French literature (French:littérature française) generally speaking, is literature written in the French language, particularly by citizens of France; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditionallanguages of France other than French. Literature written in the French language by citizens of other nations such as Belgium, Switzerland, Canada,Senegal,Tunisia,Algeria,Morocco, etc. is referred to asFrancophone literature.
For centuries, French literature has been an object of national pride for French people, and it has been one of the most influential aspects of theliterature of Europe.[1][2] France ranks first on the list ofNobel Prizes in literature by country.
One of the first known examples of French literature is theSong of Roland, the first major work in a series of poems known as, "chansons de geste".[3]
The French language is aRomance language derived fromLatin and heavily influenced principally byCeltic andFrankish. Beginning in the 11th century, literature written in medieval French was one of the oldestvernacular (non-Latin) literatures in western Europe and it became a key source of literary themes in theMiddle Ages across the continent.
Although the European prominence of French literature was eclipsed in part by vernacular literature in Italy in the 14th century, literature in France in the 16th century underwent a major creative evolution, and through the political and artistic programs of theAncien Régime, French literature came to dominate European letters in the 17th century.
In the 18th century, French became the literarylingua franca and diplomatic language of western Europe (and, to a certain degree, in America), and French letters have had a profound impact on all European and American literary traditions while at the same time being heavily influenced by these other national traditions. Africa and the far East have brought the French language to non-European cultures that are transforming and adding to the French literary experience today.
Under the aristocratic ideals of the Ancien Régime (the "honnête homme"), the nationalist spirit of post-revolutionary France, and the mass educational ideals of the Third Republic and modern France, the French have come to have a profound cultural attachment to their literary heritage. Today, French schools emphasize the study of novels, theater and poetry (often learnt by heart). The literary arts are heavily sponsored by the state and literary prizes are major news. TheAcadémie française and theInstitut de France are important linguistic and artistic institutions in France, and French television features shows on writers and poets (one of the most watched shows on French television wasApostrophes,[4] a weekly talk show on literature and the arts). Literature matters deeply to the people of France and plays an important role in their sense of identity.
As of 2022, fifteen French authors have been awarded theNobel Prize in Literature which is more than novelists, poets and essayists of any other country. In 1964Jean-Paul Sartre was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, but he declined it, stating that "It is not the same thing if I sign Jean-Paul Sartre or if I sign Jean-Paul Sartre, Nobel Prize winner. A writer must refuse to allow himself to be transformed into an institution, even if it takes place in the most honorable form."[5]
Paul Verlaine (far left) andArthur Rimbaud (second to left) in an 1872 painting by Henri Fantin-Latour.Samuel Beckett Walk, Paris (France). Nobel Prize 1969.Seminar withClaude Simon, Cerisy (France). Nobel Prize 1985.Frenchcontemporary literature workshop with Marc Avelot, Philippe Binant, Bernard Magné, Claudette Oriol-Boyer,Jean Ricardou, Cerisy (France), 1980.
For most of the 20th century, French authors had more LiteratureNobel Prizes than those of any other nation.[6] The following French or French language authors have won aNobel Prize in Literature:
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