Littérature et lexicographie dans le « Dictionnaire Universel » d’Antoine Furetière

Abstract

Furetière was a writer who practiced many literary genres before he ventured into lexicography and produced the first French encyclopedic dictionary. This paper aims to explore the ways in which Furetière presents literary themes in his Dictionnaire Universel, with the exception of literary quotations, which have already been studied. We will examine not only the content of entries dealing with style and figures, with poetical, dramatic and narrative genres, but also references to literature that are scattered in numerous entries in which the author introduces writers, works, characters and which reveal more personal choices. If Furetière’s encyclopedic scope and curiosity lead him to give the reader information about French literature, especially Medieval, the classicism of the times and its principles seem to guide several of his choices, whereas simple mentions, by eluding the systematization of consecrated entries, create a less visible but nonetheless important space of freedom. In other words, Furetière managed to combine his encyclopedic passion and his adhesion to his time’s norms, without giving up his personal taste.