France is a country that is ahead of others. It was here that the first revolutions took place, and not only social, but also literary, which influenced the development of art in the whole world. and poets achieved unprecedented heights. It is also interesting that it was in France that the work of many geniuses was appreciated during their lifetime. Today we will talk about the most significant writers and poets of the 19th - early 20th centuries, and also lift the veil over the interesting moments of their lives.
Victor Marie Hugo (1802-1885)
It is unlikely that other French poets can match the scope of Victor Hugo. A writer who was not afraid to raise acute social topics in his novels, and at the same time a romantic poet, he lived a long life full of creative success. Hugo as a writer was not only recognized during his lifetime - he got rich doing this craft.
After the Notre Dame Cathedral, his fame only increased. How many writers in the world have been able to live for 4 years on the street At the age of 79 (on Victor Hugo's birthday), a triumphal arch was erected on Eylau Avenue - in fact, under the writer's windows. 600,000 admirers of his talent passed through it that day. The street was soon renamed Avenue Victor-Hugo.
After himself, Victor Marie Hugo left not only beautiful works and a large inheritance, 50,000 francs of which was bequeathed to the poor, but also a strange clause in the will. He ordered the French capital, Paris, to be renamed Hugopolis. Actually, this is the only item that has not been implemented.
Theophile Gautier (1811-1872)
When Victor Hugo struggled with classicist criticism, he was one of its brightest and most loyal supporters. French poets received an excellent replenishment of their ranks: Gauthier not only had an impeccable command of the technique of writing, but also opened a new era in the art of France, which subsequently influenced the whole world.
Having withstood his first collection in the best traditions of the romantic style, Theophile Gauthier at the same time excluded traditional themes from poetry and changed the vector of poetry. He did not write about the beauty of nature, eternal love and politics. Not only that - the poet proclaimed the technical complexity of the verse the most important component. This meant that his poems, while remaining romantic in form, were not essentially romantic - feelings gave way to form.
The last collection, "Enamels and Cameos", which is considered the pinnacle of Theophile Gautier's work, also included the manifesto of the "Parnassian school" - "Art". He proclaimed the principle of "art for art's sake", which French poets accepted unconditionally.
Arthur Rimbaud (1854-1891)
The French poet Arthur Rimbaud inspired more than one generation with his life and poetry. He ran away from home several times to Paris, where he met Paul Verlaine, sending him the poem "The Drunken Ship". The friendly relationship between the poets very soon grew into a love one. This is what caused Verlaine to leave the family.
During the life of Rimbaud, only 2 collections of poetry were published and, separately, the debut verse "The Drunken Ship", which immediately brought him recognition. Interestingly, the poet's career was very short: he wrote all the poems between the ages of 15 and 21. And after Arthur Rimbaud simply refused to write. Outright. And he became a merchant, selling spices, weapons and ... people until the end of his life.
Famous French poets and Guillaume Apollinaire are the recognized heirs of Arthur Rimbaud. His work and persona inspired Henry Miller's essay "The Time of the Killers", and Patti Smith constantly talks about the poet and quotes his poems.
Paul Verlaine (1844-1896)
French poets of the late 19th century chose Paul Verlaine as their “king”, but there was little of the king in him: a brawler and a reveler, Verlaine described the ugly side of life - dirt, darkness, sins and passions. One of the "fathers" of impressionism and symbolism in literature, the poet wrote poetry, the beauty of the sound of which cannot be conveyed by any translation.
No matter how vicious the French poet was, Rimbaud played a huge role in his future fate. After meeting the young Arthur, Paul took him under his wing. He was looking for housing for the poet, even renting a room for him for some time, although he was not wealthy. Their love affair lasted several years: after Verlaine left the family, they traveled, drank and indulged in pleasures as much as they could.
When Rimbaud decided to leave his lover, Verlaine shot him through the wrist. Although the victim retracted the statement, Paul Verlaine was sentenced to two years in prison. After that, he never recovered. Due to the impossibility of abandoning the society of Arthur Rimbaud, Verlaine was never able to return to his wife - she achieved a divorce and ruined him completely.
Guillaume Apollinaire (1880-1918)
The son of a Polish aristocrat, born in Rome, Guillaume Apollinaire belongs to France. It was in Paris that he lived his youth and mature years, until his death. Like other French poets of that time, Apollinaire was looking for new forms and possibilities, strove for shocking - and succeeded in this.
After publishing prose works in the spirit of deliberate immorality and a mini-collection of poetry "The Bestiary, or Orpheus' Cortege", published in 1911, Guillaume Apollinaire publishes the first full-fledged poetry collection "Alcohols" (1913), which immediately attracted attention due to the lack of grammar, baroque imagery and tone differences.
The collection "Caligrams" went even further - all the poems that were included in this collection are written in an amazing way: the lines of the works line up in various silhouettes. The reader sees a woman in a hat, a dove flying over a fountain, a vase of flowers... This form conveyed the essence of the verse. The method, by the way, is far from new - the British began to give form to poetry in the 17th century, but at that moment Apollinaire anticipated the emergence of “automatic writing”, which the surrealists loved so much.
The term "surrealism" belongs to Guillaume Apollinaire. He appeared after the staging of his "surrealistic drama" "Teiresias' Breasts" in 1917. From that time on, the circle of poets led by him began to be called surrealists.
André Breton (1896-1966)
For the meeting with Guillaume Apollinaire became a landmark. It happened at the front, in a hospital where young Andre, a medical doctor by education, served as a nurse. Apollinaire received a concussion (a shell fragment hit his head), after which he never recovered.
Since 1916, Andre Breton has been actively involved in the work of the poetic avant-garde. He meets Louis Aragon, Philippe Soupault, Paul Eluard, discovers the poetry of Lautreamont. In 1919, after the death of Apollinaire, shocking poets begin to organize around Andre Breton. Also this year, a joint work with Philippe Soupault, "Magnetic Fields", written using the "automatic writing" method, is published.
Since 1924, after the proclamation of the first Manifesto of Surrealism, Andre Breton became the head of the movement. In his house on Avenue Fontaine, the Bureau of Surrealist Research opens, magazines begin to be published. This was the beginning of a truly international movement - similar bureaus began to open in many cities of the world.
The French communist poet André Breton actively agitated his supporters to join the communist party. He believed in the ideals of communism so much that he even received a meeting with Leon Trotsky in Mexico (although at that time he had already been expelled from the Communist Party).
