Avoir ou etre dans les formes verbales composees: Conflits, usages et choix des grammairiens dans l'histoire du francais de 1500 a 1789

In contemporary French, the hesitation in the choice between etre and avoir as an auxiliary verb in compound verb forms (i.e. the passe compose ) of certain intransitive verbs (i.e. tomber), especially in non-standard varieties of French, clearly demonstrates the gap that exists between normative French and everyday spoken French. This hesitation, or uncertainty, in the choice of the auxiliary is not an arbitrary or random characteristics of contemporary French; it falls squarely within a diachronical and cross-Romance trend that can be observed in the French language since its emancipation from Latin.;This study, which is based on Grammaticalisation Theory, is an analysis of grammatical discourse from 1500 - the era when the first grammars of French appeared - to 1789 and the French revolution, a period when the language is said to have been standardised and its modern form established.;The three centuries that this study covers are divided into four distinct periods, already well established by previous historical studies. These periods are : - The 16th century (1530-1599) - The first half of the Classical Period (1600-1650) - The second half of the Classical Period (1651-1715) - The Enlightenment (1716-1789).;For each of these four periods, there are three levels of analysis. First, we identify the grammarians, lexicographers and essayists who, explicitly or implicitly, express their views on the use of the auxiliaries avoir and etre in compound verbs forms, as well as, where possible, their native dialect and the model of French (usage) they promote. Second, we summarize the observations and commentaries of each author on the choice of auxiliary in compound verb forms, including any attempts to explain the variation attested during the period. Finally, we look at the description, for each period, of the use of auxiliaries in compound verb forms put forward by historians of the French language.;Our study has allowed us to confirm certain established trends related to auxiliary use in compound verb forms in French and to identify others. As well, we identify, or define, the factors that influence auxiliary selection, such as the verbs most likely to alternate between the two auxiliaries, the grammarians who had the greatest influence or who set the groundwork for establishing the norm for this grammatical point, the social contexts in which the grammatical debate took place and the periods during which the concern over auxiliary selection was the most intense.