FENELON, François de Salignac de la Mothe

Les aventures de Télémaque, filsd’Ulysse

París: 1773.

In 1699, François de Salignac, tutor of Louis of Burgundy, grandson of the Sun King, anonymously published the Adventures of Telemachus with the aim of reinforcing the education of his pupil.  However, the work did not please King Louis XIV who saw in it veiled criticisms of his reign, keeping the clergyman in the bishopric of Cambrai where he would remain until his death in 1715.

This is the first adventure novel written for a child, just as it is also the first “initiation novel”, that is to say, the one that narrates the experiences of growth of one or several characters from their childhood to adulthood. Inspired by Homer’s Odyssey. The errors of the first editions were corrected from 1717 by the author’s nephews.

Minerva, disguised as a mentor, accompanies the young Telemachus in the search for his father, trying to make all the accidents and adventures he goes through serve as a learning experience.

The work was praised by Montesquieu, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Thomas Jefferson and Gottfried Herder.

This particular edition contains Jean Hofhout’s dedication to the Prince of Orange, Guillaume-Charles Henri-Friso, and includes satirical footnotes.

Cuarto.- 29 x 24 cm, pp. [6] 4-424 [2] + 4 pages with Jean Hofhout’s dedication + 8 pages with an announcement from the editor + one page with a letter of approval from Sacy + 13 pages with a speech on the epic poetry and poem of Telemachus, accompanied by notes on the sides. A map of the eastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. A portrait of Fenelon. 25 plates and 72 engravings.

A beautiful copy with a contemporary binding in red Morocco.