Louis Aragon (1897-1982)
A faithful companion and comrade-in-arms of Apollinaire, Louis Aragon became Andre Breton's right hand. A French poet, a communist to the last breath, in 1920 Aragon published the first collection of poems "Fireworks", written in the style of surrealism and Dadaism.
After the poet joined the Communist Party in 1927, together with Breton, his work was transformed. In some way he becomes the "voice of the party", and in 1931 he is prosecuted for the poem "Red Front", imbued with a dangerous spirit of incitement.
Peru Louis Aragon also owns the History of the USSR. He defended the ideals of communism until the end of his life, although his last works returned a little to the traditions of realism, not painted in "red".
French literature is one of the treasures of world culture. It deserves to be read in all countries and in all ages. The problems that French writers raised in their works have always worried people, and the time will never come when they will leave the reader indifferent. Eras, historical surroundings, costumes of characters change, but passions, the essence of relations between men and women, their happiness and suffering remain unchanged. The tradition of the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries was continued by modern French writers, writers of the XX century.
Commonality of Russian and French Literary Schools
What do we know about European masters of the word in relation to the recent past? Of course, many countries have made a significant contribution to the common cultural heritage. Great books were also written by Britain, Germany, Austria, Spain, but in terms of the number of outstanding works, Russian and French writers, of course, occupy the first places. The list of them (both books and authors) is truly huge. It is no wonder that there are multiple publications, there are many readers, and today, in the age of the Internet, the list of adaptations is also impressive. What is the secret of this popularity? Both Russia and France have long-standing humanistic traditions. At the head of the plot, as a rule, is not a historical event, no matter how outstanding it is, but a person, with his passions, virtues, shortcomings, and even weaknesses and vices. The author does not undertake to condemn his characters, but prefers to leave the reader to draw his own conclusions about which fate to choose. He even pities those of them who chose the wrong path. There are many examples.
How Flaubert felt sorry for his Madame Bovary
Gustave Flaubert was born on December 12, 1821 in Rouen. The monotony of provincial life was familiar to him from childhood, and even in his mature years he rarely left his town, only once having made a long journey to the East (Algiers, Tunisia), and, of course, visited Paris. This French poet and writer composed poems that seemed to many critics then (there is such an opinion today) too melancholy and languid. In 1857, he wrote the novel Madame Bovary, which was notorious at the time. The story of a woman who sought to break out of the hateful circle of everyday life and therefore cheated on her husband then seemed not only controversial, but even indecent.
However, this plot, alas, is quite frequent in life, performed by the great master, far goes beyond the usual obscene anecdote. Flaubert tries, and with great success, to penetrate into the psychology of his characters, towards whom he sometimes feels anger, expressed in merciless satire, but more often - pity. His heroine dies tragically, the despised and loving husband, apparently (this is more likely to be guessed by what is indicated in the text) knows about everything, but sincerely grieves, mourning the unfaithful wife. Both Flaubert and other French writers of the 19th century devoted quite a lot of works to issues of fidelity and love.
Maupassant
With the light hand of many literary writers, he is considered almost the founder of romantic eroticism in literature. This opinion is based on some moments in his works containing immodest, by the standards of the 19th century, descriptions of scenes of an intimate nature. From today's art criticism positions, these episodes look quite decent and, in general, are justified by the plot. Moreover, in the novels, stories and short stories of this remarkable writer, this is not at all the main thing. The first place in importance is again occupied by relationships between people and such personal qualities as depravity, the ability to love, forgive and just be happy. Like other famous French writers, Maupassant studies the human soul and reveals the necessary conditions for his freedom. He is tormented by the hypocrisy of "public opinion" created precisely by those who themselves are by no means impeccable, but impose their ideas of decency on everyone.
For example, in the story "Zolotar" he describes the story of the touching love of a French soldier for a black resident of the colony. His happiness did not take place, his relatives did not understand his feelings and were afraid of the possible condemnation of the neighbors.
Interesting are the writer's aphorisms about war, which he likens to a shipwreck, and which should be avoided by all world leaders with the same caution as ship captains are afraid of reefs. Maupassant shows observation, opposing low self-esteem to excessive complacency, considering both of these qualities to be harmful.
Zola
No less, and, perhaps, much more shocked the readership of the French writer Emile Zola. He willingly took the life of courtesans (The Trap, Nana), the inhabitants of the social bottom (The Womb of Paris) as the basis of the plot, described in detail the hard life of coal miners (Germinal) and even the psychology of a murderous maniac (Man-Beast). ). The general literary form chosen by the author is unusual.
He combined most of his works into a twenty-volume collection, which received the general name "Rougon-Macquart". With all the variety of plots and expressive forms, it is something that should be taken as a whole. However, any of Zola's novels can be read separately, which will not make it less interesting.
Jules Verne, fantasy
Another French writer, Jules Verne, needs no introduction, he became the founder of the genre, which later received the definition of "science fiction". What did this amazing storyteller not think of when he foresaw the appearance of nuclear submarines, torpedoes, lunar rockets and other modern attributes that became the property of mankind only in the twentieth century. Many of his fantasies may seem naive today, but novels are easy to read, and this is their main advantage.
In addition, the plots of modern Hollywood blockbusters about dinosaurs resurrected from oblivion look much less plausible than the story of the antediluvian lizards that never died out on a single Latin American plateau, found by brave travelers (“The Lost World”). And the novel about how the Earth screamed from a ruthless prick with a giant needle completely goes beyond the genre, being perceived as a prophetic parable.
Hugo
The French writer Hugo is no less fascinating in his novels. His characters find themselves in a variety of circumstances, showing bright personality traits. Even negative characters (for example, Javert from Les Misérables or Claude Frollo from Notre Dame Cathedral) have a certain charm.
The historical component of the narrative is also important, from which the reader will learn with ease and interest many useful facts, in particular, about the circumstances of the French Revolution and Bonapartism in France. Jean Voljean from "Les Misérables" became the personification of ingenuous nobility and honesty.
Exupery
Modern French writers, and literary critics include all the writers of the “Heminway-Fitzgerald” era, have also done a lot to make humanity wiser and kinder. The twentieth century did not indulge Europeans in peaceful decades, and memories of the Great War of 1914-1918 soon received a reminiscence in the form of another global tragedy.
The French writer Exupery, a romantic, the creator of the unforgettable image of the Little Prince and a military pilot, did not stand aside from the struggle of honest people around the world against fascism. The posthumous popularity of this writer in the USSR of the fifties and sixties could be envied by many pop stars who performed songs, including those dedicated to his memory and his main character. And today, the thoughts expressed by a boy from another planet still call for kindness and responsibility for their actions.
