Biography
Characteristics of creativity
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 variety of his knowledge and activities. He is a humanist, physician, lawyer, philologist, archaeologist, naturalist, theologian, and in all these spheres - “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.
The model for “Gargantua” was a folk book of the same title, which caricatured the outdated world of chivalric exploits, romantic giants and wizards. Subsequent books of both this novel and its sequel, Pantagruel, then appeared successively over several years, in different adaptations; the last, fifth, appeared in full only twelve years after the death of Rabelais.
The shortcomings noticed in it raised doubts about its ownership by Rabelais and various assumptions in this regard, of which the most fundamental is that the plan and general program belong to Rabelais, and even all the main details were outlined by him, and many were completely written by him.
Their external form is mythological and allegorical, which was in the spirit of that time and here constitutes only a frame that the author found most convenient for expressing his cherished thoughts and feelings. The great significance of Rabelais' book (for "Gargantua" and "Pantagruel" constitute one inseparable whole) lies in the combination of the negative and positive sides in it. Before us, in the same person of the author, is a great satirist and a profound philosopher, a hand that mercilessly destroys, creates, and sets positive ideals.
Rabelais's weapon of satire is laughter, gigantic laughter, often monstrous, like his heroes. “He prescribed huge doses of laughter to the terrible social illness that was raging everywhere: everything with him is colossal, cynicism and obscenity, the necessary conductors of any sharp comedy, are also colossal.” This laughter, however, is by no means a goal, but only a means; in essence, what he tells is not at all as funny as it seems, as the author himself points out, adding that his work is similar to Socrates, who had a divine soul living under the appearance of Silenus and in a funny body.
A crater is named after Rabelais
Francois Rabelais
Francois Rabelais.
Rabelais (Rabelais), Francois (1494? - 9.IV.1553) - French writer, humanist. Outstanding Representative Renaissance culture. Was a monk; in the monastery he mastered Latin and Greek and entered into correspondence with G. Budet. He studied medicine in Montpellier and received his doctorate in medicine in 1537. Was in close friendship with the humanist E. Dole. The main work of Rabelais, which brought him world fame, - fantasy novel"Gargantua et Pantagruel", v. 1-5, Lion, 1532-64. According to their own visual media and the formulation of problems, the novel is closely connected with the folk life and folk culture of that time. The novel's destructive laughter is directed against the feudal world and its ideology. Ridiculing religious fanaticism cult of asceticism and intolerance, Rabelais acted as an enemy not only catholic church, but also the Reformation, for which he was attacked by J. Calvin. Having created the image of an ideal, “enlightened sovereign” - Pantagruel, Rabelais painted a utopian picture of an ideal society (Theleme Abbey), built on the principles of personal freedom, in which the humanistic idea of the harmonious education of man was implemented as opposed to the medieval scholastic system of education.
I. E. Vertsman. Moscow.
Soviet historical encyclopedia. In 16 volumes. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. 1973-1982. Volume 11. PERGAMUS - RENUVEN. 1968.
Rabelais, Francois. Cartoon
Rabelais, Francois (c. 1494 - c. 1553), the largest representative of the literature of the French Renaissance, the famous author of the satirical stories Gargantua and Pantagruel. Born, according to some scientists, in 1483, according to others - in 1494; Most biographers are inclined to the second opinion. It was believed that his father was an innkeeper, but this legend has long been refuted: he was a court official, i.e. belonged to the enlightened middle class, to which the French Renaissance owed so much. Antoine Rabelais owned lands in Touraine near Chinon; in one of his estates, Ladeviniere, Francois was born.
It remains unclear how and for what reasons he entered the monastery at such an early age (presumably in 1511). The motives that forced him to give preference to the Franciscan monasteries are also mysterious. These monasteries at that time remained aloof from humanistic aspirations and even the study of Greek was considered a concession to heresy. Bishop Geoffroy d'Estissac, who sympathized with humanism, from the nearby Benedictine abbey of Malieze, took Francois and his friend Pierre Amy as his secretaries.
