Classical Myth and Its Interpretation in Sixteenth-Century France

Abstract

The sixteenth century in France was truly the period when the pagan gods and heroes of the ancient world came into their own. The rich tradition of interpreting the Bible in the Middle Ages following certain established sensus could be applied, mutatis mutandis , to classical mythology. The challenge of how to interpret ancient fables was met by two main approaches, but in either case the essential aim was to neutralise pagan myth, to make it safe for general consumption. In all cases pagan myth was seen as a problem to be resolved and explained away, and there is in general no sense that unredeemed pagans could have had access to divine truth, however much their medieval readers might admire their literary abilities. Things begin to change with the advent of Renaissance neo-Platonism, centred in the first instance on the group of humanists in Florence associated with Marsilio Ficino. Keywords: classical mythology; France; mutatis mutandis ; pagan myth