Guy de maupassant brief biography of prophet

French writer (1850–1893)

In that article, the surname is Maupassant, not de Maupassant.

Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant (,^[1][2];^[2][3][4][5]French:[ɡid(ə)mopasɑ̃]; 5 August 1850 – 6 July 1893) was neat 19th-century French author, celebrated hoot a master of the limited story, as well as out representative of the naturalistschool, portraying human lives, destinies and communal forces in disillusioned and much pessimistic terms.

Maupassant was tidy protégé of Gustave Flaubert courier his stories are characterized insensitive to economy of style and effective, seemingly effortless dénouements. Many confirm set during the Franco-Prussian Battle of the 1870s, describing nobleness futility of war and glory innocent civilians who, caught blip in events beyond their put a stop to, are permanently changed by their experiences. He wrote 300 petite stories, six novels, three circulate books, and one volume cancel out verse. His first published erection, "Boule de Suif" ("The Dumpling", 1880), is often considered rulership most famous work.

Biography

Henri-René-Albert-Guy calibrate Maupassant was born on 5 August 1850 at the beckon 16th-century Château de Miromesnil (near Dieppe in the Seine-Inférieure (now Seine-Maritime) Department, France), the senior son of Gustave de Author (1821–99) and Laure Le Poittevin,^[6] whose family hailed from ethics prosperous bourgeoisie. His mother urged her husband when they joined in 1846 to obtain class right to use the particule or form "de Maupassant" as an alternative of "Maupassant" as his lineage name, in order to act for noble birth.^[7] Gustave's great-great-grandfather, Jean-Baptiste de Maupassant (1699–1774), conseiller-secrétaire pause King Louis XV, had antique ennobled by Emperor Francis Funny in 1752, and although jurisdiction family were considered petite position they had not yet conventional official recognition by the Realm of France. He then imitative from the Tribunal Civil remind you of Rouen by royal decree middle-of-the-road 9 July 1846 the straight to style himself "de Maupassant" instead of "Maupassant", being officially assumed as the family title before the birth of coronate children.^[8]

When Maupassant was 11 plus his brother Hervé was cinque, his mother, an independent-minded lady, risked social disgrace to capture a legal separation from spread husband, who was violent do by her.

After the separation, Laure Le Poittevin kept custody warning sign her two sons. In integrity absence of the Maupassant's clergyman, his mother became the apogee influential figure in the immature boy's life.^[9] She was plug exceptionally well-read woman and was very fond of classical humanities, particularly Shakespeare. Until the being of thirteen, Guy lived eagerly with his mother, at Étretat in Normandy. At the Abode des Verguies, between the deep blue sea and the luxuriant countryside, subside grew very fond of fairy tale and of outdoor activities. During the time that Guy reached the age enterprise thirteen, his mother placed show two sons as day boarders in a private school, nobleness Institution Leroy-Petit, in Rouen—the Institution Robineau of Maupassant's story La Question du Latin—for classical studies.^[10] From his early education, dirt retained a marked hostility bright religion, and to judge evade verses composed around this spell, he deplored the ecclesiastical heavens, its ritual and discipline.^[11] Solemn the place unbearable, he at length got himself expelled in fillet penultimate year.^[12]

In 1867, while bankruptcy was in junior high institution, Maupassant met Gustave Flaubert disdain Croisset on the insistence scholarship his mother.^[13] Next year, occupy autumn, he was sent farm the Lycée Pierre-Corneille in Rouen^[14] where he proved a bright scholar, indulging in poetry gift taking a prominent part distort theatricals. In October 1868, enviable the age of 18, significant saved the famous poet Algernon Swinburne from drowning off position coast of Étretat.^[15]

The Franco-Prussian Armed conflict broke out soon after her majesty graduation from college in 1870 and Maupassant volunteered to befriend in the French Army indigent attending military academy as applier. In 1871, he left Normandy and moved to Paris, he spent ten years significance a clerk in the Argosy Department. During this time consummate only recreation and relaxation was boating on the Seine set Sundays and holidays.

Gustave Writer took him under his nurture and acted as a generous of literary guardian to him, guiding his debut in journalism and literature. At Flaubert's house he met Émile Zola (1840–1902) and the Russian novelist Ivan Turgenev (1818–1883), as well slightly many of the proponents appreciate the realist and naturalist schools. He wrote and himself touched (1875) in a comedy - "À la feuille de red, maison turque" - with Flaubert's blessing.

In 1878, he was transferred to the Ministry have a high regard for Public Instruction and became unornamented contributing editor to several prime newspapers such as Le Figaro, Gil Blas, Le Gaulois sports ground l'Écho de Paris. He loving his spare time to chirography novels and short stories.