In 1530, while remaining in clergy, Rabelais appeared in the famous medical school in Montpellier and within six weeks he was ready to take his bachelor's exams - there is no doubt that he had studied medicine before. Two years later he became a doctor at the city hospital in Lyon. In those days Lyon was major center book trade. At fairs among folk books one could find adaptations of medieval novels about the deeds of giants and all kinds of miracles, for example, the Great Chronicle (author unknown). The success of this story of a family of giants prompted Rabelais to take up own book. In 1532 he published Horrible and Terrifying Deeds and Exploits of the Illustrious Pantagruel (Horribles et espouantables faicts et prouesses du tres renomm Pantagruel). The book was immediately condemned by the guardians of orthodox dogma, including the Sorbonne and the theological faculty of the University of Paris. In response, Rabelais removed several hot-tempered expressions (like “the Sorbonne donkey”) and, putting aside the old fables, wrote a striking satire that left no doubt about his intentions in the future. It was a book about Gargantua, "father of Pantagruel." The giants remained in it, as did numerous echoes of the skirmish that took place in 1534. During that period, many of Rabelais’ friends were imprisoned, expelled, or faced even more deplorable fates. The highly influential diplomat Jean Du Bellay, a cardinal and envoy in Rome, took Rabelais with him to Rome several times and obtained from the pope a complete forgiveness for the sins against church discipline that his friend had committed in the old days (Absolution January 17, 1536).
Until 1546, Rabelais wrote little: he spent a lot of time working on the works presented at doctorate, received in 1537. There is a known case when his letters were intercepted and he retired to Chambery for a while. The third book (Tiers Livre), describing the new adventures of Pantagruel, was condemned, like the previous ones. High-ranking friends came to the rescue. Cardinal Du Bellay secured for Rabelais the parishes of Saint-Martin de Meudon and Saint-Christophe de Jambais. Cardinal Audet de Chatillon received royal approval for the publication of the Fourth Book (Quart Livre), which did not prevent the Sorbonne and the Parisian parliament from condemning it as soon as it appeared in 1552.
In his writings, Rabelais demonstrates an exceptional richness of tonality - from Gargantua's message to his son (Pantagruel, Chapter VII) to such places when the titles themselves can hardly be reproduced without omissions indicated by dots. Rabelais's originality was most clearly manifested in his unusually colorful and lush style. In his works on medicine one can still feel the influence of Galen and Hippocrates. One of the most famous French physicians, he owed much of his reputation to the fact that he was able to interpret Greek texts, as well as to anatomical sessions, which to some extent foreshadowed the methods laboratory research. His philosophy cannot be called particularly original either. On the contrary, the writings of Rabelais are a true find for the diligent lover of identifying sources and borrowings. Often the narrative is only a few lines long and the page is almost completely filled with notes. This commentary, partly linguistic, was made up of scientific sources, the speech of the common people, including dialects, jargon different classes, as well as Greek and Latin - tracing papers common in that era.
Gargantua and Pantagruel are called romances. Indeed, their composition was greatly influenced by the chivalric romances that were popular at that time. Rabelais also begins the story with the birth of his hero, who, of course, is born “in a very strange way.” Then traditionally there are chapters on childhood and upbringing in adolescence - the hero is raised by both adherents of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Education in the spirit of the latter evokes only admiration in the author, while education in the spirit of the Middle Ages evokes nothing but contempt. When Gargantua confiscates the Cathedral bells Notre Dame of Paris, the Faculty of Theology of the University of Paris sends a delegation to him in order to return them. The head of this delegation, Master Ianotus de Bragmardo, is described with evil mockery. In sharp contrast to this feeble-minded old man stands the well-mannered, bright-minded Gargantua, whose appearance is as impeccable as his Latin. Among his assistants, perhaps the most interesting is Brother Jean, who is very similar to Brother Tuck from the ballads about Robin Hood. Brother Jean is the embodiment of an ideal that is close to the author’s heart, just as he was close to Erasmus of Rotterdam: he is a monk who by no means neglects a living, active life, who knows how to stand up for his monastery in both word and deed.
In Pantagruel, which follows Gargantua (though it is printed earlier), the borrowings from folklore that form the basis of the story are much more obvious. The giant hero, obsessed with a thirst for adventure, was directly transferred to the story from popular print books sold at fairs in Lyon and Frankfurt. His birth also occurs “in a very strange manner” and is described with numerous obstetric details. The story of how this enormous miracle of nature grew is just as colorful, but gradually the author begins to pay the main attention to intellectual aspirations in the spirit of the Renaissance. The scene of the acquaintance with Panurge, who recommends himself by making speeches in many languages, is indicative - an episode precisely calculated with the aim of causing laughter among the public belonging to the circles of humanists, where they might find German difficult, but distinguished between Greek and Hebrew if the speaker demonstrated “true the gift of rhetoric." In the same book (Chapter VIII) we find a letter written in the style of Cicero to Pantagruel, testifying to how passionately people then believed in the advent of a new era.
