Pierre Matthieu en España: biografía, política y traducción en el Siglo de Oro by Adrián Izquierdo (review)

Dr. Adrián Izquierdo’s study of the translator, author, playwright and political figure Pierre Matthieu centers on this author’s historical, biographical and translation work, and its reception in late sixteenth- and early seventeen-century Spain. In addition to recovering and exploring the impact and ramifications of Pierre Matthieu’s translations in Spain, and how he was both praised and criticized at various junctures by the likes of such important historical figures as Juan Pablo Mártir Rizo, Lorenzo Van der Hammen, Baltasar Gracián and Francisco de Quevedo, Dr. Izquierdo examines the concept of historiography that existed in sixteenth-century Spain, and how Matthieu’s histories were viewed in accordance with differing dominant paradigms of the time. Izquierdo explores the political ramifications of Matthieu’s own works as well as how he was translated in Spain. He demonstrates, for example, the manner in which the omission of certain key details or the suppression of passages, as well as the slight re-writing or reinterpretation of specific phrases, serves the political ends of the translator.

The book is organized into four distinct sections, each of which deals with a different aspect of Pierre Matthieu’s writings and their influence and impact on the Iberian Peninsula. The study opens by situating Matthieu in his appropriate socio-historical context. Educated by the Jesuits, Matthieu began writing plays at the age of 15, and showed great skill as a writer and translator. He was well-versed in Spanish, German and Italian, in addition to Latin and Greek. Re-readings of biblical episodes and anecdotes from figures of classical antiquity were hallmarks of Matthieu’s writings throughout his life. Politically, Matthieu belonged to the moderate line of magistrates and men of letters that proposed conciliatory solutions seeking political unity, thinkers that also participated in the reconstruction of the French monarchy following Henry IV’s conversion to Catholicism. Matthieu was also an important representative of jurist humanists who sought to emend and closely examine testimonies of authors and original source documents, and ultimately became the royal historian for the French monarchs Henry IV and Louis XIII, which was his primary distinction during his lifetime.

The rhetorical aspects of Matthieu’s historiography and the relationship of his works with the polemics of the time period about Laconic style are closely examined by Professor Izquierdo. Matthieu’s style was both criticized and celebrated for its dramatic qualities, for its frequent use of aphoristic language, and for its detailed employment of indexes and marginal commentary. Izquierdo argues convincingly that Matthieu’s writings and translations are one of the major entry points of Tacitism as a dominant historical writing mode in Spain which emphasized syntax, brevity and word choice. Izquierdo examines many of Matthieu’s most prominent translators and imitators, and in particular, the poet, critic, and historian Mártir Rizo. Izquierdo reconstructs the probable reasons for the success of the French historian in the context of the court of Madrid in the first half of the seventeenth century.

The archetypal figure of the “favorite” and its similar but subtly different manifestations in France and Spain is also central to Izquierdo’s study. The “favorite” was a confidant or political advisor to the prince or king, generally criticized and studied because of their potential influence over courtly circles of power. This archetype was employed by many historical writers to serve as a model for improper exercise of power. The counterreformist political imaginary, as is well-known, was deeply configured by such models of idealized archetypal conduct of rulers and their confidants, intended to be followed or scorned. In the case of Matthieu, Izquierdo argues, his political writings reflect an exploration and interest in discovering underlying characteristics of human nature, in response in part to the widespread diffusion of Machiavellianism. In this context, Izquierdo examines the way in which some of Matthieu’s translators utilized his writings...