French writers: biographies, creativity and interesting facts

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

French writers are one of the brightest representatives of European prose. Many of them are recognized classics of world literature, whose novels and stories served as the basis for the formation of fundamentally new artistic movements and trends. Of course, modern world literature owes a lot to France, the influence of the writers of this country extends far beyond its borders.

Molière

French writer Molière lived in the 17th century. His real name is Jean-Baptiste Poquelin. Molière is a theatrical pseudonym. He was born in 1622 in Paris. In his youth, he studied to be a lawyer, but as a result, the acting career attracted him more. Over time, he had his own troupe.

In Paris, he made his debut in 1658 in the presence of Louis XIV. The play "Doctor in Love" was a great success. In Paris, he takes up writing dramatic works. For 15 years, he creates his best plays, which are oftencaused fierce attacks from others.

One of his first comedies called "The Laughing Cossacks" was first staged in 1659.

She talks about two rejected suitors who are coldly received in the house of the bourgeois Gorgibus. They decide to take revenge and teach the capricious and cutesy girls a lesson.

One of the most famous plays by the French writer Molière is called "Tartuffe, or the Deceiver". It was written in 1664. The action of this work takes place in Paris. Tartuffe, a modest, learned and disinterested man, is being rubbed into the trust of the we althy owner of the house, Orgon.

The people around Orgon are trying to prove to him that Tartuffe is not as simple as he makes himself out to be, but the owner of the house does not trust anyone except his new friend. Finally, the true essence of Tartuffe is revealed when Orgon entrusts him with the storage of money, transfers his capital and house to him. Only thanks to the intervention of the king can justice be restored.

Tartuffe is punished, and Orgon's property and house are returned. This play made Molière the most famous French writer of his time.

Voltaire

In 1694, another famous French writer, Voltaire, was born in Paris. Interestingly, like Molière, he had a pseudonym, and his real name was François-Marie Arouet.

He was born into the family of an official. Educated at a Jesuit college. But, like Moliere, he left jurisprudence, opting for literature. Started career atpalaces of aristocrats as a freeloader poet. Soon he was imprisoned. For satirical poems dedicated to the regent and his daughter, he was imprisoned in the Bastille. Later, he had to suffer more than once for his masterful literary temper.

In 1726, the French writer Voltaire leaves for England, where he devotes three years to the study of philosophy, politics and science. Returning, he writes "Philosophical Letters", for which the publisher is imprisoned, and Voltaire manages to escape.

Voltaire, first of all, the famous French philosopher writer. In his writings, he repeatedly criticizes religion, which was unacceptable for that time.

Among the most famous works of this writer in French literature, one should single out the satirical poem "The Virgin of Orleans". In it, Voltaire presents the successes of Joan of Arc in a comic way, ridicules the courtiers and knights. Voltaire died in 1778 in Paris, it is known that for a long time he corresponded with the Russian Empress Catherine II.

Honoré de Balzac

French writer of the 19th century Honore de Balzac was born in the town of Tours. His father made a fortune on the resale of land, although he was a peasant. He wanted Balzac to become a lawyer, but he abandoned a career in law and devoted himself entirely to literature.

He published his first book under his own name in 1829. It was the historical novel "Chuans", dedicated to the French Revolution of 1799. Glory to him brings the story "Gobsek" about a usurer, for whom stinginessturns into mania, and the novel Shagreen Skin, dedicated to the clash of an inexperienced person with the vices of modern society. Balzac becomes one of the favorite French writers of the time.

The idea of the main work of his life comes to him in 1831. He decides to create a multi-volume work, in which he will reflect the picture of the mores of his contemporary society. He later called this work "The Human Comedy". This is the philosophical and artistic history of France, to the creation of which he devotes the rest of his life. French writer, author of "The Human Comedy" includes many previously written works, some specially reworks., "Lily of the Valley" and many other works. It is as the author of The Human Comedy that the French writer Honore de Balzac remains in the history of world literature.

