belles-lettres

views updated May 18 2018

belles-let·tres / ˌbel ˈletrə/ • pl. n. [also treated as sing.] 1. essays, particularly of literary and artistic criticism, written and read primarily for their aesthetic effect.2. literature considered as a fine art.DERIVATIVES: bel·let·rism / belˈletrizəm/ n.bel·let·rist / belˈletrist/ n.bel·let·ris·tic / ˌbeləˈtristik/ adj.

belles-lettres

views updated May 21 2018

belles-lettres XVIII. — F., lit. ‘fine letters or literature’, parallel to beaux arts fine arts; see BELLE, LETTER.
Hence belletrist, belletristic XIX.

About this article

belles-lettres

All Sources -
Updated Aug 24 2016 About encyclopedia.com content Print Topic