Philarète Euphemon Chasles (6 October 179818 July 1873) was a widely-known French

critic A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as Art criticism, art, Literary criticism, literature, Music journalism, music, Film criticism, cinema, Theater criticism, theater, Fas ...

and

man of letters An intellectual is a person who engages in critical thinking, research, and reflection about the nature of reality, especially the nature of society and proposed solutions for its normative problems. Coming from the world of culture, either ...

Life and work

He was born at Mainvilliers, Eure-et-Loir. His father, Pierre Jacques Michel Chasles (1754–1826), was a member of the Convention, and was one of those who voted the death of

Louis XVI Louis XVI (Louis-Auguste; ; 23 August 1754 – 21 January 1793) was the last king of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. The son of Louis, Dauphin of France (1729–1765), Louis, Dauphin of France (son and heir- ...

. He brought up his son according to the principles of

Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher ('' philosophe''), writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects ...

's '' Emile'', and the boy, after a regime of outdoor life, followed by some years classical study, was apprenticed to a printer, so that he might make acquaintance with manual labor. His master was involved in one of the plots of 1815, and Philarète suffered two months imprisonment. On his release he was sent to London, where he worked for the printer Abraham John Valpy on editions of classical authors. He wrote articles for the English reviews, and on his return to France did much to popularize the study of English authors. He introduced a number of foreign writers to France including Gozzi, Richter, and Melville. He was one of the true origins of the discipline of comparative literature. He was also one of the earliest to draw attention in France to Scandinavian and Russian literature. He contributed to the '' Revue des deux mondes'', until he had a violent quarrel, terminating in a lawsuit, with François Buloz, who won his case. He was especially interested in national literatures and their influence on other nations. He became librarian of the

Bibliothèque Mazarine The , or Mazarin Library, is located within the Palais de l'institut de France, or the Palace of the Institute of France (previously the Collège des Quatre-Nations of the University of Paris), at 23 quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement, on t ...

, and from 1841 was professor of

comparative literature Comparative literature studies is an academic field dealing with the study of literature and cultural expression across language, linguistic, national, geographic, and discipline, disciplinary boundaries. Comparative literature "performs a role ...

at the

Collège de France The (), formerly known as the or as the ''Collège impérial'' founded in 1530 by François I, is a higher education and research establishment () in France. It is located in Paris near La Sorbonne. The has been considered to be France's most ...

. During his active life he produced some fifty volumes of literary history and criticism, and of social history, much of which is extremely valuable. He died at

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

in 1873. His son, Émile Chasles (1827–1908), was a philologist of some reputation. Among his best critical works is ''Dix-huitime siècle en Angleterre'' (1846), one of a series of 20 vols. of ''Etudes de littérature comparée'' (1846–1875), which he called later ''Trente ans de critique''. An account of his strenuous boyhood is given in his ''Maison de mon pré''. His ''Memoires'' (1876–1877) did not fulfil the expectations based on his brilliant talk. Philarète Chasles, professeur au collège de France CIPA0659.jpg, alt=Mr Philarète Chasles, professor at Collège de France (German and English literature), before 1844., "Mr Philarète Chasles, professor at

(German and English literature)", before 1844. Philarète Chasles.jpg, Portrait of Philarète Chasles in ''Philarète Chasles'' by Eugène de Mirecourt, 1857.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Chasles, Philarete French literary critics 1798 births People from Eure-et-Loir 1873 deaths Academic staff of the Collège de France French male non-fiction writers