This study investigates the effects of Jansenist theology on seventeenth-century French literature. After an initial explanation of the history of the Jansenist movement and its specific beliefs, there then follows a study into some of the works produced by members of this group. These citations have also been used in order to trace the development of the movement over the seventeenth century. For the purpose of this research, the term J ansenism has been taken to refer to the movement in the seventeenth century and has not been extended into the following century. Once this description has been given, the following four chapters each deal with an individual author and their connection to the Jansenist movement. Their principle works are then studied in order to ascertain the level of influence exerted by this form of religious piety on their literary output. Chapter Two deals with Pascal and concentrates on his Lettres Provinciales and Pensees. Chapter Three studies La Rochefoucauld's Maximes, which are a prime example of the pessimistic view of mankind that was so prevalent during this century. Chapter Four looks into two of Madame de Lafayette's novels, La Princesse de Cleves and La Comtesse de Tende. Chapter Five then studies Racine, a figure whose personal connections with the Jansenist movement, and subsequent estrangement from it, have been well studied. Finally the Conclusion draws together the findings from these chapters and demonstrates how the movement's own development led to changes in how Jansenist doctrine affected the literature of the seventeenth century.

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