best known for his Marxist interpretation of the French Revolution. Mathiez emphasized class conflict. He argued that 1789 pitted the bourgeoisie against ...

Georges Lefebvre Georges Lefebvre (; 6 August 1874 – 28 August 1959) was a French historian, best known for his work on the French Revolution and peasant life. He is considered one of the pioneers of " history from below". He coined the phrase the ...

, and

Albert Soboul Albert Marius Soboul (27 April 1914 – 11 September 1982) was a historian of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic periods. A professor at the University of Paris, Sorbonne, he was chair of the History of the French Revolution and author of ...

, before the revisionist accounts of

and

François Furet François Furet (; 27 March 1927 – 12 July 1997) was a French historian and president of the Saint-Simon Foundation, best known for his books on the French Revolution. From 1985 to 1997, Furet was a professor of French history at the University ...

. Notwithstanding academic politics, when

Alphonse Aulard Alphonse may refer to: * Alphonse (given name) * Alphonse (surname) * Alphonse Atoll, one of two atolls in the Seychelles' Alphonse Group See also *Alphons *Alfonso (disambiguation) Alfonso (and variants Alphonso, Afonso, Alphons, and Alphonse) i ...

, a historian of the French Revolution, analysed Taine's text, he showed that the numerous facts and examples presented by Taine to support his account proved substantially correct; few errors were found by Aulard—fewer than in his own texts, as reported by Augustin Cochin. In his other writings Taine is known for his attempt to provide a scientific account of literature, a project that has linked him to sociological positivists, although there were important differences. In his view, the work of literature was the product of the author's environment, and an analysis of that environment could yield a perfect understanding of that work; this stands in contrast with the view that the work of literature is the spontaneous creation of genius. Taine based his analysis on categories such as "nation", "environment" or "situation", and "time". Armin Koller has written that in this Taine drew heavily from the philosopher

Johann Gottfried Herder Johann Gottfried von Herder ( , ; 25 August 174418 December 1803) was a German philosopher, theologian, poet, and literary critic. He is associated with the Enlightenment, ''Sturm und Drang'', and Weimar Classicism. Biography Born in Mohrun ...

, although this has been insufficiently recognised, while the Spanish writer

Emilia Pardo Bazán Emilia Pardo Bazán y de la Rúa-Figueroa (16 September 185112 May 1921), countess of Pardo Bazán, was a Spanish novelist, journalist, literary critic, poet, playwright, translator, editor and professor. She is known for introducing naturalis ...

has suggested that a crucial predecessor to Taine's idea was

Germaine de Staël Anne Louise Germaine de Staël-Holstein (; ; 22 April 176614 July 1817), commonly known as Madame de Staël (), was a French woman of letters and political theorist, the daughter of banker and French finance minister Jacques Necker and Suzan ...

’s work on the relationship between art and society. Nationalist literary movements and post-modern critics alike have made use of Taine’s concepts, the former to argue for their unique and distinct place in literature and the latter to deconstruct the texts with regards to the relationship between literature and social history. Taine was criticised, including by Émile Zola who owed a great deal to him, for not taking sufficiently into account the individuality of the artist. Zola argued that an artist’s temperament could lead him to make unique artistic choices distinct from the environment that shaped him, and gave

Édouard Manet Édouard Manet (, ; ; 23 January 1832 – 30 April 1883) was a French modernist painter. He was one of the first 19th-century artists to paint modern life, as well as a pivotal figure in the transition from Realism to Impressionism. Born ...

as a principal example.

Gustave Lanson Gustave Lanson (5 August 1857 – 15 December 1934) was a French historian and literary critic. He taught at the Sorbonne and the École Normale Supérieure in Paris. A dominant figure in French literary criticism, he influenced several gene ...

argued that Taine’s environmental determinism could not account for his genius.

Influence

Taine's influence on French intellectual culture and literature was significant. He had a special relationship, in particular, with

Émile Zola Émile Édouard Charles Antoine Zola (, also , ; 2 April 184029 September 1902) was a French novelist, journalist, playwright, the best-known practitioner of the literary school of naturalism, and an important contributor to the development of ...

. As critic Philip Walker says of Zola, "In page after page, including many of his most memorable writings, we are presented with what amounts to a

mimesis Mimesis (; grc, μίμησις, ''mīmēsis'') is a term used in literary criticism and philosophy that carries a wide range of meanings, including ''imitatio'', imitation, nonsensuous similarity, receptivity, representation, mimicry, the act ...

of the interplay between sensation and

imagination Imagination is the production or simulation of novel objects, sensations, and ideas in the mind without any immediate input of the senses. Stefan Szczelkun characterises it as the forming of experiences in one's mind, which can be re-creations ...

which Taine studied at great length and out of which, he believed, emerges the world of the mind." The Spanish philosopher,

Miguel de Unamuno Miguel de Unamuno y Jugo (29 September 1864 – 31 December 1936) was a Spanish essayist, novelist, poet, playwright, philosopher, professor of Greek and Classics, and later rector at the University of Salamanca. His major philosophical essay w ...

