Télémaque

work by Fénelon

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July 14, 2026

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Les Aventures de Télémaque is a work by François de Salignac de La Mothe-Fénelon, published in 1699. It is a novel about the adventures of Telemachus, son of Odysseus, as he searches for his father. The book was written to educate the young duc de Bourgogne, grandson and heir to King Louis XIV, and symbolically expresses Fénelon's political ideas. The adventures of Telemachus serve as a moral and political allegory, guiding the prince through various trials and lessons. The work was influential in French literature and education, setting a trend for novels focused on the education of princes and heroes.

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history of Europe
History and social thought
…Fénelon was to show in Télémaque (1699)—where the population of his imaginary republic of Salente was engaged in farming and the ruler, renouncing war, sought to increase the wealth of the kingdom—a utopian idyll could be a vehicle for criticism of contemporary institutions. A bishop and sentimental aristocrat, heir to…
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…Fénelon was to show in Télémaque (1699)—where the population of his imaginary republic of Salente was engaged in farming and the ruler, renouncing war, sought to increase the wealth of the kingdom—a utopian idyll could be a vehicle for criticism of contemporary institutions. A bishop and sentimental aristocrat, heir to…
Read More