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Les Belles Lettres is a French publisher specialising in the publication of ancient texts such as the ''
Collection Budé The ''Collection Budé'', or the ''Collection des Universités de France'', is an editorial collection comprising the Greek and Latin classics up to the middle of the 6th century (before Emperor Justinian). It is published by Les Belles Lettres, ...
''. The publishing house, originally named ''Société Les Belles Lettres pour le développement de la culture classique'', was founded by the
Association Guillaume Budé The Association Guillaume Budé, named after the 16th century humanist Guillaume Budé, is a French cultural and learned society dedicated to the promotion of humanities. The current president of the society is the hellenist Jacques Jouanna. The ...
, with the initial goal of publishing
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
and
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
classics.


History


Foundation

According to the usual story, the history of ''Belles Lettres'' began in
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
when the
linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. It is called a scientific study because it entails a comprehensive, systematic, objective, and precise analysis of all aspects of language, particularly its nature and structure. Linguis ...
Joseph Vendryes Joseph Vendryes or Vendryès (; 13 January 1875, Paris – 30 January 1960) was a French Celtic linguist. After studying with Antoine Meillet, he was chairman of Celtic languages and literature at the École Pratique des Hautes Études. He found ...
wanted a
critical edition Textual criticism is a branch of textual scholarship, philology, and of literary criticism that is concerned with the identification of textual variants, or different versions, of either manuscripts or of printed books. Such texts may range in da ...
of
Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...
to include in his field pack, but could find only German editions. At the end of the war, the
Association Guillaume Budé The Association Guillaume Budé, named after the 16th century humanist Guillaume Budé, is a French cultural and learned society dedicated to the promotion of humanities. The current president of the society is the hellenist Jacques Jouanna. The ...
was created, named for the 16th-century French
humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...
. The association began with the mission of increasing the availability of the great classics of Greek and Latin culture and decided to publish "a comprehensive collection of Greek and Latin authors, othtexts and translations". However, the association did not have the necessary funds. The ''société Les Belles Lettres pour le développement de la culture classique'' was therefore founded as its publishing company; this has since become the ''société d’édition Les Belles Lettres''. Capital was raised from "French industrialist friends of the Classics", with a total of 300 shareholders. The first president was the
Hellenist Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient ...
Paul Mazon Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity * Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...
, a translator of Homer. The company had its offices at 157
Boulevard Saint-Germain Boulevard Saint-Germain () is a major street in Paris on the Rive Gauche of the Seine. It curves in a 3.5-kilometre (2.1 miles) arc from the Pont de Sully in the east (the bridge at the edge of Île Saint-Louis) to the Pont de la Concorde ( ...
in Paris. After Jean Malye became president of the Belles Lettres, he moved its headquarters to 95
Boulevard Raspail Boulevard Raspail is a boulevard of Paris, in France. Its orientation is north–south, and joins boulevard Saint-Germain with place Denfert-Rochereau whilst traversing 7th, 6th and 14th arrondissements. The boulevard intersects major roadw ...
, where they remain. The company currently publishes approximately 100 titles annually.


Distribution company

In 2004, Les Belles Lettres founded a SAS called Belles Lettres Diffusion Distribution (BLDD), through which it distributes books by other publishers.