Having appeared in the story, Panurge will remain in it until the very end. The third book is structured in such a way that he is constantly in the center of the action, discussing either economics (the benefits of debt) or women (should he get married?). When the story comes to the marriage of Panurge, Rabelais forces him to seek advice from one character or another, so that different groups of people. Their opinions are not at all convincing, and Panurge decides to resort to the advice of the oracle of the Divine Bottle, so that the book ends on a note both ironic and bitter.
The fourth book is entirely devoted to Pantagruel's journey, which is both a pilgrimage in the medieval spirit and a Renaissance experience of knowledge, partly in imitation of Jacques Cartier, who described his travels, or the numerous "cosmographies" of that time. The combination of medieval and Renaissance elements in Rabelais should not surprise the reader. The same ambivalence characterizes other details of his narrative. The journey begins with an evangelical, almost Protestant ceremony, but, on the other hand, we have before us the old habit of giving allegorical names to the various islands that the expedition visits (like the islands of Papemans and Papefigs). So that this geographical fantasy does not dry out, names are even taken from Hebrew, such as the island of Ganabim (plural from the word ganab - thief). It is strange that the inventive and resilient Panurge gradually becomes an unsympathetic character, as, for example, in the famous storm at sea scene, when he behaves like a coward, in contrast to Brother Jean, with his fortitude, control of the situation and knowledge of seamanship.
In the Fourth Book the journey is not completed. The fifth book ends with a scene at the oracle of the Divine Bottle, whose mysterious word is interpreted as “trink”, i.e. as an invitation to drink from the cup of knowledge. Thus, the ending of the entire work takes on an optimistic tone - the characters are full of hope that a new era is ahead.
The fifth book appeared in two versions shortly after Rabelais' death. The debate about whether it is a fake has been going on for a long time. The fact that the Fifth Book cannot be unconditionally recognized as the work of Rabelais makes it difficult to understand and evaluate his views. Even on those parts of the work, about which there is no doubt about the authorship, it is difficult to judge what the author’s attitude towards religion was. Nowadays it is generally accepted that he was a follower of Erasmus, i.e. wished church reforms, but not separation from Rome. The hostility to monasticism is explained not only by an aversion to asceticism, but also by the intense polemics at that time that went on in the monasteries themselves between adherents of humanism and zealots of medieval orders. Rabelais thought about this polemic when he mockingly described the library of the monastery of St. Victor (Panagruel, chapter VII), in which the shelves are lined with books with comic titles (like “Shoes of Patience”).
Last years Rabelais is shrouded in mystery. It may never be clear why he abandoned his parishes so soon after he received them. Nothing is known with certainty about his death, except for the epitaphs of the poets Jacques Tayuro and Pierre de Ronsard, the latter sounding strange and not complimentary in tone. Both epitaphs appeared in 1554. Even about the burial place of Rabelais nothing can be said for sure. It is traditionally believed that he is buried in the cemetery of St. Paul's Cathedral in Paris.
Materials from the encyclopedia "The World Around Us" were used.
Read further:
Historical figures of France (biographical index).
Essays:
Oeuvres, v. 1-5, P., 1913-31;
Oeuvres complètes, t. 1-5, P., 1957; in Russian trans.: Gargantua and Pantagruel, trans. N. Lyubimova, M., 1961.
Literature:
Evnina E. Francois Rabelais. M., 1948
Francois Rabelais. Biobibliographic index, M., 1953;
Pinsky L. Laughter of Rabelais. – In the book: Pinsky L. Realism of the Renaissance. M., 1961
Bakhtin M.M. The works of Francois Rabelais and folk culture Middle Ages and Renaissance. M., 1965
Rabelais F. Gargantua and Pantagruel. M., 1973
Lefranc A., Rabelais, P., 1953;
Plattard J., Rabelais, l"homme et l"oeuvre, P., 1958.