Dumas, son and father
There were actually two of them, father and son, and both wonderful French writers. Who is not familiar with the famous Musketeers and their faithful friend D'Artagnan? Numerous film adaptations have glorified these characters, but none of them has been able to convey the charm of the literary source. The fate of the prisoner of If Castle will not leave anyone indifferent ("The Count of Monte Cristo"), and other works are very interesting. They will also be useful for young people whose personal development is just beginning; there are more than enough examples of true nobility in the novels of Dumas Père.
As for the son, he also did not disgrace the famous surname. The novels "Doctor Servan", "Three Strong Men" and other works brightly highlighted the peculiarities and bourgeois features of contemporary society, and "The Lady with the Camellias" not only enjoyed well-deserved reader success, but also inspired the Italian composer Verdi to write the opera "La Traviata", she formed the basis of her libretto.
Simenon
The detective story will always be one of the most read genres. The reader is interested in everything in it - and who committed the crime, and motives, and evidence, and the indispensable exposure of the perpetrators. But detective detective strife. One of the best writers of the modern era, of course, is Georges Simenon, the creator of the unforgettable image of Maigret, the Paris police commissioner. The artistic technique itself is quite common in world literature, the image of an intellectual detective with an indispensable feature of appearance and a recognizable habit has been repeatedly exploited.
Maigret Simenon differs from many of his "colleagues" again in the kindness and sincerity characteristic of French literature. He is sometimes ready to meet a stumbled person and even (oh, horror!) violate individual formal articles of the law, while remaining faithful to him in the main thing, not in the letter, in his spirit ("And yet the hazel is green").
Just a wonderful writer.
gra
If we ignore the past centuries and again mentally return to the present, then the French writer Cedric Gras deserves attention, a great friend of our country, who devoted two books to the Russian Far East and its inhabitants. Having seen many exotic regions of the planet, he became interested in Russia, lived in it for many years, learned the language, which undoubtedly helps him to get to know the notorious “mysterious soul”, about which he is already finishing writing the third book on the same topic. Here, Gras found something that, apparently, he lacked so much in his prosperous and comfortable homeland. He is attracted by some “strangeness” (from the point of view of a European) of the national character, the desire of men to be courageous, their recklessness and openness. For the Russian reader, the French writer Cédric Gras is interested precisely in this “view from the outside”, which is gradually becoming more and more ours.
Sartre
Perhaps there is no other French writer so close to the Russian heart. Much in his work is reminiscent of another great literary figure of all times and peoples - Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. The first novel by Jean-Paul Sartre Nausea (many consider it the best) affirmed the concept of freedom as an internal category, not subject to external circumstances, to which a person is doomed by the very fact of his birth.
The position of the author was confirmed not only by his novels, essays and plays, but also by his personal behavior, demonstrating complete independence. A man of leftist views, he nevertheless criticized the policies of the USSR in the post-war period, which did not prevent him, in turn, from refusing the prestigious Nobel Prize awarded for supposedly anti-Soviet publications. For the same reasons, he did not accept the Legion of Honor. Such a nonconformist deserves respect and attention, he is certainly worth reading.
Vive la France!
The article does not mention many other outstanding French writers, not because they are less deserving of love and attention. You can talk about them endlessly, enthusiastically and enthusiastically, but until the reader picks up the book himself, opens it, he does not fall under the spell of wonderful lines, sharp thoughts, humor, sarcasm, light sadness and kindness radiated by the pages . There are no mediocre peoples, but there are, of course, outstanding ones who have made a special contribution to the world treasury of culture. For those who love Russian literature, familiarization with the works of French authors will be especially pleasant and useful.
The literature of 20th-century France was directly influenced by the events that shaped history. She retained the title of trendsetter in the world of belles-lettres, and her authority remained indisputable in the world community. For example, seven representatives of the country became Nobel Prize winners. Among them are Andre Gide, Francois Mauriac, Albert Camus, Claude Simon.
At the very beginning of the century in France there were experiments in such areas of literature as symbolism and naturalism. In the first half of the century, social and ideological contradictions were revealed.
André Gide, who called himself a "man of dialogue," did not give his readers ready-made moral recipes. He asked questions and looked for answers about the meaning of human existence, about the inevitability of fateful events. His versatile talent manifested itself in the slightly grotesque works The Immoralist, Isabelle and The Vatican Dungeons.
The poet Guillaume Apollinaire introduced elements of visualization into his work. His "surrealist drama" "Pipples of Tiresias" presented the problems of modernity in a comedic spirit.
French literary evolution went hand in hand with the modernization of art. The works of France of the 20th century are characterized by a kind of isolation from reality, the search for an ideal.
The master of refined prose Andre Mauroy in his "Letters to a Stranger" spoke about love and family relationships, raised the problems of modern literature and painting. In the famous "Viciliacities of Love" he explores the multifaceted sphere of human emotions and passions, the difficulties of family life, and draws parallels with positions in society.
The novelist Louis-Ferdinand Celine used slang in his work. But his anti-Semitic "School of corpses" and "Trinkets for the pogrom" gave the author the image of a racist and misanthrope.
A. Camus argues that the only way to combat absurdity can be the recognition of its existence. In The Myth of Sisyphus, he describes the satisfaction of a man who is clearly aware of the futility of his efforts.
The 1930s gave the world the masterpieces of the existentialist writers Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. The most famous and, according to experts, the most successful novel by Sartre "Nausea" raises the themes of human fate, chaos, despair. The author highlights the importance of freedom and the opportunities it gives in overcoming difficulties. The book is written in the form of a diary. The one who leads him wants to get to the bottom of the change that has happened to him, but he is periodically attacked by Nausea, which is a kind of symbol of sensitivity to the ugly.
Existentialist ideas are promoted in the works of the "predecessor of feminism" Simone de Beauvoir. The novel "Tangerines", marked by the prestigious French literary Prix Goncourt, describes the ideological and political development of post-war France.
Key historical events - liberation from fascist occupation, the reign of President Charles de Gaulle, colonial wars, the student revolution - determined the direction of development and served as a background in the works of French authors.
In the 60s, writers who were born in foreign departments or colonies of the country made their contribution. Among them: Tahar Benjelloun, Amin Maalouf and Assia Jabar. The themes of the novels of the latter are the Algerian War and the difficulties of the life of a Muslim woman. Her "Thirst" and "Great Prison" show how Islamic fanatics destroyed manifestations of female emancipation.
