Pierre Corneille (1606–1684)
Author of Le Cid
About the Author
Corneille is a part of the greatest period of French drama. His artistic model and theory of the drama were to be followed by successive generations of dramatists, including Racine. His plays deal with noble characters in closely defined situations of high moral intensity. After modest success as a show more writer of complex, baroque comedies, Corneille achieved fame with Le Cid (1636--37), adapted from Guillen de Castro's three-day comedy Las Moceddes del Cid. It vividly represents the dominant theme of his tragedies: the inner struggle between duty and passion. Corneille went on to dominate the French theater of his day with plays that reflect the changing relationships between the aristocracy and the new absolutist state. Some of Corneille's other major tragedies include Horace (1640), Cinna (1640), and Polyeuctus (1643). In his shaping of language and form to his dramatic purposes, Corneille had a great effect on the development of French literature; more specifically, it can be said that he gave form and aim to French neoclassicism. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: From Album littéraire de la France
Series
Works by Pierre Corneille
Théâtre : Tome 2, Clitandre ; Médée ; Le Cid ; Horace ; Cinna ; Polyeucte ; La mort de Pompée (1980) 33 copies, 1 review
Trois discours sur le poème dramatique (Littérature et civilisation) (French Edition) (1999) — Author — 15 copies
Théatre complet - préface, notes, bibliographie, chronologie par pierre lièvre (1934) — Author — 9 copies
Corneille : Œuvres complètes et annexes – Arvensa éditions – annotées, complétées et illustrées (French Edition) (2012) 6 copies
Classical French theatre — Contributor — 5 copies
3 Great French Plays — Contributor — 4 copies
Three Classical Plays: Le Cid ~ Andromaque ~ Le Misanthrope (The Laurel Language Library: French Series, No. 8837) (1935) 3 copies
Polyeucte and Le Menteur 3 copies
Theatre de Pierre et de Thomas Corneille, avec Notes et Commentaires, Tome Second [Vol 2 Only] (1859) 3 copies
Le Cid - Polyeucte 3 copies
Le Théâtre de Pierre Corneille 3 copies
Théatre de P. Corneille 3 copies
Théâtre complet de Corneille. Texte établi sur l'édition de 1682 avec les principales variantes, une introduction, d (1942) — Author — 3 copies
Le Menteur (oeuvre au programme du Bac de français 2025, 1re générale & techno): suivi du parcours « Mensonge et comédie » (2024) 2 copies
THEATRE DE CORNEILLE / LE CID - HORACE - CINNA - POLYEUCTE / COLLECTION "CHEFS-D'OEUVRES LITTERAIRES". (1947) 2 copies
Anatole Latuile: Ca demenage! 9 2 copies
Théâtre complet de Corneille 2 copies
Théâtre complet. Tome I 2 copies
Chefs-d'oeuvre dramatiques. Avec les variantes du texte, les examens de pièces, et Les discours sur la poésie dramatique… (2015) 2 copies
Théatre 2 copies
2: Theatre: Tome II (Bibliotheque Du Theatre Francais) (French Edition) (French and Spanish Edition) (2017) 2 copies
Sertorius, tragédie 2 copies
Theatre Complet, 2 vols. 2 copies
Theatre complet 2 copies
Teatru 2 copies
Theatre de Corneille. Tome II 2 copies
Théâtre de P. Corneille 2 copies
Oeuvres diverses 2 copies
Moot Plays of Corneille 2 copies
Oeuvres complètes de P. Corneille suivies des oeuvres choisies de Thomas Corneille T. 2 [...] 2 copies
Το παιχνίδι της φαντασίας 1 copy
السيد 1 copy
Tragedie : wybór 1 copy
Théatre complet 1 copy
Chef-d'æuvres. bind 2,3,4 1 copy
Cinna- Polyeucte 1 copy
Cinna de Corneille 1 copy
Francuski klasicisti 1 copy
Théâtre choisi de Corneille - Le Cid - Horace _ Cinna - Polyeucte - Le menteur - Nicomède 1 copy, 1 review
Oeuvres 1 copy
The golden age 1 copy
Tragedie 1 copy
CINNA- HORACE 1 copy
Theatre Complete Tome III 1 copy
Cidul 1 copy
Mde 1 copy
Nicome de: Trage die 1 copy
Clássicos Jackson - XXVIII 1 copy
Oeuvres - ed. 1884 1 copy
Oeuvres. Tome X 1 copy
Œuvres (Poésies) 1 copy
Театр : Т. 2, Помпей; Лжец ; Родогуна; Ираклий; Дон Санчо Арагонский ; Никомед ; Серторий ; Сурена 1 copy
Journal de la tour 1 copy
Théatre de Corneille 1 copy
Théatre - Le Cid - Horace 1 copy
Théâtre choisi, Tome 1, La galerie du palais, La Place Royale, L'illusion, Le Cid, Horace, Cinna 1 copy