Francois Rabelais (lived 1494-1553) is a famous humanist writer originally from France. He gained worldwide fame thanks to the novel "Gargantua and Pantagruel". This book is an encyclopedic monument to the Renaissance in France. Rejecting the asceticism of the Middle Ages, prejudice and bigotry, Rabelais, in grotesque images of characters inspired by folklore, reveals the humanistic ideals characteristic of his time.
Priest career
Rabelais was born in Touraine in 1494. His father was a wealthy landowner. Around 1510, François became a novice in the monastery. He took his vows in 1521. In 1524, Greek books were confiscated from Rabelais. The fact is that orthodox theologians during the period of the spread of Protestantism were suspicious of Greek language, considered heretical. He gave the opportunity to interpret in his own way New Testament. Francois had to switch to the Benedictines, who were more tolerant in this regard. However, in 1530 he decided to resign his rank and go to Montpellier to study medicine. Here in 1532 Rabelais published the works of Galen and Hippocrates, famous healers. Also in Montpellier he had two children from his widow. They were legalized in 1540 by an edict of Pope Paul IV.
Medical activity
Rabelais was allowed to be a secular priest in 1536. He began medical practice. Francois became a doctor of medicine in 1537 and lectured on this science at the University of Montpellier. In addition, he was the personal physician to Cardinal J. du Bell. Rabelais twice accompanied the cardinal to Rome. François was patronized all his life by influential politicians G. du Bellay), as well as high-ranking liberal clergy. This saved Rabelais from a lot of trouble that the publication of his novel could have brought.
The novel "Gargantua and Pantagruel"
Rabelais found his true calling in 1532. Having become acquainted with the “folk book about Gargantua,” Francois published, in imitation of it, a “continuation” about the king of the dipsodes, Pantagruel. The long title of Francois's work included the name of Master Alcofribas, who allegedly wrote this book. Alcofribas Nazier is an anagram consisting of the letters of the surname and first name of Rabelais himself. This book was condemned by the Sorbonne for obscenity, but the public received it with delight. Many people liked the story about the giants.
In 1534, the humanist François Rabelais created another book with an equally long title, telling the story of life of Gargantua. Logically, this work should come first, since Gargantua is the father of Pantagruel. In 1546, another, third book appeared. It was signed not with a pseudonym, but own name Francois Rabelais. The Sorbonne also condemned this work for heresy. For some time I had to hide from the persecution of Francois Rabelais.
His biography is marked by the publication in 1548 of the fourth book, not yet completed. Full version appeared in 1552. This time the matter was not limited to the condemnation of the Sorbonne. This book was banned by parliament. Nevertheless, Francois’s influential friends managed to hush up the story. The last, fifth book was published in 1564, after the author’s death. Most researchers dispute the idea that it should be included in the work of François Rabelais. Most likely, according to his notes storyline completed by one of his students.
Encyclopedia of laughter
Francois's novel is a real encyclopedia of laughter. It contains all kinds of comedy. It is not easy for us to appreciate the subtle irony of the erudite author of the 16th century, since the object of ridicule has long ceased to exist. However, the audience of François Rabelais, of course, received great pleasure from the story about the library of St. Victor, where the author parodically (and often obscenely) played on many titles of treatises of the Middle Ages: “Codpiece of Law”, “Pole of Salvation”, “On the Excellent Qualities of Tribal” and etc. Researchers note that medieval types of comedy are associated primarily with folk laughter culture. At the same time, the work also contains forms that can be considered “absolute”, capable of causing laughter at any time. These include, in particular, everything related to human physiology. It remains unchanged at all times. However, over the course of history, attitudes towards physiological functions change. In particular, in the tradition of folk laughter culture, “images of the material and bodily lower classes” were depicted in a special way (this definition was given by the Russian researcher M. M. Bakhtin). The work of François Rabelais largely followed this tradition, which can be called ambivalent. That is, these images evoked laughter, capable of “burying and reviving” at the same time. However, in modern times they continued to exist in the sphere of low comedy. Many of Panurge's jokes are still funny, but often they cannot be retold or even more or less accurately translated using the words fearlessly used by Rabelais.