The latest French literature is Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Georges Simenon and Françoise Sagan. Their masterpieces have preserved and continued the best traditions of France.
The most famous story by Antoine de Saint-Exupery - "The Little Prince" - is a fairy tale-parable that tells about love, friendship, obligations and human vices. The image of an impulsive and touching rose is based on the writer's adored wife. The accompanying drawings are made by the author and are an organic addition to the literary masterpiece.
Georges Simenon is a French representative of the detective genre. He became famous thanks to a cycle of narratives about the investigations of Commissioner Maigret. The image of the famous guardian of the law so fascinated the readers that a bronze monument was erected to him, and many stories appeared on the screen. In addition, the writer published many "commercial" novels, such as Notes of a Typist.
F. Sagan's novels are characterized by a small number of characters and short descriptions. Intrigue is sustained in them and the scheme of the love triangle is clearly marked. The novel "Hello, sadness" is a sincere story, imbued with passion and innocence - that dangerous mixture that still causes a surge of emotions today. One of the most profound psychological novels, A Little Sun in Cold Water, tells how love can both heal and destroy. Sagan has often been accused of having a penchant for fiction. As if in rebuttal, she created theatrical plays Violinists Sometimes Cause Harm and The Horse Has Disappeared, published a biography of Sarah Bernhardt and several autobiographies.
French literature retains its lofty destiny from the Middle Ages to the completely changed situation of our day. For Russian readers, the works of France are the most popular and beloved.
Introduction
For European literature, the era of the 19th century was a time of genuine prosperity. It went through the stages of romanticism, realism and symbolism, at each of these stages reflecting the features of the development of industrial society. The 20th century brought with it completely new trends that radically changed the approach to writing.
French literature
Romanticism in French literature began to develop somewhat later than in England or Germany. The reason for this was to some extent the dominance of the neoclassical tradition in all spheres of the country's culture.
The true titan of the romantic trend was Victor Hugo. The writer and poet often turned to historical themes. In 1831, he completed one of his most famous novels, Notre Dame Cathedral, which aroused French readers' interest in Gothic and the Middle Ages.
Gradually, Hugo became interested in the social issue, during the events of 1848-1850 he took the side of the democratic opposition against Napoleon III and was forced to emigrate. He was able to return to France only in 1870.
His later novels: Les Misérables (1862), Toilers of the Sea (1866), Year 93 (1874) are imbued with humanism and sympathy for ordinary people.
George Sand was a major writer of the romantic trend. The main theme of her work was the unfair position of women in society. Sand's most famous novels are Consuelo (1842-1843) and Horace (1841-1842).
Pretty soon, romanticism was replaced by realism - a literary style that set as its goal a truthful reflection of the surrounding reality and interpersonal relationships. The three major French writers, Stendhal, Balzac and Flaubert, who began as romantics, moved to realism in their more mature works.
Henri Marie Stendhal was an officer in Napoleon's army, spent quite a lot of time in Italy and until the end of his life retained sympathy for the emperor. He was an opponent of the monarchy of Louis Philippe, against which he expressed his protest in the novels Red and Black (1831) and Red and White (published in 1894). Stendhal wrote a lot about Italian art, devoting to it the works "History of Italian Painting" (1817), "Walks in Rome" (1829).
The most complete literary form of the realistic novel was developed in the work of Honore de Balzac. He created a huge cycle of 90 novels "The Human Comedy", divided into 3 series: "Etudes on Morals", "Etudes Philosophical" and "Etudes Analytical". Balzac was able to give the most detailed picture of French bourgeois society in the middle of the 19th century. His most famous novels are Gobsek (1830) and Shagreen Leather (1831).
In 1857, Gustave Flaubert published his most famous novel, Madame Bovary, dedicated to the manners of provincial France. Through all his novels, the central theme is the theme of the psychological breakdown of the characters, the writer's works are imbued with pessimism. This is especially evident in his late novel Bouvard and Pécuchet (published 1881) and the collection Three Tales (1877).
Realism was further developed in the novels of Emile Zola, who brought this direction to hypertrophied accuracy and developed it into naturalism. He created a cycle of 20 novels "Rougon-Macquart: Natural and social history of the family during the Second Empire" (1871 - 1893).
Following Zola in the style of naturalism, Guy de Maupassant worked, who focused on criticizing the regime of the III Republic. His most famous novels are Life (1883) and Dear Friend (1885).
In the second half of the 19th century, a trend of decadence began to develop in French literature, proclaiming a complete rejection of any social subject in the name of the principle "art for art's sake". The first representative of decadence was the poet Charles Baudelaire.
In 1857, he published his most famous collection of poems, Flowers of Evil, in 1860, a book on drugs, Artificial Paradise.
The decadent trend was picked up and developed by Paul Verlaine, whose work is permeated with motives of decay and death. In his poetry, the word lost its independent meaning.
In 1874, his collection Romances without Words was published, in 1881 - Wisdom, in 1889 - Parallel.
A friend and like-minded person of Verdun was the symbolist Arthur Rimbaud, who devoted only 3 years of his life to poetry. He sought to aestheticize the ugly manifestations of reality, which was reflected in his poem "The Drunken Ship" and the cycle of poems "A Season in Hell".
The greatest French writer of the early 20th century was André Gide. He created the novels The Immoralist (1902), Vatican Dungeons (1914) and The Counterfeiters (1926). In 1947 he was awarded the Nobel Prize.
The tradition of decadence was developed by Marcel Proust. His main work is the cycle of novels In Search of Lost Time (volumes 1-16, 1913-1927).
The writer and musicologist Romain Rolland published a cycle of artistic biographies of great artists: "The Life of Beethoven" (1903), "Michelangelo" (1905), "The Life of Tolstoy" (1911). His largest work is the epic novel about the brilliant musician "Jean-Christophe" (1904-1912).
Louis Ferdinand Celine, author of Journey to the End of the Night (1934), occupies a special place in the history of French literature of the 20th century. His style was characterized by cynicism, misanthropy, and grotesque exaggeration of the plagues of society. Celine is considered the founder of the so-called "dirty romance" style.
The twentieth century.
The publication of the Decadent magazine (1886-1889) became the realization of the established mythology of decadence. The crisis moods of the "end of the century", the popularization of the work of F. Nietzsche largely determined the search for French writers at the beginning. 20th century The tragic farce of A. Jarry (1837–1907) King Ubyu (staged on December 10, 1896) is considered the firstborn of the theatrical avant-garde.
