illinoisrbml:Today we mark the March 6th birthday of French author Cyrano de Bergerac, born almost 4
illinoisrbml:Today we mark the March 6th birthday of French author Cyrano de Bergerac, born almost 400 years ago in 1619. While he may be best known today through Edmond Rostand’s eponymous 19th-century play based loosely on his life, in the 17th century Bergerac was known for more than the size of his nose. His work The Comical History of the States and Empires of the Worlds of the Moon and Sun, seen here, combines two of his novels, L’Autre Monde: ou les États et Empires de la Lune (1657) and Les États et Empires du Soleil (1662), both published after Bergerac’s 1655 death. The novels trace the voyages of Dyrcona to the moon and the sun via rocket propulsion—an invention which of course did not exist in Bergerac’s day. Dyrcona reflects on Earth from his extraterrestrial position, making controversial observations about the political and religious climate of the 17th century. Through his characters, Bergerac speculates that other inhabited worlds might exist, suggests that the Old Testament might not be true (at least in a literal sense), and offers other criticisms of the Church. As a result, this English-language edition of his books was edited to remove many of these passages and the adjective “comical” was added to the title to emphasize that the narrator’s ideas were not to be taken seriously. The book went on to influence writers like Arthur C. Clarke and is considered today to be one of the earliest forerunners of modern science fiction.The book is bound in tree calf, so called because the design in the leather resembles a tree. SLBergerac, Cyrano de. The comical history of the states and empires of the worlds of the moon and sun. (London : Printed for Harry Rhodes, next door to the Swan-Tavern, near Bride-Lane, in Fleet-Street, 1687)IUA03608 -- source link