(1494-1563) French writer
It is difficult for the modern reader to believe that the author of one of the most funny books in world literature there was a Catholic monk. There is hardly a book more popular than the work of Francois Rabelais. During two-thirds of the 16th century alone, and in France alone, it was reprinted more than 100 times.
"Gargantua and Pantagruel" is a kind of cheerful encyclopedia of the morals of the European Renaissance. And it is precisely thanks to the author’s ability to laugh that she continues to be read and reread today.
Francois Rabelais was born in the small French town of Chinon into the family of a locally famous lawyer and landowner. However exact date his birth is unknown. Researchers call 1494, 1495, and even 1483.
But it is known for sure that he was youngest son V big family. He had two older brothers and a sister. The boy was barely nine years old when his father sent him to a Franciscan monastery. There Francois Rabelais received elementary education. He studied very well and during his stay in the monastery he learned several foreign languages, as well as classical languages - Greek and Latin.
However, the level of education at the Franciscan school did not satisfy Francois Rabelais, and the local bishop D'Edissac, who patronized the talented young man, invited him to join the Benedictine order, which he did. Moreover, Pope Clement VII himself gave permission for this. However, soon Francois Rabelais leaves the monastery and moves to the bishop's house to become his secretary, during which time he meets famous people of his time - the poet K. Marot, theologian J. Calvin.
With the permission of the archbishop, the future writer began to study medicine and soon went to the University of Montpellier. There was the oldest in Europe Faculty of Medicine. François Rabelais stayed in Montpellier for two years and left the university, receiving the title of Bachelor of Medicine.
After this, he moved to the large French city of Lyon, where he became a doctor in the city hospital. There he begins to study for the first time literary creativity. Perhaps this happened thanks to the support of the famous humanist Erasmus of Rotterdam, with whom Rabelais corresponded. At the beginning of 1532, Francois Rabelais published his first book, in which he told about the adventures of the giant Gargantua.
She went under the pseudonym Alcofribas Nazier, composed of the letters of his name, arbitrarily rearranged in the form of an anagram. The anonymous author immediately becomes famous far beyond the borders of his city.
The next year, 1533, a continuation of the book was published, and a little later new and new chapters. The author spent almost the rest of his life producing them, combining literary work with medical studies.
On the initiative of Bishop Jean du Bellay, Francois Rabelais went to Rome as part of the embassy of King Francis. During this trip, he did not stop working for a day and upon returning to Lyon he wrote another volume of his epic, which told about the life of Pantagruel, the father of Gargantua. In it, Francois Rabelais ironically outlined his impressions of his trip to Italy and his stay at the papal court.
It is not surprising that soon after the publication of Francois Rabelais' books they were banned by the French Inquisition. At this time, the name of the author was already known. He stopped hiding under a pseudonym.
Fearing persecution, Rabelais again left for Italy and settled in Rome, where this time he spent more than three years. Formally, Rabelais was listed as the secretary of Bishop du Bellay, who by that time had become a cardinal. It was only thanks to the patronage of du Bellay that he managed to escape persecution by the Inquisition.
While in Rome, Francois Rabelais practiced medicine, and also became seriously interested in archeology and even published a book dedicated to the ancient monuments of Rome.
In 1537, he briefly came to France in the retinue of Cardinal du Bellay and finally received his doctorate in medicine. Then he manages to obtain a royal privilege for the further publication of his books in France. In 1542, the most complete edition of the works of François Rabelais was published, which not only told for the first time about contemporary Italy, but also ridiculed the court of the French king.
The harshness of Francois Rabelais's attacks again attracts the attention of the Inquisition to him, and, contrary to royal privilege, the writer's books are again burned in the square. On the advice of friends, Rabelais decides not to tempt fate any longer and soon leaves France. This time he found refuge in German city Metz, where he also got a job as a doctor. When leaving, François Rabelais left the manuscript of the fourth book with his Lyon publisher. It was published in 1548, when Rabelais returned to Italy with his friend Cardinal du Bellay.
