Marc-Antoine Muret: des ‘Isles fortunées’ au rivage romain by Jean-Eudes Girot (review)

Marc-Antoine Muret was widely revered by his contemporaries as one of the most erudite humanists of his generation, yet he tends to be remembered only through association: with Ronsard, by virtue of his commentary on the Amours; with Montaigne, who was a student at the Collège de Guyenne when Muret briefly taught there; and with sodomy, for which he was tried in absentia before being burned in effigy in Toulouse. This comprehensive and scholarly study demonstrates Muret’s continuing status in French literature even after his move to Italy, portraying him as a prolific scholar with a practical understanding of printing, a genuine commitment to teaching, and a strong sense of privacy. The first of the three parts analyses Muret’s life and works, based on his correspondence and literary criticism. It suggests that his ‘flight’ from the sodomy charges in Toulouse was a conscious decision to leave France for Italy, and that the vilification of Muret through the pederasty rumours, chiefly spread by Protestants, may have been driven primarily by his Counter-Reformation position: his ordination in Rome in 1576 cements his intellectual shift away from northern European humanism and French Gallicanism. Muret’s reluctance to publish anything not driven by scholarly necessity is emphasized, as is his careful control over the printing of his works: his familiarity with printing makes him anxious about intellectual integrity and also aware both of the pragmatics of producing good quality editions and of the professional implications of delays in the publication process. He is equally private about his extensive correspondence, despite the tendency to publish informal letters to friends initiated by Aretino in 1538: the 1580 edition of a selection of his letters is presented as a corrective response to the rather malicious image, in Denys Lambin’s published correspondence, of Muret as a plagiarist, social climber, and pederast. His literary commentaries, informed by his knowledge of the law and manifesting his belief in clarity and simplicity of expression, are shown to reflect the teaching for which he was admired by his students and pupils: he believes that ethics must be taught with oratory and that the classical languages should be valued more as a necessary tool than as a vehicle for contemporary literary expression. The second part contains the letters that were sent to him by his colleagues and friends: although there are no translations of the letters written in Latin or Italian, all are briefly summarized and accompanied by biographical and bibliographical remarks. The final part contains an analytical bibliography of Muret’s works, including the prefatory material and a brief résumé of each work, followed by a copious index or concordance to all of the proper names mentioned in Muret’s correspondence. Overall, this is a meticulously detailed volume that will help restore Muret to something approaching the reputation he had during his lifetime. It is a valuable scholarly tool that portrays Muret as a thoughtful, engaging, and committed humanist with a real dedication to his professional duties, to scholarship, and to his friends.