By Julie Candler Hayes
This corpus of seventeenth and eighteenth-century French translators’ prefaces and related documents (treatises on translation, on language, on pedagogy, etc.) stems from the research for my book, Translation, Subjectivity, and Culture in France and England, 1600-1800 (Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2009). In making these materials available online, my initial thought was to provide longer excerpts from texts that are cited briefly, and often in English translation, in the book. I hope that these texts may prove useful to other scholars of the history of translation as well. Many texts are given in their entirety; others, while abridged, are still far more complete than in any of the anthologies of historical translators prefaces currently available. The initial corpus of this anthology corresponds to primary sources cited in Translation, Subjectivity, and Culture that do not exist in modern editions. The reader will thus find excerpts from the collective translation, Huit oraisons de Ciceron, edited by Nicolas Perrot d'Ablancourt (1638), but none of d'Ablancour's prefaces, which are readily accessible in a modern critical edition by Roger Zuber. (See a list of documents available in modern editions or online.) Over time, I hope to enlarge the scope of this online anthology with other documents that never found their way into the book.
Caveats: these documents are research notes that were not originally intended for publication as such. I have endeavored to correct obvious errors, but make no claim to offer flawless texts. In case it may be useful to others, I have left the call number for each volume with the indication of the library in which I consulted it: the Bibliothèque de France (abbreviated either BN or BNF), the Mills Memorial Library at McMaster University, the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, the Huntington Library, the Alderman Library at the University of Virginia (UVA). In early texts, I have modernized "i" as "j" and "v" as "u"; I have not replicated the "long s." In other respects, I have followed original spelling and punctuation. (In at least one instance, my word processor balked at a common seventeenth-century typographical phenomenon, the abbreviation of the nasal vowel "en" by "e" with a tilde--so the reader will occasionally come across "e~". I have also retained the original pagination style of the volume consulted .
The documents here are arranged by the year in which they were originally published and by the author's last name. Some of the texts cited are from later editions, so the edition will not always match the year of first publication. Translators' prefaces are listed under the name of the translator. In order to search for translations of a given writer, such as Virgil, use the Search/ Advanced Search feature to search under keyword = Virgil. Keyword = women will produce all documents by women translators. For translations, the language of the source text is also a keyword, so keyword = English will bring up all translations from English.
I welcome comments, suggestions, and corrections at .
Translation and Related Documents from 1616
Dedication, Le Valeureux Dom Quixote de la Manche (vol. 1), César Oudin
Translation and Related Documents from 1618
Dedication, L'Histoire de l'ingénieux et redoutable chevalier, Dom Quixote de la Manche (vol. 2), François de Rosset
Translation and Related Documents from 1630
Dedication and Preface to Des Causes de la corruption de l'éloquence, Louis Giry and Antoine Godeau
Translation and Related Documents from 1634
Preface to Gulistan ou l'Empire des Roses, André Du Ryer
Translation and Related Documents from 1638
Huit oraisons de Ciceron, Nicolas Perrot d' Ablancourt
Translation and Related Documents from 1647
Preface to L'Alcoran de Mahomet, André Du Ryer
Preface to Poème de Saint Prosper contre les ingrats, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Preface to Les Fables de Phedre, affranchy d'Auguste, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Translation and Related Documents from 1649
Preface to Les Confessions de St. Augustin, Robert Arnauld d'Andilly
Translation and Related Documents from 1659
Preface to Le Quinte Curce de Vaugelas, Pierre Du Ryer and Claude Favre de Vaugelas
