20 PROLEGOMENA. irregular boards. But he produced one comedy in verse, La Metromanie, which became immediately a stock play, while many other authors who do not require separate mention followed in the general track. The name of most importance, however, next in chrono- logical order to Lesage, is that of Marivaux. In the general style of Marivaux’ plays there is, as has been already men- tioned, no great difference from those ordinarily written in his time for the Theatre Francais, by which and by the Comedie Italienne he was indifferently employed. His chief idiosyncrasy lies in his style, which, though not entirely novel (for it had been anticipated to some extent by his friend and patron Fontenelle), struck his contemporaries sufficiently to receive a distinct title — that of Marivaudage. The peculiarities of Marivaudage, though in our own days they have shown themselves strongly in English literature itself, are not very easy to describe shortly in words. They may perhaps best be indicated by saying that the characters analyse their own thoughts and sentiments interminably, and express both in language which, though in Marivaux himself it is not devoid of charm, cannot escape the charge of affectation. Marivaux’ plays are not ill-constructed, but the action is mainly subordinated to the display of this peculiar loquacity. He had some influence on his contem- poraries, but on the whole not so much as might have been expected, till his peculiarities, reproduced to some extent by Richardson and Sterne, came back upon France by dint of the popularity which these two English novelists gained in that country during and after the third quarter of the century. The successors of Marivaux, who, though not much in- fluenced by him, were influenced not a little by the move- ment initiated by La Chausse’e and Diderot (to be presently spoken of), were numerous, but their work hardly deserves individual mention except in the case of Sedaine, a writer of very considerable native talent, whose Philosophe sans le savoir is one of the best French comedies which do not quite attain to the first class. The most important name, historically speaking, of the
