Andre Mauroy: biography, personal life, photo of the writer and books

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

André Maurois is a classic of the biographical novel genre. He became a participant in the most tragic events of the 20th century, but retained a kind irony, which invariably affected his work - the psychological component and subtle humor of Mauroy's works still attract readers.

Childhood and youth

The writer was born on July 26, 1885 in Elbef. He comes from a we althy family who came to France from Normandy after the Franco-German war. Grandfather and father were the owners of a textile factory. They also brought workers to France with them. Morua's grandfather was awarded an order for his contribution to French industry.

At baptism, Andre received the name - Emil Solomon Wilhelm. The boy attended a gymnasium in Elbeuf, the instructions of his teacher Emile Chartier, a writer and philosopher, affected the formation of his worldview. At the age of twelve, Maurois goes to study at the Lycée Corneille, after which he enters the University of Cannes and until 1911 serves as an administrator at the family business.

Private life

In 1909, in Geneva, Mauroy André met the one who would becomehis future wife - the daughter of the Polish count Zhanin. They will not live even 10 years, as Mauroy's wife dies of an illness, leaving him three children: two sons and daughter Michelle, who, like her father, will become a writer.

In 1924, in Paris, he met his second wife, Simone Cayave. She will be devoted to him until the last days of the writer, which cannot be said about him. Simon will become his nurse, secretary, wife and write a book of memoirs.

Debut romance

During the First World War Morois was a liaison officer and translator in the British Corps. Impressions of the war formed the basis of the debut novel The Silent Colonel Bramble (1918). After the first publication, the writer learned what success is. His work has been warmly received at home and in the US and UK.

Morois novels

Working at the editorial office of the newspaper Croix-de-Feu, André Maurois is working on his next novel. His Talkative Dr. O'Grady was published in 1922. Morois managed the family business for 10 years, but in 1925, after the death of his father, he sold the factory and devoted himself to literature.

In the next 15 years, a trilogy about the life of representatives of English romanticism was published. It later appeared as the Romantic England series: Ariel, or the Life of Shelley (1923), The Life of Disraeli (1927) and Byron (1930). In the same years he published several novels:

• Bernard Quesnet (1926) tells the story of a war veteran, a gifted young man forced to work in a family business;
• psychological work "The Vicissitudes of Love" (1928)reveals human passions to the reader: in the first part, the main character writes about his feelings, in the second part, his wife Isabelle opens her heart;
• the wonderful novel "Family Hearth" (1932) tells about the family, about the relationship of spouses, fathers and children, about personal choices, about the difficulties of life.

History of states

In 1938 Maurois was elected to the French Academy, but the Second World War interrupted his creative plans. Morois left as a volunteer with A. Saint-Exupery. During the occupation of his native country, he emigrated to the United States, where he worked as a teacher and served in Africa. Fate brought them together with Exupery both in exile and in liberated Algeria.

In 1946 he returned to France, and three years later he published the collection In Search of Marcel Proust. In 1947, a book from the cycle of the history of states "France" was published. André Maurois wrote about the history of the USA, Great Britain and other countries.

Books about beauty

In 1947, during a trip to South America, Morois had a brief affair with a 30-year-old translator, Maria Garcia, everyone called her Marita. The beautiful name of this Peruvian girl will remind him of his first wife. Their relationship lasted only 20 days, but Marita would return in September Roses (1956), a romantic, philosophically rich novel about a famous writer who has everything in life, but lacks only a miracle - the miracle of love.

In the same year, 1956, “Letters from a Stranger” by Andre Maurois were published, filled with advice for every day, which millions of readers still read to this day. Lettersaffect all aspects of human existence, but most of all - the relationship between a man and a woman. How to attract the attention of a man, how to behave, how to build relationships in the family and, God forbid, got a mistress, how to take a hit. The list of topics raised in the letters can be listed for a long time, the most important thing is that almost all of them are relevant now.

