Laurent de Premierfait’s French De casibus translation

E944472

Laurent de Premierfait’s French De casibus translation is a widely influential early 15th-century French rendition of Boccaccio’s Latin moral tales about the falls of famous figures, which helped transmit and adapt this humanist work for later European audiences.

Jump to: Statements Referenced by

Statements (45)

Predicate Object
instanceOf French prose work
adaptation of classical literature
literary translation
adaptationType vernacularization of Latin humanist text
audience courtly and learned French readers
authorOfSourceText Giovanni Boccaccio NERFINISHED
basedOn Giovanni Boccaccio’s De casibus virorum illustrium NERFINISHED
century 15th century
circulation widely read in 15th-century France
contains moralizing commentary on fortune and virtue
narratives of classical and biblical figures
countryOfOrigin France
culturalRole helped transmit Boccaccio’s moral historiography in Europe
mediated Italian humanism to French culture
date early 15th century
form prose
function mirror for princes
moral exemplum collection
genre biographical exempla
didactic literature
moral tales
historicalContext produced in the context of growing vernacular humanism in France
influenced later European adaptations of De casibus narratives
later French moral and historical literature
reception of Boccaccio in France
intendedEffect to warn powerful individuals against pride and vice
language French
literaryForm collection of exempla narratives
literaryInfluence contributed to the French tradition of exempla for rulers
contributed to the development of French prose historiography
literaryPeriod early Renaissance
late medieval period
literaryTradition De casibus tragedy tradition
mainTheme falls of famous figures
instability of fortune
moral instruction
moralPerspective Christian moral framework applied to classical history
movement early Renaissance humanism
originalLanguage Latin
purpose to provide moral and political exempla
to render Boccaccio’s Latin work accessible to French readers
relatedWork Latin De casibus virorum illustrium NERFINISHED
subjectMatter lives and downfalls of illustrious men and women
translationDirection Latin-to-French
translator Laurent de Premierfait NERFINISHED

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

The Fall of Princes relatedWork Laurent de Premierfait’s French De casibus translation