LASSERRE, PIERRE. - French writer, b. at Orthez on 30 May 1867, d. at Paris on 7 Nov. 1930. He began with several essays on Nietzsche and musical drama, but established himself with a work (Le romantisme français, 1907) in which, under the influence of the theories of Ch. Maurras, he vehemently opposed every form of Romanticism, advocating a return to the classical ideals of literature.
His other work, written shortly afterwards, is of the same tendency, in defence of humanism and the traditional values of French culture: La doctrine officielle de l'Université (1912). After the First World War, L. acquired, together with greater critical moderation, an awareness of Catholic values. He remained on this line in his important studies on the religious crisis of the nineteenth century (Renan et nous, 1923; La jeunesse d'Ernest Renan, whose third volume was published posthumously, 1925-32; Des romantiques à nous, 1927).