Thanks to powerful patrons, Francois Rabelais' life finally finds stability. In January 1551 he became curate in Meudon, near Paris. Similar purpose It was common in those days to reward actions pleasing to the church. The position did not require diligence in performing duties and provided good income. Rabelais could now spend all his time on academics and literary pursuits. He calmly completed another book of his epic and published it in 1552.
Influential friends again help Francois Rabelais, and he receives royal privilege. The book comes out of print, and its reprints immediately appear. According to the caustic remark of one of his contemporaries, Francois Rabelais prints more than the Bible. A book in which the writer sharply criticizes political activity catholic church, spreads throughout France and far beyond its borders. Almost immediately, denunciations rained down on François Rabelais: he was accused of freethinking, heresy and disrespect for the king. Friends in Once again They advised the writer to hide, and Rabelais secretly left for Lyon, spreading a rumor that he had allegedly been arrested and imprisoned.
Perhaps, thanks to this timely ploy, the writer again managed to avoid arrest. For several months he lived in Lyon, then returned to Paris again and brought with him a fifth, as it turned out, last book. It came out of print after François Rabelais died of heart disease in Paris.
He took the plot for his book from popular popular literature: funny tales they read and loved about kind and funny giants in Germany, Italy, and France. But the author enriches it vivid descriptions contemporary to him French life, caustic remarks addressed to self-interested priests, corrupt judges, learned philosophers, the Pope and the king. It seems like nothing is hidden from view infectious laughter his heroes. The brilliant translator N. Lyubimov helped the Russian reader to experience the magnificent, bright and rich language of Rabelais. In French literature, the influence of François Rabelais on their work was recognized by J. B. Moliere, Voltaire, O. Balzac, R. Rolland, A. France and many other famous writers.
Francois Rabelais short biography writer and thinker-humanist, scientist, philologist, doctor, naturalist, one of the largest figures of the Renaissance is described in this article.
Francois Rabelais biography briefly
François Rabelais was born on a November day in 1494 in Seilly on the estate of Devignes. Regarding what his father did, there are two versions. According to the first version, he was a lawyer, the second says that his father was a tavern keeper, and the third ascribes him to a pharmacist.
IN early age he was sent to study at the monastery of Fontenay-le-Comte with the Franciscan monks. Here he learned ancient Greek and Latin languages, natural Sciences, right. His progressive views did not allow him to stay long in the monastery, and François asks Pope Clement to transfer him to the Benedictines at Malieuse.
Rabelais soon left the clergy. He chose to continue his studies at the universities of Montpellier and Poitiers, studying medicine. His classmate was the future healer and seer Michel de Nostradamus.
In 1532, the thinker decided to settle in Lyon and engage in medical practice and editing manuscripts. The healing was very successful business, and he became an example of a physician of the European Renaissance. Rabelais easily dissected corpses and treated his patients not only with drugs, but also with psychoanalysis, based on the methods of Hippocrates. And he devoted all his free time to publishing satirical pamphlets.
He published his first book in 1532. It was called "Pantagruel" and was part of the great, immortal novel "Gargantua and Pantagruel". His bold views on things and events caused condemnation from the clergy. They ridiculed his foundations of the universe.
In 1534 and 1539, François Rabelais taught medicine in Montpellier. The thinker also often traveled to Rome with his friend Jean du Bellay and Turin. By the way, his friend’s family helped him “legalize” children born out of wedlock - Juni and Francois. In the period 1545-1547 he lives in Metz, hiding from Parisian theologians. In 1547, Rabelais was appointed vicar of Meudon and Saint-Christophe-du-Jambais, but the writer refused the position.
Francois Rabelais (presumably 1494, Chinon - April 9, 1553, Paris) is one of the largest French writers of the Renaissance, best known as the author of the novel “Gargantua and Pantagruel.” According to M. Bakhtin, he is one of the authors who laid the foundations of modern European literature.
