A PARADISE FOR AUTHORS AND ARTISTS
Literary and artistic creativity have generally been highly valued by the French
people, and such activities have flourished there and gone on to spread the
influence of French culture throughout the world. Such 18th-century author-
philosophers as Voltaire and Jean-Jacques Rousseau were instrumental in shaping
the ideas of modern France, and the works of Jean Racine, Moliere and other
neoclassical playwrights are still widely performed. Victor Hugo, Honore de Balzac,
and Emile Zola were among the literary giants of the 19th century. French authors
have won eleven Nobel prizes for literature, far more than those of any other nation.
Painting has also long been a vital art form in France. Artists often enjoyed the
patronage of the nobility, producing works of quality and variety. During the 1800s,
the impressionist movement was largely the inspiration of such French artists as
Edgar Degas, Pierre Auguste Renoir and Claude Monet, and many art trends of the
20th century also originated in France. In addition, the atmosphere of free inquiry
and artistic integrity that has generally been present in France has attracted many
artists and writers from other countries.
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