What kinds of language did Jean de La Fontaine combine in his Fables?

In his Fables, Jean de La Fontaine demonstrated remarkable linguistic versatility by harmonizing a wide array of disparate styles and registers. His vocabulary skillfully blended the archaic with the precious and the burlesque, while also incorporating the refined, the familiar, and the rustic. Furthermore, he integrated the specialized language of various professions and trades with the elevated terminology of philosophy and mythology.1

This stylistic richness was supported by his mastery of prosody and poetic diction, as he utilized lines of varying metre and unpredictable rhyme schemes to achieve diverse effects of tone and movement. Despite this complexity, his writing remained characterized by economy and understatement, reflecting the mature craftsmanship of a writer who expertly adapted the linguistic resources of the Classical age to his own creative needs.12