Figures of amplification in the literary criticism of Octave Mirbeau’s work A quest for authentic criticism

This article highlights the importance of the stylistic figures of amplification in Octave Mirbeau’s criticism. This reveals Mirbeau’s attempt to distance the codes of genres he uses. However, the amplification is not an artificial staging. This rhetoric embodies the duality of criticism, claimed by Mirbeau : condemn and be enthusiastic at the same time.