Jean de La Fontaine

Jean de La Fontaine (; 8 July 1621 – 13 April 1695) was the first of the French fabulist.George Moir Bussey; J J Grandville, Fables: Original and Selected (London: C. Tilt, 1839), p. xvi He was one of the most widely read French poets of the 17th century. He is known for his fables. These provided a model for later fabulists across Europe. They were also an example for numerous alternative versions in France and in French regional languages.

According to Flaubert, he was the only French poet to understand and master the subtleties of the French language before Victor Hugo. A set of postage stamps celebrating La Fontaine and the Fables was issued by France in 1995.

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Category:1621 births
Category:1695 deaths
Category:French poets