Consonant with these books is Morua's novel The Promised Land, published in 1946. In it, the writer also touches on the theme of “tender passion”. The heroine, the brilliant beauty Claire, read a lot and dreamed of love, imagined her real. But, having married, she does not find what she was looking for, she cannot find true happiness and dooms herself to a joyless existence. The writer, in order to somehow decorate her such a bleak existence, gives her a little bit of happiness in her second marriage.

Writer's Novels

Separately, it must be said about the short stories by Maurois Andre, collected in Violets on Wednesdays, not so long ago the collection was released in Russian. It was compiled not by the writer himself, but by publishers, and is an interesting combination of his works. Not all of them fall under the definition of "novella", which helps to get acquainted with the peculiarities of the writer's artistic method.

Two sketches "Ants" and "Cathedral" are reminiscent of S. Maugham's stories. In the short story "Ariadne, sister …" the reader will recognize episodes from the life of the writer, when both of his spouses are going to write memoirs. The "Biography" tells of a researcher writing a biography of Byron. The novel "Tide" tells what is truenot always needed, sometimes it is better to keep it sealed, otherwise, as soon as it goes out, it will lead to unforeseen consequences.

In the short story "Good evening, my dear," the writer bitterly says that in the pursuit of fame, many forget about the purpose of art. The same theme is raised by Maurois André in The Birth of a Celebrity. The novel Myrrina also tells of a director who asks the playwright to include another heroine in the play, to be played by his mistress.

"The story of one career" is more like a story, and tells that a genuine work of art without talent, guided only by desire, is impossible. In the novel "Testament", the hostess, meeting the guests, tirelessly repeats to everyone, not in the least embarrassed by the presence of her husband: everything that is in the estate is written to her and will remain with her after his death.

"Love of the Golden Calf" tells about the love of an elderly couple and is somewhat reminiscent of Balzac's Gobsek. In the sentimental short story that gave the collection its name, Violets on Wednesdays, the writer introduces the reader to the story of a failed love.

Life of wonderful people

Despite numerous works written in various genres, André Maurois is, above all, a master of the biographical novel. He wrote:

• Byron, published in 1930;
• a novel about the Russian writer "Turgenev", published in 1931;
• Georges Sand, published in 1952;
• a novel about Victor Hugo, published by the writer in1955;
• life story of Alexandre Dumas (1957);
• about the English bacteriologist who discovered penicillin; André Maurois tells his biography in the book "Alexander Fleming" (1959);
• the book about Balzac, which was the last work of the writer in this cycle, was published in 1965, when the writer was 80 years old.

About his compatriots Morois created a series of "Literary portraits":

• 1964 - "From La Bruyère to Proust";
• 1963 - "From Proust to Camus";
• 1965 - "From Gide to Sartre";
• 1967 - "From Aragon to Monterlane".

In the 70s, Andre Mauroy's book "Memoirs" was published, where he spoke about his life and his great contemporaries - Churchill, Roosevelt, General de Gaulle, Kipling, Saint-Exupery and Clemenceau. The writer died on October 9, 1967.

Reviews from readers

Maurois gravitates more to classical literature than to the popular in those years - modernist. But, despite this, among his contemporaries, the work of the master was appreciated. The same can be said about today - whichever of his works you take, it is beautiful. Novels are often connected by common characters. The protagonist of one of them suddenly appears in another work. An episodic character suddenly comes to the fore in the next novel.

Morua's books are characterized by the presence of a narrator and a participant in events in one person. The writer's heroes belong mainly to the bourgeois, the writer also talks about bohemia, and mercilessly criticizes all the vices of this society. Biographical novelsMorois are read in one breath, in psychological - every phrase is an aphorism. Many of the writer's books are literally "disassembled" into quotes.

André Maurois writes clearly, his reasoning is precise and elegantly formulated, you savor every word. Morois is a wonderful representative of French prose, you re-read his works several times, and nothing can be done about it - you want to communicate with the great master of the word again and again.