About
Jacques Cazotte, born in Dijon in 1719, was a French writer known for his fantastic novel Le Diable amoureux (The Devil in Love, 1772), considered a foundational work of the genre. After studies with the Jesuits and a career in colonial administration in Martinique, he devoted himself to literature. He wrote fairy tales, oriental pastiches, and a continuation of the Arabian Nights. An adept of Illuminism, he was arrested during the French Revolution and guillotined in 1792.
* 1719-10-07 — † 1792-09-25
Major works
- Le Diable amoureux (1772)novel
- Ollivier (1762)narrative poem
- La Patte du chat (1741)fairy tale
- Les Mille et une fadaises (1742)oriental pastiche
- Continuation des Mille et une nuitscollection of tales
Key milestones
- 1740Completed law studies in Dijon.
- 1747Posted to Martinique in the naval administration.
- 1792Guillotined in Paris on September 25.
Themes
fantasticesotericismorientalismmarvelousprophecy
Sources: id.loc.gov · oxfordreference.com · en.wikisource.org