The strengthening of the nation was seen as an opportunity to overcome the crisis by the writers of the “right”, sometimes with a touch of chauvinism, orientation. In the work of M. Barres (1862–1923), a subtle stylist, mystical motifs are combined with radical nationalist ones (the trilogy Cult I, 1892; the trilogy The novel of national energy, 1897, 1900, 1902). At the same time, a number of Catholic writers manifest themselves. The works of the writer and critic P.Sh.Zh.Burge (1852-1935), heavy in style and full of didacticism, are aimed at protecting religious values (Etap, 1902; Meaning of Death, 1915). In the first decades of the 20th century the activities of such Catholic thinkers and writers as J. Maritain (1882–1973), G. Marcel (1889–1973) (dramas God’s Man, 1925; The Ruined World, 1933), J. Bernanos (1888–1948) (novels Under the sun of Satan, 1926; Diary of a village priest, 1936), F. Mauriac (1885-1970) (novels Teresa Dekeyrou, 1927; A ball of snakes, 1932). The poet and publicist Ch. Peguy (1873–1914) comes to Catholicism (The Mystery of the Mercy of Joan of Arc, 1910; Embroidery of Saint Genevieve, 1913). The doctrine of the single soul of mankind (Unanimism) formed the basis of the Abbey ”; it included C. Vildra (1882–1971), J. Duhamel (1884–1966), J. Cheneviere (1884–1972) and others. good will (27 volumes: 1932-1946), which became the body of world history for 25 years (1908-1933). A. France (1844-1924) spoke out against the clerical-nationalist worldview (1844-1924) (Church and Republic, 1904). His novels ( The Crime of Sylvester Bonnard, 1881; Modern History, 1897–1901; Penguin Island, 1908; The Gods Thirst, 1912) are marked by irony, sometimes cynicism, bordering on satire.
The decline of culture, the leitmotif of decadence in the avant-garde has given way to aspirations for the future, the pathos of total renewal. "Surrealistic Drama" by G. Apollinaire (1880-1918) Breasts of Tiresias (post. 1917) continues the line of King Ubu Jarry. The plays by J. Giraudoux (1882–1944), A. de Monterlant (1895–1972), J. Anouilh (1910–1987) and J. Cocteau (1889–1963) form the basis of the avant-garde repertoire of 1920–1930. The dramaturgy and poetry of Apollinaire had a decisive influence on the work of the Surrealist group. 1924 includes the Manifesto of Surrealism by A. Breton (1896-1966), the founder and leader of the new movement. Developing the ideological basis of Dadaism, the Surrealists abandoned the logical construction of a work of art (the poetry of R. Desnos, 1900–1945; R. Crevel, 1900–1935). The search for new sources of inspiration led to the discovery of the technique of automatic writing (collection Magnetic fields (1919) by Breton and F. Supo, 1897–1990). In an attempt to remove the subject from the creative process, the surrealists created joint works (The Immaculate Conception (1930) by Breton and P. Eluard, 1895-1952; Set aside the work (1930) by Breton, Eluard and R. Char, 1907-1988; 152 proverbs for the needs of the day (1925) Eluard and B. Pere, 1899–1959). The group's periodicals were associated with their political activity (magazine Surrealist Revolution, 1924–1929; Surrealism in the Service of the Revolution, 1930–1933). The works of the poet, essayist and screenwriter J. Cocteau, the poet and playwright A. Artaud (1896–1948), the creator of the “theater of cruelty” (Theater and its Double, 1938) are close to surrealism. L. Aragon (1897–1982) began his creative activity with the Dadaists and Surrealists (collection of poems Fireworks, 1920; novel The Parisian Peasant, 1926), but, like many other artists, he left the group after some time. An active member of the Breton group was A. Malraux (1901-1976), whose novels of the 1930s are close to the existential worldview (Conditions of Human Existence, 1933; Years of Contempt, 1935; Hope, 1937, etc.).
In 1909, a group of authors emerged around the journals La Nouvel Revue Francaise, headed by A.P.G. Gide (1869–1951) and P. Claudel (1868–1955). The magazine published plays by the Catholic writer Claudel (dramas The Golden Head, 1890; The Annunciation, 1912; the collection The Tree, 1901), essays by P. Valery (1871–1945), early works by R. Martin du Gard (1881–1958), novel by Alain -Fournier (1886–1914) Great Molne (1913). The originality of the prose writer Gide manifested itself in the novel Earthly Meals (1897) and was most fully embodied in the novel The Counterfeiters (1925): its characters discuss the composition of the work they are inside.
With the outbreak of the First World War, the tragic clash of culture and civilization becomes the dominant theme of anti-war works. The motives of the absorption of culture by civilization and the rejection of war are especially persistent in the works of J. Duhamel (Life of the Martyrs, 1917; Civilization, 1918; later - the Archangel of Adventure, 1955), R. Dorzheles (1885–1973) (Wooden Crosses, 1919), R. Rolland (farce of Lilyuli, 1919; story Pierre and Luce, 1920; novel by Clerambault, 1920), in the work of c. "Clarte" (1919-1928) (A. Barbusse, 1873-1935; R. Lefebvre, 1891-1920; P. Vaillant-Couturier, 1892-1937; J. R. Blok, 1884-1947; etc.).
In the interwar period, the novel-river was popular (Rolland, Martin du Gard, J. Romain, Duhamel, etc.). In 1927, the publication of M. Proust's novel (1871-1922) In Search of Lost Time, which began before the war (1913), was completed, in which the hero's stream of consciousness becomes the main one; life in it is presented on the existential, concrete-personal, intimate-sensual levels. The aesthetic and philosophical views of the writer, embodied in the novel and expressed in theoretical works (Against Sainte-Beuve, ed. 1954, etc.) feed French culture to this day.
In the 1930s, writers of a “right” orientation appeared, with a reputation as collaborators: A. de Monterlan (1895–1972) (novels Son, 1922; Bestiaries, 1926; Bachelors, 1934; plays Dead Queen, 1942; Master of the Order of Santiago, 1945 and others); P. Drieux la Rochelle (1893–1945) (essay Fascist socialism, 1934; European Frenchman, 1944, etc.; novel Gilles, 1939, etc.), P. Moran (1888–1976). L.F. Selin (1894-1961) (Journey to the End of the Night, 1932; Death on Credit, 1936) transformed the language of prose, actively using the colloquial language, slang of urban marginal groups.
