Raisonneur
[rez-ə-NUR]
Part of speech: noun
Origin: French, 19th century
1.
A person in a play or book embodying an author's viewpoint.
Examples of Raisonneur in a sentence
"The character Horace was clearly the raisonneur of the play, speaking the young playwright’s opinions directly to the audience at times."
"Using a raisonneur as a narrator gave the novel an autobiographical feel."
About Raisonneur
“Raisonneur” is taken from French, meaning “one who reasons.” This is based on the old French “raison,” from the Latin root “rātiō” (both meaning “reason”).
Did you Know?
The French loanword “raisonneur” translates literally as “reasoner,” but it’s more tightly connected with the world of drama than philosophy, thanks to French playwright Molière (known to many English readers as “the French Shakespeare”). Molière’s plays were concerned with moral issues, and he introduced the character of the “raisonneur” as a way to make his conflicts more nuanced. Molière’s raisonneurs were successful in complicating his plays: Their roles remain a subject of scholarly debate today.
