Edmé-François Mallet: Difference between revisions
I deleted quite a bit on his education. It was translated poorly from the French article, and I don't think it has much relevance (or understandability) for the English-language reader. |
This is part of a major edit. I'm presenting more detail on the "controversy" at the end and updating the material. |
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For the [[Encyclopédie ou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers|Encyclopédie]], co-edited by [[Denis Diderot]] and [[Jean le Rond d’Alembert]], he wrote more than a thousand articles, with a focus on trade (over 500 articles), theology, history (about 600 ones), and literature (200), but he died of angina well before the completion of the project. His articles represented compilations from previously published texts, including reference works. Several of his articles with historical content were revised by [[Nicolas Lenglet Du Fresnoy]] and edited by [[Jean-François Marmontel]] for their literary aspect. |
For the [[Encyclopédie ou Dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers|Encyclopédie]], co-edited by [[Denis Diderot]] and [[Jean le Rond d’Alembert]], he wrote more than a thousand articles, with a focus on trade (over 500 articles), theology, history (about 600 ones), and literature (200), but he died of angina well before the completion of the project. His articles represented compilations from previously published texts, including reference works. Several of his articles with historical content were revised by [[Nicolas Lenglet Du Fresnoy]] and edited by [[Jean-François Marmontel]] for their literary aspect. |
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== A Controversy == |
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Although Mallet was learned, his stance and categorical tone in theological articles may lead the reader to wonder why he was chosen as a contributor for such articles when Diderot, the work's editor, sought to relativize and even ridicule religion. Indeed, Mallet demonstrated a strict orthodoxy and manifested a fierce hatred for all heretical beliefs. |
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In an article of 1976, Walter Rex argued against the received view of Mallet, namely that he represented an element of moderation among Catholic clergymen, one who had been deliberately recruited by Diderot and D’Alembert. Rather, Rex speculated, Mallet may have been a “Trojan horse” in the service of [[Jean-François Boyer]], the bishop of Mirepoix, a bitter enemy of the [[Jansenist]]s and the philosophes: “we may conclude that this protégé of the former bishop of Mirepoix was deliberately subversive to the 'enlightened' objectives of the ''Encyclopédie'', in fact he was serving the reactionary element of the French clergy.”<ref>Walter E. Rex, "'Arche de Noé' and Other Religious Articles By Abbé Mallet for the ''Encyclopédie''," ''Eighteenth-Century Studies'' 9 (1976): 333-52.</ref> |
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Rex’s views were contested by Frank Kafker. Kafker pointed out that Mallet was recruited to work on the ''Encyclopédie'' just a month after Diderot and D’Alembert were appointed editors, at which time the ''Encyclopédie'' did not have a reputation for being critical of religion. Furthermore, Mallet behaved “moderately” in some ways, condemning the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre and upholding a hearing for the condemned contributor Claude Yvon, for example. Finally, Diderot had “cordial” relations with Mallet, and D’Alembert praised him as a moderate, albeit with exaggeration.<ref>Frank A. Kafker and Serena L. Kafker, ''The Encyclopedists as Individuals: A Biographical Dictionary of the Authors of the Encyclopédie'' (Oxford: Voltaire Foundation, 1988), 238-43; Frank A. Kafker, "Courrier," ''Recherches sur Diderot et sur l'Encyclopédie'' 11 (1991): 182-83.</ref> |
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More recently, Reginald McGinnis has pointed out that research on the ''Encyclopédie'' over the past several decades has invalidated much of Rex’s original argument. In particular, quite a few of the articles in the ''Encyclopédie'' that Rex citied as evidence of Mallet's reactionary or ultra-orthodox character turn out to have been copied from Ephraim Chambers’ ''Cyclopaedia'' (1728). Furthermore, McGinnis’s own research suggests that Mallet’s published articles on the Jansenists, for example, were in tune with those of D’Alembert and other philosophes.<ref>Reginald McGinnis, "Apology for the Abbé Mallet," ''French Studies'' 69 (2015): 159-72.</ref> |
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It may be that Mallet was recommended as a contributor by [[Jean-François Boyer]], the Bishop of Mirepoix, a bitter enemy of the [[Jansenist]] and the [[Philosophes]], and it is possible that Mallet was a [[Trojan Horse]] in his service. But it is also possible that he acted as a safeguard: If the ''Encyclopédie'', early on, had gone beyond what was then acceptable in religion and theology, perhaps the project would have failed or encountered more problems than it did. |
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== References == |
== References == |
Revision as of 21:15, 15 March 2023
Edmé-François Mallet, also abbé Mallet (29 January 1713, Melun – 25 September 1755, Châteaurenard), was an eighteenth-century French theologian and encyclopédiste.[1][2][3]
Biography
Edmé-François Mallet received his first education from the country priest in his home-town and later studied at the college of the Barnabites in Montargis, before going to Paris. There, he tutored Ange Laurent Lalive de Jully (1725-1779), a future Announcer of ambassadors as well as honorary member of the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture.[4]
In Paris, Mallet trained for the priesthood and then, in 1742, earned a doctorate in theology. During his studies in Paris, he was also temporarily private teacher of the Fermier Général Louis Denis Lalive de Bellegarde (1680-1751).