In con. 1930 - early. In the 1940s, the early works of J.-P. Sartre (1905–1980) (Nausea, 1938; Flies, 1943), A. Camus (1913–1960) (Outsider, 1942; Caligula, 1944) were created, marking the emergence of existentialism. They sound a call to rebellion against the meaninglessness of being, against the fate of the "man of the crowd." Existentialism is distinguished by the convergence of a literary work with a philosophical treatise. Turning to the parable, allegory, the writers of the direction recreate the philosophical conflict in prose and dramaturgy.
The literary process in French literature was interrupted by the events of World War II. During the years of the fascist occupation of France, an extensive underground literature arose. The manifesto of the "Midnight Publishing" ("Les Editions de Minuit") (1942), written by P. de Lescure (1891-1963), proclaimed the determination to resist the invaders. Until 1945, 40 books by writers of the Resistance were published in the publishing house, including: E. Triolet's Avignon Lovers, F. Mauriac's Black Notebook, C. Avlin's Dead Time, J. Maritain's Path Through Disaster, L. Aragon's Panopticon, Thirty-three sonnets created in J. Kassu prison and others. An underground press is developing: the literary weekly newspaper Le Lettre Francaise (1942-1972), the magazine "Resistance" and "La panse libre" (under the leadership of J. Decour, 1910-1942; J. Polana, 1884–1968). In September 1942, the manifesto of the National Writers' Front appeared, written by J. Decour. In 1941, the “Rochefort School” of poets was born (J. Bouillet, b. 1912; R. Guy Cadou, 1920–1951; M. Jacob, 1876–1944; P. Reverdy, 1889–1960), which asserted in its declaration the need to protect poetry , the principle of rapprochement of poets outside of ideologies. The work of A. de Saint-Exupery (1900–1944), a military pilot, is associated with the Resistance: Planet of the People, 1939; Military pilot, 1942, Little Prince, 1943.
The liberation of Paris on August 25, 1944 was the signal for the beginning of a gradual revival of the cultural life of France. In the literary life of post-war France, there was a tendency towards ideological unity and a similar understanding of the tasks of art by different writers. Vercors' (1902–1991) underground story The Silence of the Sea (1942) became a bestseller. The historical novel is being replaced by its philosophical variety and documentary genres, parable forms and variants of the "novel of ideas"; the novel is politicized. In the program article For biased literature (1945), Sartre spoke out against those who do not accept socially significant art, "biased" literature. However, already in 1947, the book by J. Duhamel The Torment of Hope. The Chronicle 1944-1945-1946 notes the divisions in the writing environment. The end of the 1940s is associated with the collapse of post-war hopes, in the beginning. In the 1950s, a sense of internal crisis spreads. The break between Sartre and Camus after the release of the last Rebellious Man (1951) becomes significant.
In parallel, in the artistic practice of the absurdists, there is a rethinking of the values of existentialism. The plays The Bald Singer (1950) by E. Ionesco and Waiting for Godot (1953) by S. Beckett are considered to be manifestos of absurdism (namely, the theater of the absurd, “anti-theater”). The concept of the absurd as the main characteristic of the existential situation in which human life takes place, goes back to the philosophical works of A. Camus (The Myth of Sisyphus, 1942) and J.P. Sartre (Being and Nothingness, 1943), and partly to their early artistic work ( Outsider (1942) Camus; Nausea (1938) Sartre). However, in the literature of absurdism, this concept is subjected to a radical revision: in contrast to the work of existentialists, in whom the category of absurdity is inseparable from the philosophy of rebellion against the “human lot”, adherents of absurdism (such as A. Adamov, 1908–1970; J. Vautier, 1910– 1992) are alien to the mood of rebellion, as well as any kind of "big ideas". Rebellion does not change anything in the absurd world of the plays by J. Genet (1910-1986) (The Maids, 1947; Balcony, 1954; Negroes, 1958).
“Literature” comes to the fore (Modern Literature (1958) by C. Mauriac, b. 1914): it receives a theoretical justification in the program texts of N. Sarrott (1902–1999) (The Era of Suspicions, 1956), A. Robbe-Grillet (p. . 1922) (The Future of the Novel, 1956; On Several Outdated Concepts, 1957), creators of the "new novel". His first examples went unnoticed (Tropisms (1946), Portrait of an Unknown Man (1947) by N. Sarrot). Neo-romanists polemicized with tradition, accompanying works of art with theoretical speeches in which they emphasized their non-ideological nature.
The New Romance was developed in the latest novel, connected primarily with the writers of the Tel kel group, which united around a magazine with the same name (published since 1960). The group saw its task in the search for new forms excluded from the literary context, in the rejection of the literature of "evidence". The Telkelevites actively popularized the works of A. Artaud, J. Bataille (1897–1962), F. Ponge (1899–1988), which formed the theoretical basis of their views. Along with an appeal to structuralism and semiotics, the group promoted the social role of literature (“from literature that depicts to literature that transforms”). Refusing, like neo-novelists, from "plot", "intrigue", they, moreover, follow the path of depersonalization of the narrator (Drama (1965) and Numbers (1968) by Sollers).
In 1950, with the publication of the novel The Blue Hussars by R. Nimier (1925-1962), the “lost generation”, “generation of hussars”, a special phenomenon in post-war French literature, makes itself felt. In con. In the 1950s–1960s, the most popular novels of the poet, prose writer, literary theorist and essayist R. Keno (1903–1976) were published (Zazi in the Metro, 1959; Blue Flowers, 1965; Flight of Icarus, 1968), which debuted back in the 1930s. His works are marked by sophisticated language play and comic interpretation of events. The work of the "hussars" and Queneau, each somewhat marginal against the background of the general oppositions of French literature of that time, nevertheless found its followers.
An important phenomenon of the literary situation of this period was the clear orientation of the writer to the reader's group: "neo-romanists" to the elite, others to the inexperienced. Among the transitional phenomena are the family novel by A. Troyat (born 1911) (The Egletière Family, 1965–1967) and the cycle of historical novels by M. Druon (born 1918) (Damned Kings, 1955–1960). A special place is occupied by the work of F. Sagan (born 1935), who made her debut with a resounding success with the novel Hello, Sadness (1954). The love theme dominates her novels (Signal of Surrender, 1965; A Little Sun in Cold Water, 1969), short stories (collection Gentle Look, 1979) and even "military" prose (novel Exhausted, 1985).
