This study examines the constructions and uses of the figure of Ovid in French writing of the second half of the seventeenth century, and explores how they were modulated by contemporary aesthetic and cultural concerns. As the influence of Ovid’s poetry made itself felt in various ways – in the mythopoeia of the Sun-King and the fashionable galant salons – interest in the story of Ovid’s life blossomed. This, I argue, was facilitated by new forms of ‘life-writing’, the nouvelle historique and histoire galante, and fuelled in unexpected ways by the escalating querelle des Anciens et des Modernes. Research has been done on the reception and influence of Ovid’s poetry in this period, but little attention has been paid to the figure of Ovid. This thesis offers a new perspective and, informed by recent renewed interest in life-writing, argues that analysis of biographical depictions is vital for establishing a coherent picture of the uses of Ovid in the ‘Grand Siècle’. I explore a diverse range of textual descriptions of Ovid (Vies; prefatory material attached to translations and editions of his work; correspondence; dialogues des morts; biographical dictionaries and historical novels), organized according to their different, though intersecting, ways of writing about this poet. He was constructed as a historical figure, an author, a fictional character and a ‘parallèle’ – a point of identification or contrast for contemporary writers. Through close analysis of a multi-authored corpus, this thesis identifies and examines two instances of paradox: though an ancient poet, Ovid became emblematic of 'Moderne' movements and was used to explore aspects of galanterie; and, though his creative work was mobilized in the service of royal propaganda, Ovid, as a figure for the exiled poet, was also used to express anxieties about the sway of power and the machinations and pitfalls of the world of the court.

Consacré aux Mémoires de la vie de Henriette-Sylvie de Molière (1671-1674) de Madame de Villedieu, ce mémoire étudie la gaieté, omniprésente et protéiforme, de l’œuvre. La gaieté des Mémoires est souvent troublante : tout en répondant à l’impératif incontournable de divertir les lecteur.trice.s, elle révèle la violence du monde et des hommes. Une étude de sa poétique permet alors d’éclairer la perspective singulière et inattendue qui traverse ce roman-mémoires. Le premier chapitre s’attache à analyser certains éléments de la structure narrative de l’œuvre qui, tout en provoquant l’agrément du lectorat, sont aussi porteurs d’un point de vue critique sur l’Histoire, et particulièrement sur l’histoire des femmes. Le deuxième chapitre consiste en une exploration de l’hybridité générique des Mémoires. Ludiques et polémiques, ces nombreuses transgressions à l’égard des codes scripturaires typiquement masculins remettent en question à la fois l’ordre de l’écrit, et les valeurs qui les structurent. La méthode employée est inspirée par l’analyse du discours, et nourrie par plusieurs travaux portant sur la poétique des genres. Finalement, le troisième chapitre examine la gaieté d’Henriette-Sylvie, en tant que narratrice et personnage, à travers le prisme de la rhétorique. Si les mots d’esprit et les réparties ironiques de la narratrice-personnage permettent d’évoquer plus librement plusieurs réalités contraires aux normes de la bienséance, la gaieté inébranlable d’Henriette-Sylvie témoigne aussi de l’obligation qui pèse sur elle de plaire et de divertir. La gaieté est alors envisagée comme faisant partie d’une stratégie énonciative visant à séduire et convaincre. Pour éclairer le contexte, à la fois historique, polémique et générique avec lequel dialogue le roman, ce mémoire s’appuie également sur les travaux ayant pour objet le rire et le comique à l’âge classique, la Querelle des femmes dans l’espace social et littéraire, et le pyrrhonisme des libertins. / Dedicated to the Mémoires de la vie de Henriette-Sylvie de Molière (1671-1674) by Madame de Villedieu, this thesis studies the omnipresent and protean gaiety of the work. The gaiety of the Mémoires is often troubling: while it responds to the inescapable imperative of entertaining the reader, it reveals the violence of the world and of men. A study of its poetics allows us to shed light on the singular and unexpected perspective that runs through this novel-memoir. The first chapter analyzes certain elements of the narrative structure of the work which, while provoking the pleasure of the reader, also carry a critical point of view on History, and particularly on the history of women. The second chapter consists of an exploration of the generic hybridity of the Memoirs. Playful and polemical, these various transgressions of typically male scriptural codes challenge both the order of the written word and the values that structure it. The method used is inspired by discourse analysis, and informed by several works on the poetics of literary forms. Finally, the third chapter examines Henriette-Sylvie’s gaiety, as narrator and character, through the lens of rhetoric. While the narrator-character’s witty and ironic repartee allows for the freer evocation of many realities contrary to the norms of decency, Henriette-Sylvie’s unwavering cheerfulness also speaks to her obligation to please and entertain. Cheerfulness is then seen as part of an enunciative strategy to seduce and convince. In order to shed light on the historical, polemical and generic context with which the novel is in dialogue, this work also relies on works dealing with laughter and comedy in the classical age, the Querelle des femmes in the social and literary space, and the Pyrrhonism of the libertines.