author
Florian
1755–1794
Best remembered for the lyric that became the song “Plaisir d’amour,” this 18th-century French writer brought charm, wit, and feeling to poems, tales, plays, and especially fables.
3 Audiobooks
History of the Moors of Spain
by Florian
Fables de Florian
by Florian
About the author
Born in 1755 near Sauve in southern France, Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian became a poet, novelist, dramatist, and fabulist whose work was widely admired in his own time. Sources consistently describe him as one of France’s notable writers of light, graceful verse and narrative, and as a member of the Académie française.
He is most often remembered today for writing the poem “Plaisir d’amour” in his novel Célestine, later turned into a famous song. He also wrote fables that helped keep that genre lively in French literature after La Fontaine, along with novels and stage works that were known for their elegance and readability.
Florian died in 1794 at the age of 39. Even though he is less widely read now than some of his contemporaries, his name still survives through that enduring song and through fables that show his gift for clarity, warmth, and musical language.