In the center of the traditional novel, as before, there is a person in his relationship with the world, and at the heart of the narrative is the told "story". The genre of autobiography becomes popular (Memories of the inner life (1959) and New memories of the inner life (1965) by F. Mauriac; J. Green's trilogy (born 1900) Exit at dawn (1963), A thousand open roads (1964), A distant land (1966)) and an autobiographical novel (Antimemoirs (1967) by A. Malraux), autobiographical motifs in the narrative (The Rezo Family (1949–1972) by E. Bazin, born 1911). F. Nurissier (born 1927) is polemically autobiographical (Petty Bourgeois, 1964; One French History, 1966). A. Robbe-Grillet (Returning Mirror, 1984) and F. Sollers (b. 1936) (Portrait of a Gambler, 1984) turned to the autobiographical genre. The lyrical beginning in the French literature of the 1960s was combined with a philosophical, objectifying trend, trying to determine the place of man in modern scientific and technological civilization (Island (1962), R. Merkle's Rational Animal (1967); People or Animals (1952) , Silva (1961) Vercors). In the 1960s, "new realism" entered French poetry (Ship's Journal (1961), Documents (1966) by F. Venaya (b. 1936); a collection by B. Delvay, J. Godot, G. Bellet, and others).
The end of the 1960s was defined by the atmosphere of student unrest and workers' strikes. A particularly noticeable phenomenon in French literature was the dispute over dramatic art, which peaked at the festival in Avignon in 1968. Characteristic of this time was the desire of the playwright and director A. Gatti (born 1924) to establish “an open and passionate relationship between art and politics” , embodied in his plays (Public Song in front of two electric chairs, 1962; A Lonely Man, 1964; Passion for General Franco, 1967; In Like Vietnam, 1967). R. Planchon's production, staged in the fall of 1968, The Mocking and Mauling of the most famous of French tragedies, Corneille's Cid, received the greatest response, accompanied by the "cruel" execution of the playwright and the free distribution of canned culture. Young playwrights actualized the experience of A. Arto. The cultural 1970s and 80s were defined by the "revolution of 1968". In literary terms, these were decades after the heyday of the "new novel": its opposition to the traditional, tough in con. 1950s, gradually smoothed out. After 1970, the “new novel” gave way to the traditional one. However, his formulas penetrate the work of writers far from the “anti-novel”, and the “latest novel” (Laws, Ash (both - 1973) by F. Sollers; Eden, Eden, Eden (1972) P. Guyot; Capture-prose of Constantinople (1965) and Little Revolutions (1971) by J. Ricardo, born 1932) and textual ("structuralist") writing became its genetic continuation, proclaiming "not the description of adventures, but the adventures of descriptions" (Ricardo). The same Ricardo develops the theory of generators - lexical units, which, having an implicit formal (homonyms, anagrams) or semantic (denoting objects that have a common quality) connection, build a narrative about themselves.
N. Sarrot argues not only with the “traditional”, but also with the “latest” novel, remaining at the level of tropisms, elusive and indefinable movements of the soul (Do you hear them?, 1972; Childhood, 1983; You don’t love yourself, 1989 ). K. Simon continues his program, having noticeably corrected it, approaching the theory of generators (Battle of Fersala, 1969; Body-conductors, 1971) and moving away from it in later books - Subject Lesson, 1975; Georgiki, 1981; Invitation, 1987). The novels of L. Aragon of the 1960s and 70s are called experimental (Death in earnest, 1965; Blanche, or Oblivion, 1967; Theater / novel, 1974), existing in the context of "literature of inner vision" (T.V. Balashova), which inherits creativity N. Sarrot. The novels of J.-M.-G. Leklezio (b. 1940) of the 1960s–1980s recreate the picture of the subjective perception of the world as catastrophically hostile. On tropisms, on the absence of an event, the short stories by J.-L. Trassard (b. 1933) are built (collection Brooks without name and meaning, 1981). The genre of the short story was transformed in the 1970s–1980s towards a fragment of poetic prose (Rooms with a view of the past (1978), On the last breath (1983) Trassara; Teacher from France (1988) J. Joubert, born 1928; Man for another man (1977) A. Boske, 1919-1998).
Creativity D. Salnav (b. 1940) combines attention to tradition with experiment (Doors in the city of Gubio, 1980); The novel Journey to Amsterdam, or Rules of Conversation (1977) belongs to the feminist trend in literature. In her collection of short stories Cold Spring (1983), the novel Ghostly Life (1986), the plot is barely outlined, but in the manner of narration, links to the 19th century are visible. Neoclassical forms of narrativity are seen in the works of P. de Mandiarga, P. Modiano (born 1945), M. Tournier (born 1924), R. Camus (born 1946). Mandiargue artistically embodies the theoretical interest of J. Bataille (Literature and Evil, 1957; Tears of Eros, 1961) and P. Klossovsky (b. 1905) (The Garden, My Neighbor, 1947; Delayed Vocation, 1950) to erotic literature. Mandiargue made his debut with prose poems (In the Vile Years, 1943), wrote successful novels (Sea Lily, 1956; Motorcycle, 1963; In the Fields, 1967), but gave preference to short stories (Night Museum, 1946; Wolf's Sun, 1951; Campfire, 1964; Under the wave, 1976). Following Mandiarge, P. Grenville (b. 1947) makes baroque his aesthetic principle (Fire Trees, 1976). But the writers The 1970s are not alien to the traditional “description” (Hawk from May (1972) J. Career; Cannibal (1973) J. Sheseks, born 1934). R. Camus made his debut in the 1970s (Transition, 1975). The adventures of life and text form the content of his essay novels (Across, 1978; Buena Vista Park, 1980).
French literature of the 20th century the Kafkaesque tradition is very influential; Surreal, inexplicable events take place in Man among the Sands (1975) and in short stories by J. Joubert (collection of Teacher from France, 1988). To the History of the Bat (1975), the debut of P. Fletio, the preface was written by J. Cortazar. Grotesque allegory is woven into the plot of her works (History of the abyss and spyglass, 1976; History of the painting, 1978; Fortress, 1979; Queen's Metamorphoses, 1984). S. Germain turned to the fairytale-parable element (Night Book, 1985; Days of Wrath, 1989; Jellyfish Child, 1991). The novel by M. Gallo The Ancestor Bird (1974) and the cycle of "Histories" by J. Cayroll (History of the Meadow, 1969; History of the Desert, 1972; History of the Sea, 1973) revive the traditions of Catholic literature.