Fire

On 29 May 2002, a fire destroyed the Belles Lettres warehouse in
Gasny Gasny () is a commune in the Eure department in northern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas ...
(
Eure Eure () is a department in Normandy in Northwestern France, named after the river Eure. Its prefecture is Évreux. In 2019, Eure had a population of 599,507.Hippias Minor'' of
Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...
, translated by Maurice Croiset, with a yellow cover and the logo of an
aryballos An aryballos (Greek: ἀρύβαλλος; plural aryballoi) was a small spherical or globular flask with a narrow neck used in Ancient Greece."aryballos" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., ...
in the form of an owl, representing
Athena's owl In Greek mythology, a little owl (''Athene noctua'') traditionally represents or accompanies Athena, the virgin goddess of wisdom, or Minerva, her syncretic incarnation in Roman mythology. Because of such association, the bird—often referred t ...
, and shortly afterwards in the Latin series, the ''
De rerum natura ''De rerum natura'' (; ''On the Nature of Things'') is a first-century BC didactic poem by the Roman poet and philosopher Lucretius ( – c. 55 BC) with the goal of explaining Epicurean philosophy to a Roman audience. The poem, written in some 7 ...
'' of
Lucretius Titus Lucretius Carus ( , ;  – ) was a Roman poet and philosopher. His only known work is the philosophical poem ''De rerum natura'', a didactic work about the tenets and philosophy of Epicureanism, and which usually is translated into E ...
, translated by Alfred Ernout, with a red cover and the logo of the
Capitoline Wolf The Capitoline Wolf (Italian: ''Lupa Capitolina'') is a bronze sculpture depicting a scene from the legend of the founding of Rome. The sculpture shows a she-wolf suckling the mythical twin founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus. According to the ...
. The one hundredth book was published in 1931. Fulfilling Vendryes' original wish, the Collection des universités de France publishes scholarly editions in a pocket-sized format. The original (with
critical apparatus A critical apparatus ( la, apparatus criticus) in textual criticism of primary source material, is an organized system of notations to represent, in a single text, the complex history of that text in a concise form useful to diligent readers and ...
) and the French (with footnotes) are on facing pages, right and left respectively. There is a substantial introduction. The text is intended to be based on the oldest version that can be reconstructed from the surviving manuscripts, for which microfilms are used, and the translation "above all to reproduce the movement, color, the tone of the text". Editing and translation are assigned to one or more scholars who are specialists in the author concerned and are subject to careful verification by a third expert. A statement of responsibility appears on the reverse of the title page: "In accordance with the statutes of the ''Association Guillaume Budé'', this volume has been submitted for approval by the technical commission, which has instructed
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to revise it and oversee its correction in collaboration with
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" The volumes are paperbacks, still in the original size, printed on cream wove manufactured especially for the publisher.C.U.F. Collection Budé, Les Belles Lettres They were originally sewn but since 1976 have been bound and
cropped Cropping is the removal of unwanted outer areas from a photographic or illustrated image. The process usually consists of the removal of some of the peripheral areas of an image to remove extraneous trash from the picture, to improve its framin ...
. , the two series include more than 800 volumes (a few more Greek than Latin). The current goal of the collection is "to publish everything written in Greek and Latin before the reign of the Emperor Justinian (in the 6th century)". However, Christian writers, although originally fully within the intended range of publications, editorial beginning, are largely left to the ''Sources chrétiennes'' collection of
Éditions du Cerf ''Éditions du Cerf'' ( French: "Editions of the Deer") is a French publishing house specializing in religious books. It was founded in 1929, and operated by the Dominican Order. The name is a reference to Psalm 42 (41): As the hart pantet ...
. Only the literary writings of the
church fathers The Church Fathers, Early Church Fathers, Christian Fathers, or Fathers of the Church were ancient and influential Christian theologians and writers who established the intellectual and doctrinal foundations of Christianity. The historical per ...
, such as the '' Confessions'' of
Saint Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...
, have been or will be published in the Collection des universités de France. Since 2006, some of the Latin and Greek works have been reprinted without the critical apparatus in the series ''Classiques en poche'' (pocket classics) headed by Hélène Monsacré, with updated translations and where applicable revised texts, for example Oliver Sers' translation of
Petronius Gaius Petronius Arbiter"Gaius Petronius Arbiter"
Satyricon The ''Satyricon'', ''Satyricon'' ''liber'' (''The Book of Satyrlike Adventures''), or ''Satyrica'', is a Latin work of fiction believed to have been written by Gaius Petronius, though the manuscript tradition identifies the author as Titus Petro ...
''.Pétrone (Petronius), ''Satiricon'', ed. and tr. Olivier Sers, Classiques de poche 44, Paris: Les Belles Lettres, 2001, .


Les Belles Lettres English (Classical Wisdom Weekly)

In 2012, Les Belles Lettres English was established in order to create an English newsletter and website called Classical Wisdom Weekly. The website launched on 6 November 2012 and is dedicated to promoting and teaching Ancient Greek and Latin literature. The tagline for Classical Wisdom Weekly is "Ancient Wisdom for Modern Minds".