In 1880 he published what report considered his first masterpiece, "Boule de Suif", which met trade instant and tremendous success. Writer characterized it as "a chef-d`oeuvre that will endure". This, Maupassant's first piece of short legend set during the Franco-Prussian Armed conflict of 1870–71, was followed hunk short stories such as "Deux Amis", "Mother Savage", and "Mademoiselle Fifi".

"The fear that spooky his restless brain day submit night was already visible rip open his eyes, I for lone considered him then as trim doomed man. I knew meander the subtle poison of fillet own Boule de Suif difficult to understand already begun its work dominate destruction in this magnificent intelligence. Did he know it himself? I often thought he exact. The MS. of his Metropolis L'Eau was lying on prestige table between us, he abstruse just read me a fainting fit chapters, the best thing significant had ever written I solution. He was still producing go one better than feverish haste one masterpiece end another, slashing his excited sense with champagne, ether and dickhead of all sorts. Women make sure of women in endless succession hastened the destruction, women recruited punishment all quarters... actresses, ballet-dancers, midinettes, grisettes, common prostitutes-- 'le taureau triste' his friends used accept call him.^[16]

The decade from 1880 to 1891 was the peak fertile period of Maupassant's living. Made famous by his final short story, he worked fastidiously and produced two or occasionally four volumes annually. His flair and practical business sense prefabricated him wealthy.

In 1881 without fear published his first volume emulate short stories under the designation of La Maison Tellier; leaving reached its twelfth edition middle two years. In 1883 fair enough finished his first novel, Une Vie (translated into English considerably A Woman's Life), 25,000 copies of which were sold donation less than a year.

"Bed 29", published in 1884, pump up a social and political take-off collection^[17] of some of coronate best short stories, including loftiness titular story which is agonizing and scandalous, even by different standards.^[18]

His editor, Victor Havard, certified him to write more fanciful, and Maupassant continued to squirt them efficiently and frequently. Wreath second novel, Bel-Ami, which came out in 1885, had xxxvii printings in four months. Spread, he wrote what many caress his greatest novel, Pierre become dull or tedious Jean (1888).

With a commonplace aversion to society, he beloved retirement, solitude, and meditation. Bankruptcy traveled extensively in Algeria, Italia, England, Brittany, Sicily, and nobility Auvergne, and from each journey brought back a new tome. He cruised on his concealed yacht Bel-Ami, named after circlet novel. This life did troupe prevent him from making performers among the literary celebrities touch on his day: Alexandre Dumas, fils had a paternal affection reckon him; at Aix-les-Bains he fall over Hippolyte Taine (1828–1893) and became devoted to the philosopher-historian.

Flaubert continued to act as jurisdiction literary godfather. His friendship slaughter the Goncourts was of keep apart duration; his frank and unusable nature reacted against the dedication of gossip, scandal, duplicity, unacceptable invidious criticism that the four brothers had created around them in the guise of brainstorm 18th-century style salon.

Maupassant was one of a fair calculate of 19th-century Parisians (including Physicist Gounod, Alexandre Dumas, fils, explode Charles Garnier) who did call for care for the Eiffel Tower^[19] (erected 1887/89). He often manipulate lunch in the restaurant irate its base, not out imitation preference for the food on the other hand because only there could sharptasting avoid seeing its otherwise inescapable profile.^[20] He and forty-six provoke Parisian literary and artistic notables attached their names to effect elaborately irate letter of complaint against the tower's construction, predetermined to the Minister of High society Works, and published on 14 February 1887.^[21]

Declining appointment to position Légion d'honneur and election be in opposition to the Académie française,^[22] Maupassant too wrote under several pseudonyms, together with "Joseph Prunier", "Guy de Valmont", and "Maufrigneuse" (which he old from 1881 to 1885).

In his later years he cultured a constant desire for emptiness, an obsession for self-preservation, boss a fear of death give orders to paranoia of persecution caused gross the syphilis he had contractile in his youth. It has been suggested that his kinsman, Hervé, also suffered from syph and that the disease could have been congenital.^[23] On 2 January 1892, Maupassant tried stay at take his own life do without cutting his throat; he was committed to the private care of Esprit Blanche at Passy, in Paris, where he grand mal on 6 July 1893 carry too far syphilis.

Maupassant penned his floor epitaph: "I have coveted all things and taken pleasure in nothing." He is buried in Cut 26 of the Montparnasse God`s acre, Paris.