Victor Hugo

Among the French writers of the 19th century, Victor Hugo also stands out. One of the key figures of French romanticism. He was born in the town of Besançon in 1802. He began to write at the age of 14, these were poems, in particular, Hugo translated Virgil. In 1823 he published his first novel called "Gan the Icelander".

In the 30s and 40s of XIXcentury, the work of the French writer V. Hugo was closely connected with the theater, he also published poetry collections.

Among his most famous works is the epic novel "Les Misérables", which is deservedly considered one of the greatest books of the entire 19th century. Its protagonist, ex-convict Jean Valjean, angry at all of humanity, returns from hard labor, where he spent 19 years due to the theft of bread. He ends up with a Catholic bishop who changes his life completely.

The priest treats him with respect, and when Valjean robs him, he forgives and does not betray him to the authorities. The man who accepted and took pity on him shocked the protagonist so much that he decides to establish a factory for the manufacture of black glassware. Becomes the mayor of a small town, for which the factory turns into a city-forming enterprise.

But when he does stumble, the French police rush to find him, Valjean is forced to hide.

In 1831, another famous work of the French writer Hugo was published - the novel Notre Dame Cathedral. The action takes place in Paris. The main female character is the gypsy Esmeralda, who with her beauty drives everyone around crazy. The priest of Notre Dame Cathedral, Claude Frollo, is secretly in love with her. Fascinated by the girl and his pupil, the hunchback Quasimodo, who works as a ringer.

The girl herself is loyal to the captain of the royal shooters Phoebus de Chateauper. Blinded by jealousy, Frollo wounds Phoebe, and Esmeralda herself becomes the accused. She is sentenced to death. When a girlthey are brought to the square to be hanged, Frollo and Quasimodo are watching. The hunchback, realizing that it is the priest who is to blame for her troubles, throws him off the top of the cathedral.

Talking about the books of the French writer Victor Hugo, one cannot fail to mention the novel "The Man Who Laughs". The writer creates it in the 60s of the XIX century. Its main character is Gwynplaine, who was mutilated as a child by representatives of the criminal community of child traffickers. The fate of Gwynplaine is very similar to the story of Cinderella. From a fair artist, he turns into an English peer. By the way, the action takes place in Britain at the turn of the XVII-XVIII centuries.

Guy de Maupassant

Famous French writer, author of the story "Dumpling", the novels "Dear Friend", "Life", Guy de Maupassant was born in 1850. During his studies, he showed himself as a capable student with a craving for theatrical art and literature. He went through the Franco-Prussian war as a private, worked as an official in the naval ministry after his family went bankrupt.

The aspiring writer immediately captivated the public with his debut story "Dumpling", in which he told about a plump prostitute nicknamed Dumpling, who, along with nuns and representatives of the upper strata of society, leaves the besieged Rouen during the war of 1870. The ladies surrounding her are at first arrogant towards the girl, even unite against, but when they run out of food, they willingly treat themselves to her provisions, forgetting about any hostility.

The main themes of Maupassant's workbecame Normandy, the Franco-Prussian war, women (as a rule, they became victims of violence), their own pessimism. Over time, his nervous illness intensifies, the topics of hopelessness and depression occupy him more and more.

In Russia, his novel "Dear Friend" is very popular, in which the author tells about an adventurer who managed to make a brilliant career. It is noteworthy that the hero does not have any talents, except for natural beauty, thanks to which he conquers all the surrounding ladies. He does a lot of meanness, with which he calmly gets along, becoming one of the mighty of this world.

André Maurois

French writer Maurois is perhaps the most famous author of biographical novels. The main characters of his works were Balzac, Turgenev, Byron, Hugo, Dumas the father and Dumas the son.

He was born in 1885 to a we althy Jewish family from Alsace who converted to Catholicism. He studied at the Rouen Lyceum. At first he worked at his father's cloth factory.