In prose after the “new novel”, the process of reflection on the very manner of writing affected even writers as far from wanting to update the narrative technique as B. Clavel (Silence of arms, 1974), A. Stil (We will love each other tomorrow, 1957; Collapse, 1960), E. Triolet (Intrigues of Fate, 1962), A. Lanu (When the Sea Recedes, 1969), F. Nurissier (Death, 1970), E. Robles (Stormy Age, 1974; Norma, or Heartless Link, 1988) . Vercors, after novels and stories that inherit the rationalist traditions of French prose (The Weapon of Gloom, 1946; Wrathful, 1956; On This Shore, 1958-1960), writes The Raft of the Medusa (1969), where he seeks extraordinary artistic solutions.
R. Gary (1914-1980), continuing to write in the traditional manner (Farewell, Gary Cooper, 1969; White Dog, 1971; Kites, 1980), which was outlined in his early novels (European Education, 1945; Sky Roots, 1956) , under the pseudonym E. Azhar published novels of a new style (Big Laskun, 1974; All life is ahead, 1975). But his innovation rather lies in the mainstream not of the “new novel”, but of the experiments of R. Keno, just like the book Capital Letters (vols. 1–2: 1967, 1974) by J. Grak. The “hussars” movement declares itself again, the central figure of which was P. Besson (born 1956) (Light sorrows of love, 1974; I know many stories, 1974; House of a lonely young man, 1979; Have you seen my gold chain ?, 1980; Letter to a missing friend, 1980).
The turn towards the historical novel, indicated in the works of L. Aragon (Holy Week, 1959), M. Yursenard (Memoirs of Adrian, 1951; Philosopher's Stone, 1968) and J.-P. Chabrol (God's Fools, 1961), after 1968 was especially fruitful (Fearless and black-faced robbers (1977), Camizar Castane (1979) A. Shamson; Pillars of heaven (1976-1981) B. Clavel; Sovereign Jeanne, or the vicissitudes of constancy (1984) P. Lane; Anna Boleyn (1985) Vercors) .
Along with the flourishing of the historical and regional novel (Harrican (1983), Gold of the Earth (1984), Amarok (1987) by B. Klevel; The Predator (1976) by G. Crussy), feminist literature was formed during this period. An attempt to create a “female” language of prose (the manifesto of the sisters F. and B. Gru Feminine plural, 1965) led either to the displacement of men from the artistic world, or to the exploitation of male characters by female ones in E. Cixus (Inside, 1969; Third body, 1970; Neutral, 1972; Breathing, 1975) and B. Gru (Part of life, 1972; Such as it is, 1975; Three quarters of life, 1984). However, most of the novels devoted to the relationship of a woman with the world are alien to aggressive feminism (The Key at the Door (1972) by M. Cardinal; Woman-Ice (1981) by A. Erno; When an Angel Winks (1983) by F. Malle-Joris, etc.) . The novels of M. Duras (b. 1914) were perceived in the power field of feminism.
In connection with the experimental mood in post-war French literature, popular literature expanded its audience. However, rebellious motives sometimes began to sound in it, work began with the language. Indicative in this sense are the detectives of San Antonio, J. Simenon (cycle about Maigret, 1919–1972), T. Narsezhak, P. Boileau, J.-P. Manchet, J. Vautrin. Transforms the sentimental "love" novel by P. Coven. The absurdist narrative (D. Boulanger's short stories) became widespread.
“Tension bordering on despair” (T.V. Balashova) of French poetry of the 1960s was replaced by a new awareness of the life-affirming function of poetry. If in prose the 1970s-1980s were marked by the return of the hero and the plot, then poetry turns to the landscape, making it the center of philosophical reflection. J. Roubaud (b. 1932), who at first was fond of theoretical searches (sat. Epsilon, 1967; Thirty-one cubed, 1973), in the 1980s rather struggles with form on the way to "naivety" and to "lyrical tradition" (R .Davre) (Dream, 1981; Something terrible, 1986). J. Rista (b. 1943) experiments with archaic poetics, remaining true, like Roubaud, to the love theme (On the coup d'etat in literature with examples from the Bible and ancient authors, 1970; Ode to hasten the coming of the universe, 1978; Entrance to the bay and the capture of the city of Rio de Janeiro, 1980). B. Vargaftig (born 1934) made his debut with the collection Everywhere at Home (1965), close to "new realism", but the material component quickly disappeared from the space of his poetry (Eve of maturity, 1967; Chimes, 1975; Description of the elegy, 1975; Glory and pack, 1977). The poetry of the 1980s is characterized by an "anti-surrealist" revolt - against a functional approach to poetry, against an overly metaphorical language. Since the beginning of the 1990s, even the poetry of the recognized experimenter I. Bonfoy has returned to narrative (Sb. Snega beginning and end, 1991).
One of the extreme manifestations of the literary practice of postmodernism (which arose in the 1960s), which is characterized by the abundant use of intertextual connections, was the "rewriting of the classics". For example, P. Menet (Madame Bovary shows her claws, 1988), J. Selyakh (Emma, oh Emma! 1992), R. Jean (Mademoiselle Bovary, 1991) offer their own versions of the development of the classic plot, changing the time of action, conditions, introducing into the novel world the figure of the author himself, Flaubert.
The prose of the 1990s includes a variety of traditions of French literature of the 20th century. Books continue to be published by Leklezio (Onitsha, 1991), P. Kinyar (b. 1948) (All the Mornings of the World, 1991), R. Camus (Hunter of Light, 1993), O. Rolen (b. 1947) (Invention of the World, 1993 ), Sollers (The Secret, 1993), Robbe-Grillet (The Last Days of Corinth, 1994). The novels that continue the line of existentialists, partly B. Vian (1920–1959), are especially successful, directed against the “consumer society”, the glossy world of advertising pictures (99 francs (2000) F. Begbeder, born 1965). Neighborhood of utopian and apocalyptic motifs distinguishes the narration of M. Houellebecq (b. 1958) (Elementary particles, 1998; Platform, 2001). The French press refers to the work of Houellebecq and other lesser-known modern writers with the term "depressionism". The popularity of the last two authors is not least due to the scandals that arise around the release of their books.
In the 20th century French-language literature of African countries and the Antilles is intensively developing. The works of writers of colonies gaining independence recreate the atmosphere of socio-cultural dialogue, often conflict.
Alexey Evstratov