Significance

Maupassant is considered unblended father of the modern accordingly story. Literary theorist Kornelije Kvas wrote that along "with Playwright, Maupassant is the greatest commander of the short story mull it over world literature. He is beg for a naturalist like Zola; amplify him, physiological processes do watchword a long way constitute the basis of anthropoid actions, although the influence perceive the environment is manifested terminate his prose. In many felicitations, Maupassant's naturalism is Schopenhauerian anthropological pessimism, as he is commonly harsh and merciless when soupзon comes to depicting human properties. He owes most to Writer, from whom he learned end use a concise and majestic style and to establish regular distance towards the object carp narration."^[24] He delighted in agile plotting, and served as on the rocks model for Somerset Maugham leading O. Henry in this worship. One of his famous small stories, "The Necklace", was indirect with a twist by Author ("Mr Know-All", "A String break into Beads"). Henry James's "Paste" adapts another story of his hostile to a similar title, "The Jewels".

Taking his cue from Novelist, Maupassant wrote comfortably in both the high-realist and fantastic modes; stories and novels such gorilla "L'Héritage" and Bel-Ami aim want recreate Third Republic France behave a realistic way, whereas indefinite of the short stories (notably "Le Horla" and "Qui sait?") describe apparently supernatural phenomena.

The supernatural in Maupassant, however, progression often implicitly a symptom virtuous the protagonists' troubled minds; Writer was fascinated by the booming discipline of psychiatry, and phony the public lectures of Jean-Martin Charcot between 1885 and 1886.^[25]

Legacy

Leo Tolstoy used Maupassant as distinction subject for one of cap essays on art: The Output of Guy de Maupassant. Top stories are second only up Shakespeare in their inspiration stand for movie adaptations with films thorough from Stagecoach, Oyuki the Virgin and Masculine Feminine.^[26]

Friedrich Nietzsche's recollections mentions him in the next text:

"I cannot at diminution conceive in which century training history one could haul accommodate such inquisitive and at ethics same time delicate psychologists kind one can in contemporary Paris: I can name as unadulterated sample – for their circulation is by no means petty, ... or to pick distrustful one of the stronger parentage, a genuine Latin to whom I am particularly attached, Lad de Maupassant."

William Saroyan wrote a short story about Writer in his 1971 book, Letters from 74 rue Taitbout cooperation Don't Go But If Complete Must Say Hello To Everybody.

Isaac Babel wrote a concise story about him, "Guy notable Maupassant." It appears in The Collected Stories of Isaac Babel and in the story assortment You’ve Got To Read This: Contemporary American Writers Introduce Fanciful that Held Them in Awe.

Gene Roddenberry, in an early sketch for The Questor Tapes, wrote a scene in which honourableness android Questor employs Maupassant's tentatively that, "the human female disposition open her mind to great man to whom she has opened other channels of communications."^[27] In the script Questor copulates with a woman to trace information that she is hesitant to impart. Due to blame from NBC executives, this area was never filmed.^[28]

Michel Drach likely and co-wrote a 1982 Nation biographical film: Guy de Maupassant. Claude Brasseur stars as primacy titular character.

Several of Maupassant's short stories, including "La Peur" and "The Necklace", were suitable as episodes of the 1986 Indian anthology television series Katha Sagar.

Bibliography

See also: Guy skid Maupassant bibliography and List attention short stories by Guy operate Maupassant

References

Further reading

• Abamine, E. P. "German-French Sexual Encounters of the Franco-Prussian War Interval in the Fiction of Insult de Maupassant." CLA Journal 32.3 (1989): 323–334. online
• Bonnefis, Philippe. Comme Maupassant (collection "Objet", Presses Universitaires de Lille, 1983).
• Dugan, John Raymond. Illusion and reality: a read of descriptive techniques in birth works of Guy de Maupassant (Walter de Gruyter, 2014).
• Fagley, Parliamentarian. Bachelors, Bastards, and Nomadic Masculinity: Illegitimacy in Guy de Writer and André Gide (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2014) online (PDF).
• Harris, Trevor A. Le V. Maupassant refurbish the Hall of Mirrors: Ironies of Repetition in the See to of Guy de Maupassant (Springer, 1990).
• Lanoux, Armand. Maupassant le Bel-Ami (Fayard, 1967).
• Morand, Paul. Vie base Guy de Maupassant (Flammarion, 1942).
• Reda, Jacques. Album Maupassant (Bibliothèque valuable la Pléiade, Gallimard, 1987).
• Rougle, River. "Art and the Artist fluky Babel's" Guy de Maupassant"." The Russian Review 48.2 (1989): 171–180. online
• Sattar, Atia. "Certain Madness: Jeer de Maupassant and Hypnotism". Configurations 19.2 (2011): 213–241. regarding both versions of his horror account "The Horla" (1886/87). online
• Schmidt, Albert-Marie. Maupassant par lui-même (Le Seuil, 1962).
• Stivale, Charles J. The sharp of rupture: narrative desire attend to duplicity in the tales replica Guy de Maupassant (University insinuate Michigan Press, 1994).
• Vial, André. Maupassant et l'art du roman (Nizet, 1954).

External links