During the First World War, he was a liaison officer and military translator. His first success came in 1918 when he published The Silent Colonel Bramble.

Later joined the French Resistance. He also served during World War II. After France capitulated to the Nazi troops, he left for the United States, in America he wrote biographies of General Eisenhower, Washington, Franklin, Chopin. He returned to France in 1946.

Besides biographical works, Maurois was famous as a master of the psychological novel. Among the most notable books of this genre are the novels: "The Family Circle", "The Vicissitudes of Love", "Memoirs", published in 1970.

Albert Camus

Albert Camus is a famous French publicist who was close to the course of existentialism. Camus was born in Algiers in 1913, which at the time was a French colony. My father died in World War I, after that my mother and I lived in poverty.

In the 1930s, Camus studied philosophy at the University of Algiers. He was carried away by socialist ideas, even was a member of the French Communist Party, until he was expelled, suspected of "Trotskyism".

In 1940, Camus finished his first famous work - the story "The Outsider", which is considered a classic illustration of the ideas of existentialism. The story is told on behalf of a 30-year-old Frenchman named Meursault, who lives in colonial Algeria. Three main events of his life take place on the pages of the story - the death of his mother, the murder of a local resident and the trial that followed, from time to time he starts a relationship with a girl.

In 1947 came out the most famous novel by Camus called "The Plague". This book is largely an allegory for the recently defeated "brown plague" in Europe - fascism. At the same time, Camus himself admitted that he put evil in general into this image, without which it is impossible to imagine being.

In 1957, the Nobel Committee awarded him the Literature Prize for works that highlighted the importance of human conscience.

Jean-Paul Sartre

The famous French writer Jean-Paul Sartre, like Camus, was an adherent of the ideas of existentialism. By the way, he was also awarded the Nobel Prize (in 1964), but Sartre refused it. He was born in Paris in 1905.

He showed himself not only in literature, but also in journalism. In the 1950s, working in the New Times magazine, he supported the desire of the Algerian people to gain independence. He advocated freedom of self-determination of peoples, against torture and colonialism. The French nationalists repeatedly threatened him, twice blew up his apartment located in the center of the capital, and the militants repeatedly seized the editorial office of the magazine.

Sartre supported the Cuban Revolution, took part in student riots in 1968.

His most famous work is Nausea. He wrote it back in 1938. Before the reader is the diary of a certain Antoine Roquentin, who leads him with one single purpose - to get to the bottom of the essence. He is worried about the changes taking place with him, in which the hero cannot figure it out. Nausea, which from time to time overcomes Antoine, becomes the main symbol of the novel.

Gaito Gazdanov

Shortly after the October Revolution, such a thing as Russian-French writers appeared. A large number of domestic writers were forced to emigrate, many found shelter in France. The French name is given to the writer Gaito Gazdanov, who was born in St. Petersburg in 1903.

During the Civil War in 1919, Gazdanov joined Wrangel's volunteer army, even though he was only 16 at the time. He served as a soldier on an armored train. When the white army was forced to retreat, he ended up in the Crimea, from there he sailed on a steamer to Constantinople. Settled in Paris in 1923, where he spent most of his life.

His fate was not easy. He worked as a steam locomotive cleaner, a port loader, a mechanic at the Citroen plant when he could not find any work, he spent the night on the street, he lived like a clochard.

At the same time, he studied at the historical and philological university at the famous French Sorbonne University for four years. Even after becoming a famous writer, he did not have financial solvency for a long time, he was forced to work as a taxi driver at night.

In 1929, he published his first novel en titled An Evening at Claire's. The novel is conditionally divided into two parts. The first tells about the events that happened to the hero before meeting Claire. And the second part is devoted to memories of the Civil War in Russia, the novel is largely autobiographical. The thematic centers of the work are the death of the protagonist's father, the situation that prevails in the cadet corps, Claire. One of the central images is an armored train, which serves as a symbol of constant departure, the desire to always learn something new.