The place and time of Rabelais' birth are not known for certain. Although some researchers give his birth year as 1483, most believe that he was born in November 1494 near Chinon, where his father worked as a lawyer. The place of his birth is considered to be the Devigne estate in Seuilly (English) Russian, where the writer's museum is now located.
IN childhood Rabelais was sent as a novice to the Franciscan monastery at Fontenay-le-Comte. There he studied ancient Greek and Latin, natural sciences, philology and law, earning fame and respect for his research among his humanist contemporaries, including Guillaume Budet. Due to the order's disapproval of his research, Rabelais obtained permission from Pope Clement VII to move to the Benedictine monastery at Mallese, where he met more warm attitude to yourself.
Rabelais later left the monastery to study medicine at the universities of Poitiers (English) Russian. and Montpellier (English) Russian.. In 1532 he moved to Lyon, one of cultural centers France. There he combined medical practice with editing Latin works for the printer Sebastian Grief (English) Russian. Free time he devoted himself to writing and publishing humorous pamphlets that criticized established orders and expressed his understanding of individual freedom.
In 1532, under the pseudonym Alcofribas Nassier (French François Rabelais, an anagram of his own name without cedilla) Rabelais published his first book - “Pantagruel”, which later became the second part of “Gargantua and Pantagruel”, which immortalized his name. In 1534, her prehistory followed - “Gargantua”, which told about the life of the father of the protagonist of the previous book. Both works were condemned by Sorbonne theologians and Catholic clerics for their satirical content. The third part, published by Rabelais in 1546 under his real name, was also banned.
Thanks to the support of the influential Du Bellay family, Rabelais received permission from King Francis I to continue publishing. However, after the death of the monarch, the writer again faced the disapproval of the academic elite, and the French parliament suspended sales of his fourth book.
Rabelais taught medicine in Montpellier in 1534 and 1539. He often traveled to Rome with his friend Cardinal Jean du Bellay, and also lived for a short time (when he enjoyed the patronage of Francis I) in Turin with his brother Guillaume. The du Bellay family again helped Rabelais in 1540 - in the legalization of two of his children (Auguste François and Junie).
In 1545-1547, Rabelais lived in Metz, a republican imperial free city, where he found refuge from the condemnation of Parisian theologians. In 1547 he was appointed vicar of Saint-Christophe-du-Jambais. and Meudon (refused this position shortly before his death in Paris in 1553).
The most remarkable writer of his era, Rabelais is, at the same time, the most faithful and living reflection of it; standing alongside the greatest satirists, he occupies an honorable place between philosophers and educators. Rabelais is completely a man of his time, a man of the Renaissance in his sympathies and affections, in his wandering, almost vagabond life, in the diversity of his information and activities. He is a humanist, physician, lawyer, philologist, archaeologist, naturalist, theologian, and in all these areas - “the most valiant interlocutor at the feast of the human mind.” All the mental, moral and social ferment of his era was reflected in his two great novels.
Rabelais's weapon of satire is laughter, gigantic laughter, often monstrous, like his heroes. “He prescribed huge doses of laughter to the terrible social disease that was raging everywhere.”
A satirical novel by the 16th century French writer Francois Rabelais in five books about two good giants - gluttons, father and son. The novel ridicules many human vices and does not spare the author’s contemporary state and church. In the novel, Rabelais ridicules, on the one hand, the numerous claims of the church, and on the other, the ignorance and laziness of the monks. Rabelais colorfully shows all the vices of the Catholic clergy, which caused mass protest during the Reformation.
Francois Rabelais, a French writer, one of the greatest European satirists and humanists of the Renaissance, was born in Chinon (in Touraine), the exact date of birth is unknown. There are versions that this 1483 or 1494, depending on the source.
Presumably Francois was the son of an innkeeper (some say a pharmacist who was also involved in the drinking trade); according to other sources, his father was a lawyer, lost his mother at a very early age, or (according to other news) rejected by her very early and sent to a monastery, than some biographers , with no small stretch, explain the lack of purity, ideality, and tenderness in Rabelais’s works.