1 1 copy
2 1 copy
Théâtre 1 copy
Corneille : Scènes choisies publiées avec une introduction, des notices et des notes, par L. Petit de Julleville (1896) 1 copy
Heraclius Empereur D'Orient (Collection Du Repertoire de L'Illustre Theatre) (French Edition) (1995) 1 copy
Oeuvres choisies 1 copy
Théâtre de Corneille 1 copy
Théâtre II 1 copy
menteur, Le (French Edition) 1 copy
Ženske tragedije 1 copy
Tragedie : wybór 1 copy
Drame 1 copy
Rimske politične tragedije 1 copy
Théâtre Tome I 1 copy
Théâtre Tome II 1 copy
Theatre, Corneille : La veuve, La galerie du palais, La place Royale, L'illusion comique, Le menteur 1 copy
Oeuvres des deux Corneille 1 copy
Théâtre, tome 1 1 copy
Théâtre, tome 2 1 copy
Théodore, vierge et martyre 1 copy
Le Cid - attila - suréna 1 copy
Les Horaces, Cinna 1 copy
corneille tome 2 — Author — 1 copy
Théâtre 1 1 copy
Théâtre 2 1 copy
Théâtre de Pierre Et de Thomas Corneille, Vol. 2: Avec Notes Et Commentaires (Classic Reprint) (French Edition) (2017) 1 copy
Œuvres des Deux Corneille (Pierre Et Thomas), Vol. 1 (Classic Reprint) (French Edition) (2017) 1 copy
Teatro vol 1 1 copy
Teatro vol 2 1 copy
Le Menteur - Nicomède 1 copy
Associated Works
Continental Drama: Calderon; Corneille; Racine; Molière; Lessing; Schiller (2004) — Contributor — 251 copies
The Delphian Course : Part Seven : Story of the Drama, Nature Study — Contributor — 4 copies
Profil d'une oeuvre : Le Cid, Corneille, 1637 : résumé, personnages, thèmes (1990) — Contributor — 1 copy
Die Deutsche Schaubühne zu Wienn, nach alten und neuen Mustern — Contributor — 1 copy
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Corneille, Pierre
- Other names
- Corneille
- Birthdate
- 1606-06-06
- Date of death
- 1684-10-01
- Gender
- male
- Occupations
- dramatist
playwright - Relationships
- Corneille, Thomas (brother)
Le Bovier de Fontenelle, Bernard (nephew) - Nationality
- France
- Birthplace
- Rouen, Seine-Maritime, Normandie, France
- Place of death
- Paris, France
- Associated Place (for map)
- France
Members
Reviews
Fairly standard Renaissance fare, except that it adds a new twist, one that would be familiar to modern readers but at the time was unheard of - comedy/tragedy in the same play, for a tragi-comic fable. Though I'm not sure the author is correct about the tragedy. It appears to be a tragedy for a brief moment, but a slight twist ending actually erases the tragedy, bringing it back into comedy mode. Magic realism is also on display here in the form of a sorcerer who can see things happening show more thousands of miles away, and allow other people to see them, provided they are with him. Not a bad work, but nothing earth-shattering. show less
Ok this is also excellent! Emilia is an absolute girlboss and I love it
Also a tragedy with a happy(ish) ending? Unexpected but I did quite like it! (there's definitely room for an interesting debate on how tragic the ending is though)
I never thought I'd become a 17th Century French theatre nerd but apparently I am
Also a tragedy with a happy(ish) ending? Unexpected but I did quite like it! (there's definitely room for an interesting debate on how tragic the ending is though)
I never thought I'd become a 17th Century French theatre nerd but apparently I am
The blank verse translation by John Cairncross has lots of energy, but I can only assume the French has more interesting imagery or something else that couldn’t be brought across, because I found these plays quite dull and one-dimensional. The characters just seem to take turns saying what they mean; there’s little subtext or double meaning here, just ideas being opposed and worked out to a formula. The Cid and Cinna are untragic tragedies; The Theatrical Illusion a mild and inoffensive show more comedy. Glad to have read some Corneille, I suppose. show less
I give it the 4 stars for Theatrical Illusion, which is very funny, and the Cid, which is gorgeous melodrama. Cinna, to me, is less exciting -- in real life, political forgiveness is a good thing, but it does not make for high tragedy
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