Pierre Nicole
Pierre Nicole was a notable French theologian and scholar born in 1625 in Chartres, France. He became involved with the Jansenist movement through his aunt, who was the abbess at the Port Royal convent, and he maintained a lifelong commitment to Jansenism despite declining ordination as a priest. Nicole served as a master in the boys' school at Port Royal, where he taught prominent students, including the playwright Jean Racine. Collaborating with Antoine Arnauld, he contributed to the publication of important Jansenist texts, including the influential "La Logique: Ou, L'Art de penser," which explored Aristotelian logic through a Cartesian lens.
Throughout his career, Nicole engaged in significant theological debates, including those concerning transubstantiation and the criticisms leveled against Jansenists by Jesuits. His major works include "Essais de morale," a series of essays that examined Christian ethics and morality, which gained popularity among the educated elite of his time. Following increased persecution of Jansenists, he fled to Belgium but returned to France in 1683, where he continued to write until his death in 1695. Nicole's writings are regarded as essential for understanding the beliefs and doctrines of the Jansenist community at Port Royal.
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Pierre Nicole
Jansenist
- Born: October 13, 1625
- Birthplace: Chartres, France
- Died: November 16, 1695
Biography
Pierre Nicole was born at Chartres, France, in 1625. His father was a provincial barrister. In 1642, he went to Paris to study theology. His aunt Marie des Anges Suireau, who was the abbess of the convent at Port Royal, soon put him in contact with its Jansenist community. He declined to become a priest but was a devout Jansenist for the rest of his life. He held the title of clerk in minor orders and the position of a master in the boys’ school at Port Royal. Jean Racine, the famous classical dramatist, was among his pupils.
Nicole worked with Antoine Arnauld as editor of the extensive and controversial articles and treatises published by the Jansenists. He became known for his excellence as a scholar of theology. Nicole helped in the collection of the facts and information which appeared in Blaise Pascal’s Lettres Provinciales in 1656. Using the pseudonym Nicholas Wendrock, Nicole published a Latin translation of the work in 1658. As coauthor with Arnauld, he wrote La Logique: Ou, L’Art de penser which appeared in 1662. The book, which treated the logic of Aristotle from a Cartesian viewpoint, enjoyed an enormous success.
In 1664, Nicole started writing Les Imaginaires, a series of letters in which he set forth the idea that the heretical beliefs attributed to the Jansenists by the Jesuits were figments of the imagination of the Jesuits. A minor poet and devoted follower of the Jesuits, Desmaretz de Saint-Sorlin wrote a vitriolic reply to Nicole’s work. In 1666, Nicole riposted with Les Visionnaires, in which he referred to poets and dramatists as purveyors of poison to their readers. Nicole, along with Arnauld, was also involved in a debate with the Huguenot Claude about transubstantiation. As a result, Nicole and Arnauld wrote La Perpétuité de la foi de l’église catholique touchant l’euchariste, which appeared in 1669.
In 1671 the first volume of Nicole’s most popular work Essais de morale was published. The work, which eventually included fourteen volumes, was a series of essays examining matter-of-fact Christianity. When persecution of the Jansenists intensified in 1679, Nicole and Arnauld fled to Belgium. By this time, Nicole was advanced in age and in poor health. In 1683, the French monarchy allowed him to return to Paris.
Back in France, Nicole continued to write and was working on a treatise refuting the heretical beliefs of the Quietists when he died on November 16, 1695. Nicole’s well-written, orderly works were popular during his lifetime. Members of the well- educated aristocratic society of the time, such as Marie de Rabutin-Chantal Marquise de Sévigné, were particularly fond of his work. His writings are the best source of information on Port Royal pertaining to its beliefs and positions on religious doctrine. His Essais de morale stands out as an exceptionally sensible discussion of Christianity and its practice.