The biographies (vita) of saints in the Bibliothèque bleue: Is there a Norman specificity?
Andries, Lise
The biographies (vita) of saints in the Bibliothèque bleue: Is there a Norman specificity? - 2022.
48
The great majority of saints featuring in the Bibliothèque bleue of Normandy and Troyes lived during the very first centuries of Christianity. Its predilection for martyred saints must be underlined, as well as the predominance of the Western Church over the Eastern Church. This aspect, already notable in the Golden Legend, was clearly accentuated in the Bibliothèque bleue in the seventeenth century, with the appearance of saints that had a local, French, or European implantation, in the context of the Counter-Reformation and the reconquest of the peasant world. The biographies of saints featured in the Bibliothèque bleue were, for the most part, written or translated with the consent of the dioceses, in an undoubtedly concerted effort. The aim was to simultaneously give an important place to the saints of the Church of France, miracles, and pilgrimages, while accompanying the hagiographic narrative with precise scenography.
The biographies (vita) of saints in the Bibliothèque bleue: Is there a Norman specificity? - 2022.
48
The great majority of saints featuring in the Bibliothèque bleue of Normandy and Troyes lived during the very first centuries of Christianity. Its predilection for martyred saints must be underlined, as well as the predominance of the Western Church over the Eastern Church. This aspect, already notable in the Golden Legend, was clearly accentuated in the Bibliothèque bleue in the seventeenth century, with the appearance of saints that had a local, French, or European implantation, in the context of the Counter-Reformation and the reconquest of the peasant world. The biographies of saints featured in the Bibliothèque bleue were, for the most part, written or translated with the consent of the dioceses, in an undoubtedly concerted effort. The aim was to simultaneously give an important place to the saints of the Church of France, miracles, and pilgrimages, while accompanying the hagiographic narrative with precise scenography.
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