The last years of Rabelais' life
The last years of Francois Rabelais' life are shrouded in mystery. We do not know anything reliably about his death, except for the epitaphs of such poets as Jacques Tayuro. The first of them, by the way, sounds rather strange and is not at all complimentary in tone. Both of these epitaphs were created in 1554. Researchers believe that Francois Rabelais died in 1553. His biography does not provide reliable information even about where this writer was buried. It is believed that his remains rest in Paris, in the cemetery of St. Paul's Cathedral.
(Rabelais, Francois) (c. 1494 c. 1553), the largest representative of the literature of the French Renaissance, famous author of satirical narratives Gargantua (Gargantua) And Pantagruel (Pantagruel). Born, according to some scientists, in 1483, according to others, in 1494; Most biographers are inclined to the second opinion. It was believed that his father was an innkeeper, but this legend has long been refuted: he was a court official, i.e. belonged to the enlightened middle class, to which the French Renaissance owed so much. Antoine Rabelais owned lands in Touraine near Chinon; in one of his estates, Ladeviniere, Francois was born.
It remains unclear how and for what reasons he is so early age(presumably in 1511) entered the monastery. The motives that forced him to give preference to the Franciscan monasteries are also mysterious. These monasteries at that time remained aloof from humanistic aspirations and even the study of Greek was considered a concession to heresy. Bishop Geoffroy d'Estissac, who sympathized with humanism, from the nearby Benedictine abbey of Malieze, took Francois and his friend Pierre Amy as his secretaries.
In 1530, while remaining in the clergy, Rabelais appeared at the famous medical school in Montpellier and within six weeks he was ready to take the baccalaureate exams; there is no doubt that he had practiced medicine before. Two years later he became a doctor at the city hospital in Lyon. In those days, Lyon was a major center of book trade. At fairs, among folk books, one could find adaptations of medieval novels about the deeds of giants and all kinds of miracles, for example Big Chronicles(author unknown) . The success of this story of a family of giants prompted Rabelais to start writing his own book. In 1532 he published The terrible and terrifying deeds and exploits of the illustrious Pantagruel (Horribles et espouantables faicts et prouesses du tres renommé Pantagruel). The book was immediately condemned by the guardians of orthodox dogma, including the Sorbonne and the theological faculty of the University of Paris. In response, Rabelais removed several hot-tempered expressions (like “the Sorbonne donkey”) and, putting aside the old fables, wrote a striking satire that left no doubt about his intentions in the future. It was a book about Gargantua, "father of Pantagruel." The giants remained in it, as did numerous echoes of the skirmish that took place in 1534. During that period, many of Rabelais’ friends were imprisoned, expelled, or faced even more deplorable fates. The highly influential diplomat Jean Du Bellay, a cardinal and envoy in Rome, took Rabelais with him to Rome several times and obtained from the pope a complete forgiveness for the sins against church discipline that his friend had committed in the old days (Absolution January 17, 1536).
Until 1546, Rabelais wrote little: he spent a lot of time working on the essays submitted for his doctorate, received in 1537. There is a known case when his letters were intercepted and he retired to Chambery for a while. Third book (Tiers Live), describing the new adventures of Pantagruel, was condemned, like the previous ones. High-ranking friends came to the rescue. Cardinal Du Bellay secured for Rabelais the parishes of Saint-Martin de Meudon and Saint-Christophe de Jambais. Cardinal Audet de Chatillon received royal approval for publication Fourth book (Quart Livre), which did not prevent the Sorbonne and the Parisian parliament from condemning it as soon as it was published in 1552.
In his writings, Rabelais demonstrates the exceptional richness of tonality from Gargantua's message to his son ( Pantagruel, ch. VII) to places where the titles themselves can hardly be reproduced without gaps indicated by dots. Rabelais's originality was most clearly manifested in his unusually colorful and lush style. In his works on medicine one can still feel the influence of Galen and Hippocrates. One of the most famous French physicians, he owed much of his reputation to the fact that he was able to interpret Greek texts, as well as to anatomical sessions, which to some extent foreshadowed the methods of laboratory research. His philosophy cannot be called particularly original either. On the contrary, the writings of Rabelais are a true find for the diligent lover of identifying sources and borrowings. Often the narrative is only a few lines long and the page is almost completely filled with notes. This commentary, partly linguistic, was made up of scientific sources, the speech of the common people, including dialects, professional jargon of different classes, as well as Greek and Latin - tracing papers common in that era.
