Suzanne Verdier (1745 – 1813) was a French writer. She was a contributor to the
Encyclopédie
''Encyclopédie, ou dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers'' (English: ''Encyclopedia, or a Systematic Dictionary of the Sciences, Arts, and Crafts''), better known as ''Encyclopédie'', was a general encyclopedia publis ...
.
Biography
Suzanne Allut was born in 1745, in
Montpellier
Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...
. At the age of 20, along with her brother Antoine, she collaborated on the Encyclopédie. In Paris, she was educated by the Encyclopédiste priest Jean Pestré, demonstrating an early aptitude for poetry, painting and music. After marrying Mr. Verdier, a rich merchant of
Uzès
Uzès (; ) is a commune in the Gard department in the Occitanie region of Southern France. In 2017, it had a population of 8,454. Uzès lies about north-northeast of Nîmes, west of Avignon and south-east of Alès.
History
Originally ''Uc ...
, she provided a thorough education for her children, while reserving time to cultivate her own skills. Many of her poems of the period 1775 to 1787 were contributed to the '' Almanach des Muses'', and were highly appreciated. One of these works, ''Description de la Fontaine de Vaucluse'' (Description of the Fountain of Vaucluse), was included in the French poetry collection by
Jean-François de La Harpe
Jean-François de La Harpe (20 November 173911 February 1803) was a French playwright, writer and literary critic.
Life
La Harpe was born in Paris of poor parents. His father, who signed himself Delharpe, was a descendant of a noble family orig ...
who said: "And Verdier in the idyll who defeated Deshoulières."
In 1807, Verdier was elected member of the Academy of
Nîmes
Nîmes ( , ; oc, Nimes ; Latin: ''Nemausus'') is the prefecture of the Gard department in the Occitanie region of Southern France. Located between the Mediterranean Sea and Cévennes, the commune of Nîmes has an estimated population of 148,5 ...
. She was awarded three crowns at the Floral Games, which earned her the title of master of the academy,
Consistori del Gay Saber
The Consistori del Gay Saber (; "Consistory of the Gay Science") was a poetic academy founded at Toulouse in 1323 to revive and perpetuate the lyric poetry of the troubadours.
Also known as the Acadèmia dels Jòcs Florals or Académie des Jeux ...
. She was also admitted to the
Accademia degli Arcadi
The Accademia degli Arcadi or Accademia dell'Arcadia, "Academy of Arcadia" or "Academy of the Arcadians", was an Italian literary academy founded in Rome in 1690. The full Italian official name was Pontificia Accademia degli Arcadi.
History
F ...
, the Academy of
Gard
Gard () is a department in Southern France, located in the region of Occitanie. It had a population of 748,437 as of 2019;Vaucluse
Vaucluse (; oc, Vauclusa, label= Provençal or ) is a department in the southeastern French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It had a population of 561,469 as of 2019.Henriette Bourdic-Viot to Adelaide Dufrenoy: "We are a crowd of musettes, Madame Verdier alone is a muse." Verdier left a touching
elegy
An elegy is a poem of serious reflection, and in English literature usually a lament for the dead. However, according to ''The Oxford Handbook of the Elegy'', "for all of its pervasiveness ... the 'elegy' remains remarkably ill defined: sometime ...
for her brother, Antoine, who was guillotined as a
Girondin
The Girondins ( , ), or Girondists, were members of a loosely knit political faction during the French Revolution. From 1791 to 1793, the Girondins were active in the Legislative Assembly and the National Convention. Together with the Montagnard ...
. She died in 1813 in Uzès after an attack of
apoplexy
Apoplexy () is rupture of an internal organ and the accompanying symptoms. The term formerly referred to what is now called a stroke. Nowadays, health care professionals do not use the term, but instead specify the anatomic location of the bleedi ...