Alain-René Lesage (1668 - 1747) was a French writer with a socially critical eye and a sense of comedy. He is considered to be the first author in French literature who lived entirely from the sale of his products on the literary market, which began to emerge around 1700. In doing so, he blatantly borrowed from a number of models, such as Spanish picaresque literature. His first novel, The Devil upon Two Sticks, is the first European urban novel, but Lesage became better known for his main work, Gil Blas.