Étienne Pavillon (1632 – 10 January 1705) was a French lawyer and poet.
Biography
Grandson of a famous lawyer and nephew of bishop
Nicolas Pavillon, Pavillon was born and died in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
. He first studied theology before renouncing this to become "avocat général" to the parliament of
Metz
Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...
. Before having spent ten years in that role, he had a reverse in his fortunes and returned to Paris. Suffering from
gout
Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of pain in a red, tender, hot, and Joint effusion, swollen joint, caused by the deposition of needle-like crystals of uric acid known as monosodium urate crysta ...
and pensioned off by
Louis XIV
LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...
, he set up a
salon
Salon may refer to:
Common meanings
* Beauty salon
A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...
to which high society flocked. "She found in him conversation that was fine and witty, clever and polite, instructive without being pedantic". Thus, against
La Bruyère and without having asked for it, he was elected a member of the
Académie française
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...
in 1691, then of the
Académie des inscriptions in 1701.
Étienne Pavillon was an author of "vers de circonstance", in stanzas and madrigals, and of letters in verse or prose in the
Voiture genre, gathered together for the first time in a posthumously-published volume, reissued several times between 1715 and 1750.
Voltaire
François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778), known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' Voltaire (, ; ), was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, philosopher (''philosophe''), satirist, and historian. Famous for his wit ...
called him "doux mais faible Pavillon".
[''Le Temple du Goût'', 1731.]
Quotation
;À une Dame, sur un mal de tête
:''Si c'est une vapeur de la Région basse,''
:''Dont un jeune cerveau souvent est embrasé,''
::''Peu de chose vous embarasse.''
::''Ce n'est qu'une chaleur, qui passe;''
::''Et le remède en est aisé.''
::''Accoutumés-vous à l'usage''
::''D'une prise de Mariage,''
::''Le soir avant vôtre sommeil.''
::Reiteretur ''au réveil;''
:''Et, si le jour encor vous sentés quelque chose,''
:''Apelés du secours & redoublés la dose.''
:''Mais tout le monde en vain voudroit vous secourir,''
:''Si le mal vient du Cœur & vous porte à la Tête.''
::''Il faut vous résoudre à soufrir;''
:''Vous êtes trop fidèle, Iris, pour en guérir.''
References
External links
Biography on Académie française site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pavillon, Etienne
1632 births
1705 deaths
Writers from Paris
17th-century French lawyers
French poets
Members of the Académie Française
Members of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres
French male poets
Lawyers from Metz