Translation and Related Documents from 1660
De la traduction, ou Regles pour apprendre à traduire la langue latine en langue françoise, Gaspard de Tende, sieur de l'Estang
Translation and Related Documents from 1666
"Au Lecteur" from Bucoliques de Virgile, Thomas Guyot
Translation and Related Documents from 1667
Preface to Le Nouveau Testament (La Bible de Mons), Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Translation and Related Documents from 1668
Preface to Traduction de l'Enéide de Virgile, Jean de Segrais
Translation and Related Documents from 1669
"Advis au Lecteur" from Fleurs morales et épigrammatiques, Thomas Guyot
Translation and Related Documents from 1672
Preface to Les Proverbes de Salomon, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Preface to La Vérité de la religion chrétienne [Pianezza], Père Dominique Bouhours
Translation and Related Documents from 1678
Preface to Histoire de l'admirable Don Quixotte de la Manche, François Filleau de Saint Martin
Histoire critique du vieux testament (excerpts), Richard Simon
Translation and Related Documents from 1679
Preface to Lettres de S. Jerôme, Jean Petit, abbé général de l’ordre de Citeaux
Preface to Les Douze petits prophètes, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Translation and Related Documents from 1681
Les Poésies d'Anacréon et de Sapho, Anne Le Fèvre Dacier and Antoine de la Fosse
Translation and Related Documents from 1682
Preface to L'Exode et le Levitique, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Preface to La Genèse (BNF copy), Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Preface to La Genèse (UCLA copy), Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Translation and Related Documents from 1684
"Quelques réflexions sur nos traducteurs", Charles de Marquetel de Saint-Denis, seigneur de Saint-Evremond
Translation and Related Documents from 1685
Sentimens de quelques théologiens de Hollande, Jean Le Clerc
Preface to Les Nombres, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Preface to Le Deuteronome, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Translation and Related Documents from 1688
Preface to Tobie, Judith & Esther, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Preface to Job, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Translation and Related Documents from 1691
Preface to Harangues de Demosthene, Jacques de Tourreil
Preface to Daniel et Machabées, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Translation and Related Documents from 1693
Preface to Cantique des cantiques, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Preface to Les Paralipomenes, Esdras & Nehemias, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Translation and Related Documents from 1694
"Si la torture est une bonne voye, pour découvrir la vérité," from Essais de jurisprudence, Jacques de Tourreil
Translation and Related Documents from 1695
Preface, Poëme contenant la tradition de l’Eglise sur le tres-saint Eucharistie, Isaac-Louis Le Maistre de Sacy
Translation and Related Documents from 1701
"Préface historique" [to Demosthenes], Jacques de Tourreil
Translation and Related Documents from 1707
Regles pour discerner les bonnes et les mauvaises critiques des traductions de l’Ecriture-Sainte en François, Antoine Arnauld
Translation and Related Documents from 1714
Lettre à Monsieur de *** sur l'Iliade de M. de la Motte, Abbé Jean-François de Pons
Translation and Related Documents from 1715
Lettre à Madame Dacier, Thémiseul de Saint-Hyacinthe
Translation and Related Documents from 1721
"Préface sur les deux harangues" [of Demosthenes and Aeschines], Jacques de Tourreil
Translation and Related Documents from 1722
Jugemens des savans sur les principaux ouvrages des auteurs, Adrien Baillet
Translation and Related Documents from 1726
De la manière d'enseigner et d'étudier les belles-lettres (excerpts), Charles Rollin
Translation and Related Documents from 1727
Preface to Les Voyages de Gulliver, Abbé Pierre François Guyot Desfontaines
Translation and Related Documents from 1736
Preface to Philippiques de Démosthene et Catalinaires de Ciceron, Pierre-Joseph Thoulier, abbé d' Olivet
Preface to Pope, Essai sur l'homme, Etienne de Silhouette