Other collections

There are also bilingual collections on the history of France, classic medieval texts and classics of English literature (including a bilingual edition of the complete works of
Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
) and Chinese Literature. In addition, the company publishes older French authors such as
François de Malherbe François de Malherbe (, 1555 – 16 October 1628) was a French poet, critic, and translator. Life He was born in Le Locheur (near Caen, Normandie), to a family of standing, although the family's pedigree did not satisfy the heralds in terms of ...
. * ''Confluents psychanalytiques'', launched in 1976. * ''Realia'', headed by Jean-Noël Robert and launched in 1983, includes his ''Les Plaisirs à Rome''. * ''Bibliothèque chinoise'' (漢文法譯書庫), headed by
Anne Cheng Anne Cheng (; born 11 July 1955) is a French Sinologist who teaches at the Collège de France and specializes in Chinese history and the history of Chinese philosophy. Pablo Ariel Blitstein, the author of "A new debate about alterity," descr ...
, Marc Kalinowski and Stephane Feuillas, and launched in 2010 ; '' * ''Histoire'' features works by
French historians This is a list of French historians limited to those with a biographical entry in either English or French Wikipedia. Major chroniclers, annalists, philosophers, or other writers are included, if they have important historical output. Names are lis ...
such as
Pierre Vidal-Naquet Pierre Emmanuel Vidal-Naquet (; 23 July 1930 – 29 July 2006) was a French historian who began teaching at the ''École des hautes études en sciences sociales'' (EHESS) in 1969. Vidal-Naquet was a specialist in the study of Ancient Greece, but ...
and numerous translations of foreign works. * ''Science et Humanisme'' includes editions and translations of scientific texts of the
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
and the Age of Reason, by authors including
Galileo Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He was ...
,
Johannes Kepler Johannes Kepler (; ; 27 December 1571 – 15 November 1630) was a German astronomer, mathematician, astrologer, natural philosopher and writer on music. He is a key figure in the 17th-century Scientific Revolution, best known for his laws ...
, Campanella and Sir
Isaac Newton Sir Isaac Newton (25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27) was an English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author (described in his time as a "natural philosopher"), widely recognised as one of the grea ...
. * ''La Roue à livres'' consists of translations of works by ancient and Renaissance authors, but without the original text. * ''L’âne d’or'' features works from the history of ideas, in particular
Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant (, , ; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German philosopher and one of the central Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works in epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and ...
,
Giordano Bruno Giordano Bruno (; ; la, Iordanus Brunus Nolanus; born Filippo Bruno, January or February 1548 – 17 February 1600) was an Italian philosopher, mathematician, poet, cosmological theorist, and Hermetic occultist. He is known for his cosmologic ...
, astronomy, and the history of medicine. * ''Classiques du Nord'', headed by
Régis Boyer Régis Boyer (25 June 1932 – 16 June 2017) was a French literary scholar, historian and translator, specialised on Nordic literature and the Viking Age. Biography Régis Boyer was born in Reims on 25 June 1932. At age 20 he earned a degree in lit ...
, publishes translations of Danish, Swedish, Norwegian and Icelandic literature. * ''Guides Belles Lettres des civilisations'' covers periods and places including
pre-Columbian America In the history of the Americas, the pre-Columbian era spans from the original settlement of North and South America in the Upper Paleolithic period through European colonization, which began with Christopher Columbus's voyage of 1492. Usually, th ...
,
Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...
Iceland, and
Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...
India. * ''Laissez faire'', headed by François Guillaumat, and Bibliothèque classique de la liberté, headed by
Alain Laurent Alain may refer to: People * Alain (given name), common given name, including list of persons and fictional characters with the name * Alain (surname) * "Alain", a pseudonym for cartoonist Daniel Brustlein * Alain, a standard author abbreviation u ...
, publish liberal authors such as Frederic Bastiat,
Yves Guyot Yves Guyot (6 September 184322 February 1928) was a French politician and economist. Biography He was born at Dinan. Educated at Rennes, he took up the profession of journalism, coming to Paris in 1867. He was for a short period editor-in-chief of ...
and
Benjamin Constant Henri-Benjamin Constant de Rebecque (; 25 October 1767 – 8 December 1830), or simply Benjamin Constant, was a French people, Franco-Switzerland, Swiss political thinker, activist and writer on political theory and religion. A committed repub ...
. Les Belles Lettres has also published outside its collections bilingual critical editions of the complete works of
Giordano Bruno Giordano Bruno (; ; la, Iordanus Brunus Nolanus; born Filippo Bruno, January or February 1548 – 17 February 1600) was an Italian philosopher, mathematician, poet, cosmological theorist, and Hermetic occultist. He is known for his cosmologic ...
and of
Petrarch Francesco Petrarca (; 20 July 1304 – 18/19 July 1374), commonly anglicized as Petrarch (), was a scholar and poet of early Renaissance Italy, and one of the earliest humanists. Petrarch's rediscovery of Cicero's letters is often credited w ...
, and less known writers including
Jean-Edern Hallier Jean-Edern Hallier (1 March 193612 January 1997) was a French writer, critic and editor. After his exclusion from the literary review ''Tel Quel'', which he co-founded with Philippe Sollers, Hallier went on to publish novels and satirical pamp ...
,
Philippe Leotard Philippe is a masculine sometimes feminin given name, cognate to Philip. It may refer to: * Philippe of Belgium (born 1960), King of the Belgians (2013–present) * Philippe (footballer) (born 2000), Brazilian footballer * Prince Philippe, Count o ...
and
Francis Lalanne Francis Lalanne (born Francis-José Lalanne on 8 August 1958 in Bayonne) is a French-Uruguayan singer, songwriter and poet. He is the brother of composer Jean-Félix Lalanne and film director René Manzor. Free Art He opposed the HADOPI law
.


References


External links


''Classical Wisdom Weekly''
Les Belles Lettres English Newsletter {{Authority control Publishing companies of France