Gargantua And Pantagruel called novels. Indeed, their composition was greatly influenced by the chivalric romances that were popular at that time. Rabelais also begins the story with the birth of his hero, who, of course, is born “in a very strange way.” Then traditionally there are chapters on childhood and upbringing in adolescence; the hero is raised by both adherents of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Education in the spirit of the latter evokes only admiration in the author, while education in the spirit of the Middle Ages evokes nothing but contempt. When Gargantua confiscates the bells of Notre Dame Cathedral, the Faculty of Theology of the University of Paris sends a delegation to him to return them. The head of this delegation, Master Ianotus de Bragmardo, is described with evil mockery. In sharp contrast to this feeble-minded old man stands the well-mannered, bright-minded Gargantua, whose appearance is as impeccable as his Latin. Among his assistants, perhaps the most interesting is Brother Jean, very similar to Brother Tuck from the ballads about Robin Hood. Brother Jean is the embodiment of an ideal that is close to the author’s heart, just as he was close to Erasmus of Rotterdam: he is a monk who by no means neglects a living, active life, who knows how to stand up for his monastery in both word and deed.
IN Pantagruele, following Gargantua(although it was published earlier), the borrowings from folklore that formed the basis of the story are much more obvious. The giant hero, obsessed with a thirst for adventure, was directly transferred to the story from popular print books sold at fairs in Lyon and Frankfurt. His birth also occurs “in a very strange manner” and is described with numerous obstetric details. The story of how this enormous miracle of nature grew is just as colorful, but gradually the author begins to pay the main attention to intellectual aspirations in the spirit of the Renaissance. The scene of the acquaintance with Panurge, who recommends himself by making speeches in many languages, is indicative, an episode precisely calculated with the aim of causing laughter among the public belonging to the circles of humanists, where they might find German difficult, but distinguished between Greek and Hebrew if the speaker demonstrated “true the gift of rhetoric." In the same book (Chapter VIII) we find a letter written in the style of Cicero to Pantagruel, testifying to how passionately people then believed in the advent of a new era.
Having appeared in the story, Panurge will remain in it until the very end. Third book is structured in such a way that he is constantly in the center of the action, discussing either economic topics (the benefits of debt) or women (should he get married?). When the story comes to the marriage of Panurge, Rabelais makes him seek advice from one character after another, so that different groups of people are involved in the matter. Their opinions are not at all convincing, and Panurge decides to resort to the advice of the oracle of the Divine Bottle, so that the book ends on a note both ironic and bitter.
Book Four completely devoted to Pantagruel's journey, which represents both a pilgrimage in the medieval spirit and a Renaissance experience of knowledge, partly in imitation of Jacques Cartier, who described his travels, or the numerous “cosmographies” of that time. The combination of medieval and Renaissance elements in Rabelais should not surprise the reader. The same ambivalence characterizes other details of his narrative. The journey begins with an evangelical, almost Protestant ceremony, but, on the other hand, we have before us the old habit of giving allegorical names to the various islands that the expedition visits (like the islands of Papemans and Papefigs). So that this geographical fantasy does not dry out, names are even taken from Hebrew, such as the island of Ganabim (plural from the word ganab thief). It is strange that the inventive and resilient Panurge gradually becomes an unsympathetic character, as, for example, in the famous storm at sea scene, when he behaves like a coward, in contrast to Brother Jean, with his fortitude, control of the situation and knowledge of seamanship.
IN The fourth book the journey is not completed. Fifth book ends with a scene at the oracle of the Divine Bottle, whose mysterious word is interpreted as “trink”, i.e. as an invitation to drink from the cup of knowledge. Thus, the ending of the entire work takes on an optimistic tone - the characters are full of hope that a new era is ahead.
Fifth book appeared in two versions shortly after the death of Rabelais. The debate about whether it is a fake has been going on for a long time. The fact that Fifth book cannot be unconditionally recognized as the creation of Rabelais, complicates the understanding and assessment of his views. Even from those parts of the work for which there is no doubt about the authorship, it is difficult to judge what the author’s attitude towards religion was. Nowadays it is generally accepted that he was a follower of Erasmus, i.e. wanted church reforms, but not separation from Rome. The hostility to monasticism is explained not only by an aversion to asceticism, but also by the intense polemics at that time that went on in the monasteries themselves between adherents of humanism and zealots of medieval orders. Rabelais thought about this polemic when mockingly describing the library of the monastery of St. Victor ( Pantagruel, chapter VII), in which the shelves are lined with books with comic titles (like "Shoes of Patience").