Straight from the tavern environment, where Rabelais spent the first 10 years of his life, he, by the will of his father, became a student at the Franciscan monastery of Seully, from there to the monastery of De La Baumette, then, also as a student, to the Cordeliers Abbey in Fontenay-le-Comte ( Fontenay le Comte). The news has been preserved that during these transitions, Rabelais met among his fellow students a young man who later served him as a model for one of the most outstanding figures in his novel - the monk Jean de Entomuard (translated by N.M. Lyubimov - Jean Teethbreaker).
Not educated enough to devote himself to one of the “liberal professions,” Rabelais became a monk. What prompted him to do this, by the way, was the opportunity, given a certain material support, to engage in “humanistic” sciences, which at that time, that is, at the height of the Renaissance in France, occupied the most prominent place in the mental life of the French. The monastic life (and mainly the Franciscan order), to which Rabelais doomed himself when he was 25 years old, was in sharp contradiction with Rabelais’s nature, which was hostile to all mystical extremes and ascetic mortification of the flesh. His dislike for monasticism was strengthened by ignorance, fanaticism and, at the same time, the idleness and debauchery of those monks among whom he had to live, and who were already giving him precious material for his future satirical images. Rabelais worked all the more zealously, in a circle of several like-minded people and thanks to relations with prominent figures Renaissance (for example, with Bude), their favorite sciences.
When the displeasure of the monks, which was greatly facilitated by Rabelais' mockery of them, took the form of persecution, Rabelais fled; although he soon returned, a year later he finally left the Franciscan order and transferred to the Benedictine. François, however, no longer entered the monastery, and as a simple priest lived at the court of the Bishop of Maillezais, Geoffroy d'Estissac, who was distinguished by his education and epicurean inclinations and gathered around him many French “humanists”. It is very likely that Rabelais began communicating with Erasmus of Rotterdam at the same time, for whom he always had the deepest respect, calling him his “father”, even “mother”. The patronage of the bishop, as well as the brothers du Bellay, who played a significant role in the history of the enlightenment of that time and occupied an important position, gave Rabelais the opportunity, without burdening himself with his church duties, to engage in botany and medicine.
In 1530, while maintaining the title of priest, he entered the medical faculty of the University of Montpellier, where he also studied future Nostradamus. Rabelais read here public lectures in medicine (an explanation of the “Aphorisms” of Hippocrates and “Ars parva” of Gallienus), published some scientific (not particularly important in merit) works and “almanacs” that were then in fashion, and finally, he practiced medicine, despite the fact that his degree He officially received his doctor of medicine much later. Rabelais continues the same activity in Lyon, where he moves from Montpellier, but here he also enters the path on which he was destined to acquire immortal glory: in 1532 or 1533 The first two books of his famous novel appear in the first edition, without the author's signature (for fear of persecution), under the pseudonym "Alcofribas Nazier" (an anagram of his first and last name), and under the title "Grandes et inestimables chroniques du grand et énorme géant Gargantua."
An important event In Rabelais' life, almost simultaneously with the release of the first books of Gargantua, there was a trip to Rome as Du Bellay's secretary. She enriched him with observations that gave him rich food as a satirist, whose scourging fell mainly on the corrupt Catholic clergy. During his second trip to Rome, under Pope Paul III, Rabelais, by courting cardinals and other influential persons, obtained forgiveness from the Pope for many of his offenses (including running away from the monastery) and somewhat improved his financial situation. However, the persecution of the clergy and parliament, expressed even in the burning of his books, forced him, despite the patronage of King Francis I, to move from place to place, endure all sorts of hardships and constantly tremble for his personal safety, especially in view of those violences and executions which were constantly happening to him best friends and like-minded people.
Finally in 1551 Rabelais received a parish in Meudon (a place near Paris), where he published the 4th book of Pantagruel. Although the anathemas of the Sorbonne continued with the same force, the powerful patronage (by the way, of Diane de Poitiers) allowed the author to lead a relatively calm existence until his death.