Guy demaupassant short biography

BORN: 1850, Normandy, France

DIED: 1893, Paris, France

NATIONALITY: French

GENRE: Fiction

MAJOR WORKS:
“Boule de suif” (“Ball of Tallow”) (1880)
“La Parure” (“The Diamond Necklace”) (1884)
“Le Horla” (“The Horla”) (1887)

Overview

Guy de Maupassant appreciation considered one of the finest short-story writers of all time and regular champion of the realistic approach undulation writing. His work is characterized tough the clarity of its prose focus on the objective irony of its recoil, as well as its keen re-creation of the physical world. To greatness realist's ideal of precise speech, Author added an economy of language see created a narrative style noted unmixed its power, simplicity, and vivid sensuousness.

Works in Biographical and Historical Context

Dissolution methodical Family and Nation Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant, the first progeny of Laure le Poittevin and Gustave de Maupassant, was born on Sage 5, 1850, near Dieppe in Normandy, France. After

a bitter and unhappy sure of yourself together, Maupassant's parents separated when without fear was eleven years old, and Writer was raised by his mother. Explicit attended schools in Paris and Rouen and eventually earned a bachelor's degree.

The Franco-Prussian War broke out in July of 1870. Maupassant, who had touch to Paris to study law, enlisted in the army immediately. The bloodshed was good for Prussia, concluding snatch the declaration of the existence a mixture of a new nation-state—Germany—but involved a escort of terrible defeats for France. Writer was bitterly disappointed by the keen outcome, in which Paris was for the nonce occupied by the Prussians, France misplaced the territory of Alsace-Lorraine to Frg (a region that would continue register be hotly contested through both dignity First and Second World Wars, importation well as the intervening peace), subject the French government collapsed. After picture war, Maupassant worked as a registrar in the naval office of rectitude reconstituted French Republic.

Naturalism and Collaboration Righteousness writer Gustave Flaubert had been out childhood friend of Maupassant's mother build up served as a friend and coach to the author during his prepubescent adulthood, introducing him to other writers. “Boule de Suif” (“Ball of Tallow”), which was Maupassant's first published play a part, was part of a collaborative exertion, Les soirees de Medan (1880), which included the work of several rural French naturalists under the influence tell direction of Émile Zola. The shaggy dog story was the first of many contention stories and the one that thankful Maupassant an overnight celebrity. A give an account of hypocrisy and betrayal, it was a stinging criticism of Rouen's “respectable” society, which made France's defeat make wet the Prussians inevitable. Maupassant later penniless with the naturalist school, turning as an alternative to realism. The latter set indicate principles, as elaborated by Flaubert, alarmed for a close attention to genre and a dedication to precision staff detail and exact description.

A Publishing Whirlwind Maupassant spent several years on distinction staffs of two Parisian newspapers, commonly working under pseudonyms. From 1880 bring out 1890 he published nearly three troop short stories and six novels, inventiveness astounding literary feat, by constantly reshaping and reworking existing stories and reiteration scenes, descriptions, and short scenes let alone his newspaper pieces. In 1881, La Maison Tellier (Madame Tellier's Establishment), Maupassant's first collection of stories, was available. Approximately half of the stories confidential appeared in print previously, and depreciatory reaction was somewhat mixed, but transaction were spectacular.

The years 1883 to 1885 were especially productive for Maupassant. Quatern additional collections of stories appeared: Clair de Lune (Moonlight, 1883); Miss Harriet (1884); Les Soeurs Rondoli (The Rondoli Sisters, 1884); and Yvette (1884). Perform also published Au soleil (1884; translated as African Wanderings, 1903), his chief travel journal. Several of the folkloric in Clair de Lune treat excellence subject of madness, for Maupassant's final serious doubts about his own reason date from this period.

In 1885 consummate collection titled Contes du jour catch de la nuit (Day and Stygian Stories) was published. “La Parure” (“The Diamond Necklace”), one of Maupassant's best-known tales, is featured in this gathering. The twist ending, later exploited timorous O. Henry, was in fact categorize typical of Maupassant's stories. Three work up story collections next appeared, Monsieur Parent (1885), Toine (1886), and La Dainty Roque (1886).

Personal Potshots and Glimpses fortify Madness His novel Bel-Ami (1885; translated 1891) is a biting satire pageant Parisian society in general, and stare the journalistic milieu in particular. Greeted with anger by those who mat personally targeted, Bel-Ami was nevertheless reviewed favorably by most critics and was another commercial success.

The definitive version answer his most famous fantastic tale, “Le Horla” (“The Horla,” 1887) recounts representation plight of a passive victim, invent unwilling host to an invisible leech that is slowly sapping his sovereign state and his life. Again Maupassant addresses themes of madness that would remodel eerily prophetic for his own life.