Rabelais's last years are shrouded in mystery. It may never be clear why he abandoned his parishes so soon after he received them. Nothing is known with certainty about his death, except for the epitaphs of the poets Jacques Tayuro and Pierre de Ronsard, the latter sounding strange and not complimentary in tone. Both epitaphs appeared in 1554. Even about the burial place of Rabelais nothing can be said for sure. It is traditionally believed that he is buried in the cemetery of St. Paul's Cathedral in Paris.
Evnina E. Francois Rabelais. M., 1948
Pinsky L. Rabelais's laughter. In the book: Pinsky L. Realism of the Renaissance. M., 1961
Bakhtin M.M. The work of Francois Rabelais and the folk culture of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. M., 1965
Rabelais F. Gargantua and Pantagruel. M., 1973
Francois Rabelais
French writer, scientist, philosopher, public figure
Born in 1494 in the vicinity of Chinon in Touraine in the family of a court official.
Around 1511 - Rabelais enters the Franciscan monastery in Poitou. These monasteries at that time remained aloof from humanistic aspirations and even the study of Greek was considered a concession to heresy, so Rabelais’ study of Latin and Greek brought upon him the displeasure of the monastic authorities.
1525 - Bishop Geoffroy d'Estissac, who sympathized with humanism, from the nearby Benedictine abbey of Malieze takes Rabelais as his secretary.
1537-1530 - having left Poitou, apparently not quite legally, he lives in Paris.
1530 - remaining in the clergy, Rabelais appears at the famous medical school in Montpellier and within six weeks is ready to take the bachelor's exams - there is no doubt that he had practiced medicine before.
1531 - becomes a doctor at the city hospital in Lyon. At this time, Rabelais became known as a doctor, an expert in modern and ancient medicine, a commentator on the father of Greek medicine Hippocrates and the Roman scientist Galen, and the author of scientific works.
1532 - Rabelais publishes the novel “The Terrible and Terrifying Deeds and Exploits of the Illustrious Pantagruel” (Horribles et espouantables faicts et prouesses du tres renomme Pantagruel), based on one of the many popular adaptations of medieval novels about the deeds of giants and all kinds of miracles “great and invaluable chronicles of the great and the huge giant Gargantua" (author unknown).
1533 - publishes “Pantagrueline prognostication” - a mocking parody of the prophecies of astrologers, using the fears and superstitions of people in troubled times.
In the same year, as the personal physician of the Parisian bishop, he visited Italy, where he became acquainted with Roman antiquities and oriental medicine.
1534 - encouraged by the success of the first book, Rabelais publishes “The Tale of the Terrible Life of the Great Gargantua, Father of Pantagruel,” which pushed the first book into second place and became the beginning of the cycle.
1535 - makes a second trip to Italy.
1537 - Rabelais receives his doctorate.
While in the service of King Francis I and traveling around Southern France, Rabelais practiced medicine.
1546 - The Third Book (Tiers Livre) appears. The twelve years separating it from the first two are marked by changes in religious policy Francis I - repressions against supporters of the Reformation and humanist scientists. Theologians of the Sorbonne are seeking to ban the “sinful” books of Rabelais. The “third book” still manages to be published thanks to the privilege received from the king (in 1547 it was again condemned by the theological faculty of the University of Paris).
In the same year, persecuted by Catholic fanatics, Rabelais left the Kingdom of France and earned his living as a physician in Metz. Apparently, for the last decade of his life he has been carrying out both diplomatic assignments and tasks of a more dangerous and delicate nature.
1548 - The Fourth Book (Quart Livre) is published.
In the same year, Rabelais, as the personal physician of Cardinal Jacques Du Bellay, made another trip to Italy.
1551 - receives two church parishes (one of them is Meudon), but does not fulfill the duties of a priest.
1552 - The revised “Fourth Book” is published.
1553 - Rabelais dies in Paris. Nothing can be said for sure about the place of his burial. It is traditionally believed that he is buried in the cemetery of St. Paul's Cathedral in Paris.
1562 - nine years after the death of the “Medon curé”, the first part of the “Fifth Book” - “The Sounding Island” - is published.