Pierre Marivaux

Martial Poirson
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Marivaux might be described in the same terms that he used when referring to Racine and Corneille in “Réflexions sur l'esprit humain” [Reflections on the Human Mind]: he is one of those authors who paints the “portrait that best depicts the importance and singularity of the being which we call Man”. By giving equal importance to both experience and feelings, Marivaux thus embodies the “experimental humanist” who – as a man of the theater as well as a novelist and journalist – was committed to attaining a full understanding of the successive states of the human mind before attempting to describe them.

Little is known about the life of this major French literary figure of the Enlightenment. Under the pseudonym of Marivaux, he achieved a major reputation throughout Europe :

1849 words

Citation: Poirson, Martial. "Pierre Marivaux". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 27 April 2006 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=2935, accessed 19 March 2024.]

2935 Pierre Marivaux 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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