, was fascinated with both Zola and Taine early on (although he eventually concluded that Taine's influence on literature had been negative). Paul Bourget and Guy de Maupassant were also heavily influenced by Taine. Taine shared a correspondence with the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, who later referred to him in ''Beyond Good and Evil'' as "the first of living historians". He was also the subject of

Stefan Zweig Stefan Zweig (; ; 28 November 1881 – 22 February 1942) was an Austrian novelist, playwright, journalist, and biographer. At the height of his literary career, in the 1920s and 1930s, he was one of the most widely translated and popular write ...

's doctoral thesis, "The Philosophy of Hippolyte Taine." Taine was also read by

Peter Kropotkin Pyotr Alexeyevich Kropotkin (; russian: link=no, Пётр Алексе́евич Кропо́ткин ; 9 December 1842 – 8 February 1921) was a Russian anarchist, socialist, revolutionary, historian, scientist, philosopher, and activis ...

, who described him as truly understanding the French Revolution, because he "studied the movements preceding the revolution of July 14," or as he quoted Taine himself, "I know of three hundred outbreaks before July 14."

Works

* ''De Personis Platonicis'' (1853). * ''La Fontaine et ses Fables'' (1853–1861, Taine's doctoral thesis). * ''Voyage aux Pyrénées'' (1855–1860). * ''Essai sur Tite-Live'' (1856). * ''Les Philosophes Classiques du XIXe Siècle en France'' (1857–1868). * ''Essais de Critique et d’Histoire'' (1858–1882). * ''Vie et Opinions Politiques d'un Chat'' (1858). * ''Histoire de la Littérature Anglaise'' (1864). * ''Philosophie de l’Art'' (1865–1882). * ''Nouveaux Essais de Critique et d’Histoire'' (1865–1901). * ''Voyage en Italie'' (1866). * ''Notes sur Paris. Vie et Opinions de M. Frédéric-Thomas Graindorge'' (1867). * ''De l’Intelligence'' (1870). * ''Du Suffrage Universel et de la Manière de Voter'' (1872). * ''Notes sur l’Angleterre'' (1872). * ''Les Origines de la France Contemporaine'': *
''L’Ancien Régime''
(1875). *
''La Révolution: I – l’Anarchie''
(1878). *
''La Révolution: II – La Conquête Jacobine''
(1881). *
''La Révolution: III – Le Gouvernement Révolutionnaire''
(1883). ** ''Le Régime Moderne'' (1890–1893). * ''Derniers Essais de Critique et d’Histoire'' (1894). * ''Carnets de Voyage: Notes sur la Province'' (1863–1897). * ''Étienne Mayran'' (1910). * ''H. Taine, sa Vie et sa Correspondance'' (1903–1907). Works in English translation * ''The Philosophy of Art'' (1865). * ''Italy, Rome and Naples'' (1868). * ''Art in Greece'' (1871). * ''Art in the Netherlands'' (1871). * ''English Positivism: A Study on John Stuart Mill'' (1870). * ''On Intelligence'' (1871, translated by T.D. Haye). * ''History of English Literature'' (1872, translated by Henry Van Laun, and revised 1906–07). * ''Notes on England'' (1872, translated by William Fraser Rae;

Edward Hyams Edward Solomon Hyams (30 September 1910 – 25 November 1975) was a British gardener and horticulturalist, historian, novelist and writer, and anarchist. He is known for his writings as a French scholar and socialist historian, and as a gardene ...

, 1957). * ''The Ideal in Art'' (1874, translated by John Durand). * ''A Tour Through the Pyrenees'' (1874, translated by John Safford Fiske). * ''Lectures on Art'' (1875). * ''The Origins of Contemporary France'' (1876, translated by John Durand). * ''Notes on Paris'' (1879, translated by John Austin Stevens). * ''Journeys Through France'' (1896). * ''Life and Letters of H. Taine'' (1902, translated by R.L. Devonshire).Payne, William Morton (1904)
"Letters of H.H. Taine"
''The International Quarterly,'' Vol. X, pp. 196–200. Selected articles
"Socialism as Government,"
''The Contemporary Review,'' Vol. XLVI, October 1884. * "Napoleon's Views of Religion," ''The North American Review,'' Vol. 152, No. 414, 1891. * "On Style," ''Scribner’s Magazine,'' Vol. 334, No. 4329, 1928.

References

External links

* * *
Works by Hippolyte Taine
at

Hathi Trust HathiTrust Digital Library is a large-scale collaborative repository of digital content from research libraries including content digitized via Google Books and the Internet Archive digitization initiatives, as well as content digitized locally ...

Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory (Article on Taine)

Obituary (from ''The Times'')
{{DEFAULTSORT:Taine, Hippolyte 1828 births 1893 deaths People from Vouziers Lycée Condorcet alumni École Normale Supérieure alumni Founders of Sciences Po French political philosophers Historians of the French Revolution 19th-century French historians 19th-century French philosophers French agnostics Members of the Académie Française Spinozists

Early years

Assessment

Influence

Works

See also

References

Further reading

History

Language and literature

External links