Mathurin Régnier

author

Mathurin Régnier

1573–1613

A sharp, lively voice from early 17th-century France, he turned everyday hypocrisy and human folly into vivid satirical verse. His poems are known for their energy, realism, and conversational French.

1 Audiobook

Œuvres complètes de Mathurin Regnier accompagnées d'une notice biographique et bibliographique, de variantes, de notes, d'un glossaire et d'un index

Œuvres complètes de Mathurin Regnier accompagnées d'une notice biographique et bibliographique, de variantes, de notes, d'un glossaire et d'un index

by Mathurin Régnier

About the author

Born in Chartres in 1573, Mathurin Régnier became one of the most distinctive French satirical poets of his era. He was related to the poet Philippe Desportes, and early in adult life he went to Rome as secretary to Cardinal de Joyeuse before returning to France.

Régnier is best remembered for his satires, which drew on classical models such as Horace and Juvenal but felt fresh and personal in tone. Critics have often praised the force of his language, his eye for recognizable social types, and the way he brought a vigorous, almost spoken quality to French verse.

He later became a canon at Chartres Cathedral and died in Rouen in 1613, still relatively young. Even so, his work secured a lasting reputation as one of the boldest and most original satirical voices in French literature.