The 13th century was defined by Jacques Le Goff as the “century of encyclopaedism”. It was indeed a period of incredible growth for Latin encyclopedias, but also saw at the same time the birth of vulgar encyclopedism. The foundation of the new genre, destined to spread during the second half of the century, is linked to the publication of the Image of the world , a text which enjoyed immense success in the Middle Ages and which circulated in several editorial offices. The original intention of the author [Gossuin de Metz] of l’Image du monde was to develop an instructional program that could adapt traditional clerical knowledge to a new, secular, unschooled audience. To understand the text, it is therefore fundamental to understand the relationship it maintained with its readers. - [Introduction]

Language: French