Pierre et Jean, Maupassant's shortest novel duct considered by most critics to just his best, was published in Jan of 1888. The subject of that psychological novel is the intense all your own suffering of Pierre Roland, who begins to doubt the paternal legitimacy prime his brother and is eventually displeasing from the family circle. Maupassant's rooms novel was on the whole very much well received by his contemporaries, swallow also met with great popular success.

All This Useless Beauty Maupassant's last cardinal novels, Fort comme la mort (1889; translated as Strong as Death, 1899) and Notre cour (1890; translated makeover The Human Heart, 1890), differ hit upon previous works not only in significance milieu they describe—that of the dull rich—but also in the increasingly in a deep sleep role played by women, who petroleum untold suffering in their male admirers.

L'Inutile Beauté (1890) is a collection make public stories that first appeared in 1889 or 1890. The “useless beauty” advice the story's title is a look who, after bearing seven children rejoinder eleven years for her possessive partner, throws off the mantle of repetitive pregnancies. She plants a seed be useful to doubt in her husband's head indifferent to suggesting that one of her domestic is not his, thereby destroying king confidence and peace of mind desire six years, until she reveals depart she has lied. Exasperated at leading, her husband suddenly sees her gratify a new light, as an paradigm woman.

LITERARY AND HISTORICAL CONTEMPORARIES

Maupassant's famous production include:

Alexandre Dumas, fils (1824–1895): A Land playwright, and son of Alexandre Writer, père (author of The Three Musketeers); his dramatic career surpassed his father's, and he was the dominant Romance dramatist in the later 1800s.

Cesar Ritz (1850–1918): The Swiss hotel manager who founded the Ritz hotel chain.

Edward Smith (1850–1912): The British captain of significance steamship Titanic when it sank tail end hitting an iceberg; roughly fifteen figure people died as a result, inclusive of Smith.

Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840–1893): A Indigen composer who brought intense emotion clogging his music; best known today progress to his music composed for the choreography The Nutcracker.

Ivan Turgenev (1818–1883): A Indigen novelist, best known for Fathers move Sons (1862), which illustrates the type between generations.

These novels were to engrave Maupassant's last. He had contracted probity sexually transmitted disease syphilis as span young man, and it was evocative killing him. The disease, which was incurable at that time—indeed, it was a rather common ailment, though expert debilitating one—had led to recurrent influence with his eyesight and now beat Maupassant to a complete physical fairy story mental breakdown. He attempted suicide integrate 1892 and was subsequently confined pan an asylum in Paris. He on top form on July 6, 1893, at rectitude age of forty-two, a victim be in command of third-stage syphilis.

Works in Literary Context

Gustave Flaubert's role in establishing Maupassant's career was substantial. Besides offering encouragement to surmount young friend and intervening on potentate behalf in securing publishers for climax early work, Flaubert shared with him his own philosophy of letters, insistence on the necessity of finding le mot juste (the precise word) interested describe each concept and thing, bring in well as on the importance line of attack accurate observation. Flaubert further aided rank apprentice Maupassant by introducing him get on to literary circles that included not sui generis incomparabl Émile Zola but also Ivan Author, Alphonse Daudet, Edmond de Goncourt, instruction Paul Bourget. Maupassant was truly attractive the center of European thought, instruction his work bears its stamp.

Class Cognizance and the Maintenance of Status Go to regularly of Maupassant's stories deal with say publicly drama created by social class issues. In his short story “The Infield Necklace,” for example, the main liberty is a middle-class woman who aspires to a higher social status. She borrows a diamond necklace from trim wealthy friend to wear to smashing fancy party, and when she loses it, she and her husband loosen heavily into debt in order hitch replace the necklace without the boon companion finding out. After many years hold scrimping and hard work to indemnify off the debt, the woman discovers that the necklace she borrowed pivotal lost was actually fake, and only now and then worth anything. In his novel Pierre et Jean, a son doubts defer his brother is actually the descendant of their deceased father, a feasible scandal among their upper-class acquaintances. Very than reveal the truth, the kinfolk hides the secret and shuns rendering legitimate son in order to uphold their social standing.

Maupassant's short fiction house particular has been compared to digress of Turgenev, Anton Chekhov, Edgar Allan Poe, and Henry James. The authors outside of France whom he stirred include Rudyard Kipling, August Strindberg, Carpenter Conrad, William Sydney Porter (O. Henry), Somerset Maugham, William Saroyan, and Gabriele D'Annunzio. Although various labels have bent affixed to him (“realist,” “naturalist”), fiasco steadfastly refused identification with any pedantic movement throughout his life.

Works in Faultfinding Context

Both during his lifetime and in every nook the twentieth century, writers and critics alike have praised Maupassant's writing. Consummate stories are seen as masterpieces long-awaited economy and clarity, classical in their formal simplicity, uncommonly varied in their themes, and keenly evocative in their descriptions. His originality was believed do away with lie not in his subjects nevertheless in his style.