In 1744, he returned to his family in Melun and remained there for seven years. In 1747, he published an Essai sur l’étude des belles-lettres. After his mother's death in 1751, he moved back to Paris and took a chair of theology at the Collège de Navarre.
In 1753, he published an Essai sur les bienséances oratoires and Principes pour la lecture des Orateurs in three volumes. In 1754, his Principes pour la lecture des Poëtes was published. He also translated a Histoire de Davila, which was published only after his death. At this time, he began to gather sources to address two major projects: Histoire générale de toutes les guerres de France de l’établissement de la monarchie jusqu’à Louis XIV and a History of the Council of Trent.
For the Encyclopédie, co-edited by Denis Diderot and Jean le Rond d’Alembert, he wrote more than a thousand articles, with a focus on trade (over 500 articles), theology, history (about 600 ones), and literature (200), but he died of angina well before the completion of the project. His articles represented compilations from previously published texts, including reference works. Several of his articles with historical content were revised by Nicolas Lenglet Du Fresnoy and edited by Jean-François Marmontel for their literary aspect.
A Controversy
In an article of 1976, Walter Rex argued against the received view of Mallet, namely that he represented an element of moderation among Catholic clergymen, one who had been deliberately recruited by Diderot and D’Alembert. Rather, Rex speculated, Mallet may have been a “Trojan horse” in the service of Jean-François Boyer, the bishop of Mirepoix, a bitter enemy of the Jansenists and the philosophes: “we may conclude that this protégé of the former bishop of Mirepoix was deliberately subversive to the 'enlightened' objectives of the Encyclopédie, in fact he was serving the reactionary element of the French clergy.”[5]
Rex’s views were contested by Frank Kafker. Kafker pointed out that Mallet was recruited to work on the Encyclopédie just a month after Diderot and D’Alembert were appointed editors, at which time the Encyclopédie did not have a reputation for being critical of religion. Furthermore, Mallet behaved “moderately” in some ways, condemning the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre and upholding a hearing for the condemned contributor Claude Yvon, for example. Finally, Diderot had “cordial” relations with Mallet, and D’Alembert praised him as a moderate, albeit with exaggeration.[6]
More recently, Reginald McGinnis has pointed out that research on the Encyclopédie over the past several decades has invalidated much of Rex’s original argument. In particular, quite a few of the articles in the Encyclopédie that Rex citied as evidence of Mallet's reactionary or ultra-orthodox character turn out to have been copied from Ephraim Chambers’ Cyclopaedia (1728). Furthermore, McGinnis’s own research suggests that Mallet’s published articles on the Jansenists, for example, were in tune with those of D’Alembert and other philosophes.[7]
References
- ^ Frank A. Kafker & Jacques Chouillet, Notices sur les auteurs des dix-sept volumes de « discours » de l'Encyclopédie, Recherches sur Diderot et sur l'Encyclopédie (1990), vol. 8, pp. 101–102.
- ^ Encyclopédie (1756), vol. 6, pp. iii–v.
- ^ Edme Mallet, Bibliothèque nationale de France.
- ^ Holzhey, Helmut; Mudroch, Vilem; Ueberweg, Friedrich; Rohbeck, Johannes: Grundriss der Geschichte der Philosophie: Die Philosophie des 18. Jahrhunderts. 2 Halbbde. Schwabe-Verlag, Basel (2008) ISBN 978-3-7965-2445-5, (p. 289–290)
- ^ Walter E. Rex, "'Arche de Noé' and Other Religious Articles By Abbé Mallet for the Encyclopédie," Eighteenth-Century Studies 9 (1976): 333-52.
- ^ Frank A. Kafker and Serena L. Kafker, The Encyclopedists as Individuals: A Biographical Dictionary of the Authors of the Encyclopédie (Oxford: Voltaire Foundation, 1988), 238-43; Frank A. Kafker, "Courrier," Recherches sur Diderot et sur l'Encyclopédie 11 (1991): 182-83.
- ^ Reginald McGinnis, "Apology for the Abbé Mallet," French Studies 69 (2015): 159-72.
Main works
- 1747: Essai sur l’étude des belles-lettres
- 1753: Principes pour la lecture des orateurs.
- 1753: Essai sur les bienséances oratoires
Bibliography
- John Rogister: Louis XV and the Parlement of Paris, 1737-55. Cambridge University Press (2010) ISBN 0-5218-9336-4 S. 241
- Dorothy Caiger Senghas: The Abbé Mallet: contributor to the Encyclopédie. Davis, University of California (1968), Dissertation
External links
- Edme Mallet on data.bnf.fr
- Edme-François Mallet on Wikisource
- Some articles on poetry by Mallet