Preface to Pope, Essai sur la critique, Etienne de Silhouette
Preface to Pope, Essai sur la critique, Etienne de Silhouette
Preface to Productions d'esprit [Works of Jonathan Swift], Justus Van Effen
Translation and Related Documents from 1737
Preface to Les Principes de la morale et du goût [Pope], Jean-François du Bellay, abbé du Resnel
Preface to Poeme de Petrone sur la guerre civile entre Cesar et Pompée, Jean Bouhier
Réflexions préliminaires sur le goût des traductions, Etienne de Silhouette
Translation and Related Documents from 1742
Preface to Les Amours d'Enée et de Didon, poëme traduit de Virgile, Jean Bouhier
Translation and Related Documents from 1743
Preface to Les Avantures de Joseph Andrews, Abbé Pierre François Guyot Desfontaines
Preface to Richardson, Pamela, ou la vertu récompensée, Antoine François, abbé Prévost
Preface to Les Oeuvres de Virgile, Abbé Pierre François Guyot Desfontaines
Translation and Related Documents from 1745
"Discours du théâtre anglois"' from Le Théâtre anglois, Pierre Antoine de La Place
Translation and Related Documents from 1748
Preface to Le Paradis terrestre, poeme imité de Milton, Marie-Anne Le Page Du Boccage
Translation and Related Documents from 1750
Preface to Tom Jones, ou L'Enfant trouvé, Pierre Antoine de La Place
Translation and Related Documents from 1751
Preface to Lettres angloises, ou Histoire de Miss Clarisse Harlove, Antoine François, abbé Prévost
Translation and Related Documents from 1754
Preface to Fables de Monsieur Gay, Marie-Françoise Abeille de Keralio
Translation and Related Documents from 1755
Nouvelles lettres angloises ou Histoire du chevalier Grandisson, Antoine François, abbé Prévost
Translation and Related Documents from 1756
Preface to Halifax, Avis d'un Père à sa Fille, Marie-Geneviève-Charlotte Thiroux d'Arconville
Preface to Les Freres, ou Histoire de Miss Osmond [Smythies], Philippe-Florent de Puisieux and Madeleine de Puisieux
Translation and Related Documents from 1757
L'Esprit de l'abbé Desfontaines, Abbé Pierre François Guyot Desfontaines
Translation and Related Documents from 1763
Preface to Fielding, Amélie, Marie-Jeanne Riccoboni
Preface to Hume, Histoire de la maison de Tudor, Octavie Belot
Observations sur l'art de traduire, Jean le Rond d' Alembert
Translation and Related Documents from 1764
Preface to Harangues d'Eschine et de Démosthene, Abbé Claude François Xavier Millot
Translation and Related Documents from 1766
Preface to Beccaria, Traité des délits et des peines, Abbé André Morellet
Translation and Related Documents from 1768
Traduction de la premiere nuit de Young, précédée de quelques reflexions sur le caractere & les poésies de cet auteur, Claude de Thyard, comte de Bissi
Discours sur les langues, Abbé François Arnaud
Discours moraux, Pierre Le Tourneur
Translation and Related Documents from 1769
"Discours préliminaire" to Les Nuits d'Young, Pierre Le Tourneur
Translation and Related Documents from 1770
Preface to Les Douze Césars, Jean-François de La Harpe
Preface to Les Georgiques de Virgile, Abbé Jacques Delille
Translation and Related Documents from 1771
Preface to Essai de traduction littérale et énergique [Pope], Maximilien-Henri, marquis de Saint-Simon
Preface to Hervey, Méditations sur les tombeaux, Marie-Geneviève-Charlotte Thiroux d'Arconville
Preface to Méditations d'Hervey, Pierre Le Tourneur
Translation and Related Documents from 1772
Nouvelles observations critiques sur différens sujets de littérature, Jean-Marie Clément
Preface to Essai sur Pindare, Jean-François de Vauvilliers
Translation and Related Documents from 1776
Preface to Traité des Bienfaits, de Seneque, Jean-Baptiste-Joseph-René Dureau de la Malle
Translation and Related Documents from 1777
Preface to Ossian, fils de Fingal, Pierre Le Tourneur
Translation and Related Documents from 1783
Preface to L'Essai sur l'homme de Pope, Jean Louis Pierre, marquis de Fontanes
Translation and Related Documents from 1798
Preface to Cervantes, Don Quichotte de la Manche, Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian
Preface to La Chapelle d'Ayton, ou Emma Courtney, Pauline Guizot
Translation and Related Documents from 2008
Translators’ Prefaces and Related Works in Modern Critical, Reprint, or Online Editions, Julie Hayes