Interestingly, critics divide Gazdanov's novels into "French" and "Russian". They can be used to track the formation of the creative self-awareness of the author. In "Russian" novelsthe plot, as a rule, is based on an adventurous strategy, the experience of the author-"traveler" is manifested, a lot of personal impressions and events. Gazdanov's autobiographical works are the most sincere and frank.

Gazdanov differs from most of his contemporaries in his conciseness, rejection of the traditional and classical novel form, often he does not have a plot, climax, denouement, or a clearly built plot. At the same time, his narration is as close as possible to real life, it covers many psychological, philosophical, social and spiritual problems. Most often, Gazdanov is not interested in the events themselves, but in how they change the consciousness of his characters, he tries to interpret the same life manifestations in different ways. His most famous novels: "The Story of a Journey", "Flight", "Night Roads", "The Ghost of Alexander Wolf", "The Return of the Buddha" (after the success of this novel, relative financial independence came to him), "Pilgrims", "Awakening", "Evelina and her friends", "Coup", which was never completed.

No less popular are the stories of the French writer Gazdanov, whom he can fully call himself. These are "Lord of the Future", "Comrade Marriage", "Black Swans", "The Society of the Eight of Spades", "Mistake", "Evening Companion", "Ivanov's Letter", "The Beggar", "Lanterns", "The Great Musician".

In 1970, the writer was diagnosed with lung cancer. He is steadfastsuffered an illness, most of his acquaintances did not even suspect that Gazdanov was ill. Few close people knew how hard it was for him. The prose writer died in Munich, was buried in the cemetery of Sainte-Genevieve de Bois near the French capital.

Frederic Beigbeder

Many popular French writers among contemporaries. Perhaps the most famous among the living is Frederic Begbeder. He was born in 1965 near Paris. Graduated from the Institute of Political Studies, then studied marketing and advertising.

Started working as a copywriter for a large advertising agency. In parallel, he collaborated with magazines as a literary critic. When he was fired from an advertising agency, he took up the novel "99 francs", which brought him worldwide success. This is a bright and frank satire that exposed the ins and outs of the advertising business.

The main character is an employee of a large advertising agency, we note that the novel is largely autobiographical. He lives in luxury, having a lot of money, women, indulging in drugs. His life is turned upside down after two events that make the protagonist take a different look at the world around him. It's an affair with the agency's most beautiful employee, Sophie, and a meeting at a giant dairy corporation about a commercial he's working on.

The main character decides to rebel against the system that gave birth to him. He starts sabotaging his own advertising campaign.

By that time Begbeder had alreadypublished two books - "Memoirs of an unreasonable young man" (the title refers to the novel by Simone de Beauvoir "Memoirs of a well-bred girl"), a collection of short stories "Vacations in a Coma" and the novel "Love Lives for Three Years", subsequently filmed, like "99 francs ". Moreover, in this film, Begbeder himself acted as a director.

Many of Begbeder's heroes are extravagant playboys, very similar to the author himself.

In 2002, he released the novel "Windows on the World", written exactly one year after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York. Begbeder is trying to find words that can express the horror of the impending reality, which turns out to be worse than the most incredible Hollywood fantasies.

In 2009, he wrote The French Novel, an autobiographical narrative in which the author is placed in a holding cell for cocaine use in a public place. There, he begins to remember his forgotten childhood, recalling the meeting of his parents, their divorce, his life with his older brother. Meanwhile, the arrest is extended, the hero begins to be overwhelmed with fear, which forces him to reconsider his own life and leave prison as a different person who regained his lost childhood.

One of Begbeder's latest works is the novel "Una and Salinger", which tells about the love of the famous American writer, who wrote the main book for teenagers of the 20th century, "The Catcher in the Rye", and the 15-year-old daughter of the famous Irish writerplaywright Una O´Neill.