Authors Pseudonyms in the Seventeenth Century: the Case of Gaspar Scioppio

Authors Pseudonyms in the Seventeenth Century: The Case of Gaspar Scioppio

Eustaquio Sánchez Salor

The use of pseudonyms has a long history, but the seventeenth century is its quintessential century. This article will not go into the history of the literary pseudonym through this century, but I must, however, point out that among the reasons that have been given to explain the general use of the pseudonym, the fundamental one during the seventeenth century is to hide the real name, which may be considered praiseworthy, unlike the work headed by the pseudonym. That is, the pseudonym is used when the author writes something that either the author or his readers consider unworthy of his abilities. The author writes what his conscience encour- ages him to write, but that in his opinion does not enhance the fame of the real name. Such is the case with many clergymen and other good people of the seventeenth century who write reviews and satires that are unworthy of their social position and name. To avoid the clash between the work and the name of the author, they resort to the use of a pseudonym. A sig- nificant case is that of Jean-Baptiste Poquelin; as the son of a Parisian furniture merchant and the king’s upholsterer (“valet de chambre”), he was part of the Parisian bourgeoisie. In 1642 he graduated from the Uni- versity of Orleans as a lawyer, a profession that he never practised but which was useful for him to draw upon the plots of some of his works. In 1643, when he was twenty-one years old, he abandoned his middle-class past and decided to devote his life to the theater. This was the moment when he took the pseudonym “Molière,” so that his surname would not be dishonoured. In the world of satire and theater the name and work of an author was often rejected, or the author even confronted, for social reasons. This article will not delve into this world, but instead will explore the liberal arts and, to be precise, grammar. In the world of grammar in the seventeenth century, writing a handbook conveyed social significance: if he wrote an introductory handbook, the author showed himself to be a low- profile school teacher; if he wrote a rational and philological grammar, the author showed himself to be a philological connoisseur and a follower of the most important grammatical schools of the seventeenth century. 232 eustaquio sánchez salor

But what of the person who wrote grammars of both types, the author who wrote an intoductory grammar and a grammar of deep analysis? In such cases, resorting to a pseudonym was very useful. The proper name, the real one, was used for the profound grammar with a philological and rational nature, and the pseudonym was left for the introductory grammar. This way, the author eased his conscience or fulfilled his teaching obligations by writing an introductory grammar, while also satisfying and pleasing his linguistic ego by writing a grammar of deep significance. In the first case, when he achieves his compromise with society, but not his aspirations of being a grammar author, he used the pseudonym; in the second case, when he was able to fulfil his aims as a high-flying grammarian, he turned back to his real name. This is the case with Gaspar Scioppio.

1. Gaspar Scioppio: Several Pseudonyms and One Name for Two Types of Grammars

Gaspar Scioppio was born in Germany in 1576; he first studied in Amberg and later in Heidelberg. In 1599 he converted, in Rome, from Protestant- ism to Catholicism. It has been said that he started writing books at a very early age. Indeed, many carry either his name or his pseudonym. The num- ber of works he authored has been put at 104; many of them appear under the pseudonyms “Nicodemus Macer,” “Oporinus Grabinius,” “Pascasius Grosippus,” and “Mariangelus a Fano.” The focus of the present article is on grammatical pseudonyms. The relevance of Scioppio as a grammarian is evident if we take into account his most important contributions in this field. These are twofold. In the first place, he introduces himself as the grammarian who will bring order to the chaos afflicting the Netherlands and Germany; namely, the contemporary teaching of grammar. It is a patriotic duty which he undertakes at the behest of the elite of his homeland. In order to fulfil his commission, he writes an introductory grammar that clarifies and dispels the chaos: we refer to his Rudimenta. Second, we will examine his rational perception of grammar, which places him at the level of Sanctius and the reasoned grammar of Port Royal. This perception is the fundamental axis of his Grammatica philosophica.