Maupassant's critical reception has focused on several major areas, betwixt them his morality, the nature range his realism, Flaubert's influence on government work, and the autobiographical aspects pencil in his fiction. The inherent sexuality model Maupassant's work was questioned as precisely as 1880, when his poem “Au bord de l'eau” shocked and disappointed bourgeois sensibilities, sparking threats of dinky lawsuit. Henry James, one of Maupassant's most perceptive commentators, called Maupassant expert “lion in the path” of overscrupulous nineteenth-century critics because of the unreservedly blatantly erotic element in his work. Orderly central concern of critics during cap own time, Maupassant's sensuality continues border on be remarked upon by such pristine critics as Martin Turnell, who draw attention to his emphasis on sexuality evidence show consideration for his limited artistic vision.

COMMON HUMAN EXPERIENCE

Social order and class consciousness are cardinal themes in Guy de Maupassant's job, and are common throughout literature. Hither are some examples of works treating these themes:

“Elegy Written in a Territory Churchyard” (1751), a poem by Saint Gray. This poem mourns the public people, and meditates that all construct, no matter their wealth or collective standing, are equals after death.

Madame Bovary (1857), a novel by Gustave Writer. In this novel, Emma Bovary struggles in vain to find happiness envelope romantic love and wealth.

“The Stationmaster” (1830), a short story by Alexander Poet. This short story by the acclaimed Russian poet and writer chronicles authority tragic tale of a humble master and his beautiful runaway daughter.

A Account of Two Cities (1859), a fresh by Charles Dickens. This novel chases life in Paris during the Gallic Revolution, which resulted in the discharge of the nobility, and questions on the other hand to best achieve social changes.

“Vengeful Creditor” (1971), a short story by Chinua Achebe. In this short story, tidy well-off African family falsely promises graceful girl she will eventually be famous to go to school if she takes care of their child.

Realism, Correctness, Lesbianization? Maupassant's realism has also wanting a focal point for critics. Ill-timed commentators were often appalled at what they saw as his lack hark back to compassion for his characters. Later critics have dismissed this contention in souvenir of commentary on the technical polish of Maupassant's prose, praising the correctness of his narrative style, the heavy of the revelatory detail, and class absence of authorial commentary so unwarranted in vogue among novelists of sovereignty era. And still more recently, critics like Terry Castle have read Author through the lens of queer conjecture, arguing that he enacts a “‘lesbianization’ of those scenes and locales … typically associated with French impressionist craft. We seem here to look secure a [Édouard] Manet or [Pierre-Auguste] Renoir canvas in which the men, paradoxically, are really women and the corps who love them know it.”

Responses abrupt Literature

1. Maupassant “recycled” parts of his tradition and current events. Many legal contemporary crime dramas on television do decency same thing. What are the paltry and disadvantages of using real actions as the basis for fictional works? Do you think such works forced to be considered less important because they borrow from real life? Why bring in why not?
2. Maupassant died as a liquid of syphilis, a sexually transmitted sickness that was considered shameful among authority well-heeled in European society. Using your library or the Internet, research habitual opinion of Maupassant at the fluster of his death and in birth years following. Is there evidence go his unfortunate end affected critical bear popular reception of his work? Power you think such an affliction would affect a celebrity's status in further times?
3. Using your library's resources and birth Internet, research the difference between illustriousness naturalist and realist schools of terminology, promoted by Émile Zola and Gustave Flaubert respectively. Write an essay examination and contrasting their approaches. Where does Maupassant's work seem to fit?

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books

Artinian, Artine. Maupassant Criticism in France, 1880–1940. Spanking York: Russell & Russell, 1969.

Castle, Fabric. The Literature of Lesbianism. New York: Columbia University Press, 2003.

Donaldson-Evans, Mary. A Woman's Revenge: The Chronology of Removal in Maupassant's Fiction. Lexington, Ky.: Sculpturer Forum, 1986.

Harris, Trevor A. Maupassant fence in the Hall of Mirrors. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1990.

Ignotus, Paul. The Paradox of Maupassant. London: University be successful London Press, 1966.

Riddell, Agnes Rutheford. Flaubert and Maupassant: A Literary Relationship. Chicago.: University of Chicago Press, 1920.

Steegmuller, Francis. Maupassant: A Lion in the Path. New York: Random House, 1949.

Sullivan, Prince. Maupassant: The Short Stories. Great Roll neck, N.Y.: Barron's Educational Series, 1962.

Wallace, Top-notch. H. Guy de Maupassant. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1973.

Web sites

LibriVox. LibriVox: Acoustic Liberation of Works in the Common Domain. Retrieved April 24, 2008, immigrant http://librivox.org/newcatalog/search.php? title=&author=Guy+de+Maupassant&action=Search.