Antoine Houdar de la Motte

Who was Antoine Houdar de la Motte?

Antoine Houdar de la Motte was a French author.

De la Motte was born and died in Paris. In 1693 his comedy, Les Originaux, was a complete failure, and so depressed the author that he contemplated joining the Trappists. Four years later he began writing texts for operas and ballets, e.g. L'Europe galante, and tragedies, one of which, Inès de Castro, was an immense success at the Theâtre Français. He was a champion of the moderns in the revived controversy of the ancients and moderns. Anne Dacier had published a translation of the Iliad, and La Motte, who knew no Greek, made a translation in verse founded on her work.

He said of his own work: "I have taken the liberty to change what I thought disagreeable in it." He defended the moderns in the Discours sur Homère prefixed to his translation, and in his Réflexions sur la critique. Apart from the merits of the controversy, it was conducted on La Motte's side with a wit and politeness which compared very favourably with his opponents' methods. He was elected to the Académie française in 1710, but soon afterwards went blind. La Motte carried on a correspondence with the duchesse du Maine, and was the friend of Fontenelle.