guy de maupassant interesting facts

[8] She was an exceptionally well-read woman and was very fond of classical literature, particularly Shakespeare. His 300 stories were written in the naturalist style and often described the life of the lower and middle classes. Henry-Ren-Albert-Guy de Maupassant was the eldest of the two children of Gustave and Laure, born on Aug. 5, 1850 in Dieppe, France. Fun facts: before fame, family life, popularity rankings, and more. French writer, Gustave Flaubert played a pivotal role in guiding him through his earlier days in literature and journalism. We may earn commission from links on this page, but we only recommend products we back. He traveled extensively in Algeria, Italy, England, Brittany, Sicily, and the Auvergne, and from each voyage brought back a new volume. Maupassant was a civil servant in the period between 1872 and 1880 years. Maupassant was adamant in refusing to undergo treatment, with the result that the disease was to cast a deepening shadow over his mature years and was accentuated by neurasthenia, which had also afflicted his brother. He wrote and himself played (1875) in a comedy - " la feuille de rose, maison turque" - with Flaubert's blessing. In 1868, when he was eighteen, he saved the life of poet Algernon Charles Swinburne, rescuing the latter from drowning off the coast of Etretat. Remembering Maupassant - Guy de Maupassant lived a short but highly productive life and his short stories and novels are still among the most widely read of French literature. Guy De Maupassant Net Worth, Age, Bio, Birthday, Height, Facts They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. On his 169th birth anniversary, here's looking at a few interesting facts about the author: When Maupassant was 11 and his brother Herv, 5, his mother, Laure Le Poittevin, risked social disgrace and legally separated from her husband, who was violent towards her. He also introduced him to some of the leading writers of the time, such as mile Zola, Ivan Turgenev, Edmond Goncourt, and Henry James. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). He lived under the care of his mother. All rights reserved. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. However, he was demobilized in 1871. Flaubert characterized it as "a masterpiece that will endure". The stories were under a pseudonym in obscure provincial magazines. Guy de Maupassant went crazy due to parental mistreatment in spite of "writing about it". In the next 10 years he published some 300 short stories, six novels, and three travel books. In the autumn of 1869, he began law studies in Paris. He moved from Normandy to Paris after the war, and after leaving his clerkship in the French Navy he worked for several prominent French newspapers. Guy de Maupassant Birth Anniversary: Interesting Facts About the To support our blog and writers we put affiliate links and advertising on our page. He proved a good scholar indulging in poetry and taking a prominent part in theatricals. This short story was made into an opera named, The Greater Good in 2006. The fact that his brother died at an early age of the same disease suggests that it might have been congenital. His seminal work, La Parure remains one of his most famous short stories. The Necklace The Necklace Summary and Analysis | GradeSaver Fort Comme La Mort - uniport.edu.ng By 1890, the disease had started to cause increasingly strange behavior. He resumed his law studies in Paris. In the autumn of 1869 he began law studies in Paris, which were interrupted by the outbreak of the Franco-German War. By clicking Accept All Cookies, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Use of the CNN name and/or logo on or as part of NEWS18.com does not derogate from the intellectual property rights of Cable News Network in respect of them. He suffered from mental problems and tried to commit suicide by slitting his throat in 1892. He was also romantically involved with a woman named, Josephine Litzelmann. Maupassant also wrote under several pseudonyms such as Joseph Prunier, Guy de Valmont, and Maufrigneuse. Bel-Ami | Introduction & Summary | Britannica Maupassant would go on to develop a fear of death and paranoia of persecution caused by the syphilis he had contracted in his youth. Discover Walks contributors speak from all corners of the world - from Prague to Bangkok, Barcelona to Nairobi. The following year, his novel, Bel Ami was published. Maupassant is often described as the father of the modern short storya literary form that's more condensed and immediate than the novel. Guy de Maupassant was an important French naturalist writer who was most well known for his short stories. Boule de suif (Ball of Fat) is regarded as his best story, while the best known is La Parure (The Necklace). This was until illness struck Maupassant down. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. After a gruesome suicide attempt in 1891 (he tried to cut his throat),de Maupassant spent the last 18 months of his life in a Paris mental home, the celebrated private asylum of Dr. Espirit Blanche. Maupassant was one of a fair number of 19th-century Parisians who disliked the Eiffel Tower. Although the Maupassants were a free-thinking family, Guy received his first education from the church and at age 13 was sent to a small seminary at Yvetot that took both lay and clerical pupils. https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/guy-de-maupassant-4806.php. This was especially the lives of those in the middle and lower classes. Flaubert used to invite Maupassant on lunch on Sundays when staying in Paris. Are you interestedto read this article? Remembering Maupassant | Arts and Entertainment | BBC World Service Naturalism, like Realism, tends to portray characters and settings that could exist in the real world and the plotlines are plausible. CNN name, logo and all associated elements and 2023 Cable News Network LP, LLLP. The Franco-Prussian War broke out soon after his graduation from college in 1870; he enlisted as a volunteer. He has to fight in the Franco-Prussian War. [6] He then obtained from the Tribunal Civil of Rouen by decree dated 9 July 1846 the right to style himself "de Maupassant" instead of "Maupassant", and this was his surname at the birth of his son Guy in 1850.[7]. His work was admired by his contemporaries and imitated by those who came after him. This theme of a working-class person unsuccessfully trying to rise above their station was common in de Maupassant's stories. In 1881, he came out with 'La Maison Tellier', his first collection of short stories. His subsequent short stories include, 'Deux Amis' and Mother Savage'. He is also a novelist and poet. A protg of Gustave Flaubert, Henri Ren Albert Guy de Maupassant, born on August 5, 1850, he is best remembered as the master of the short story, with around 300 tales to his name. This life did not prevent him from making friends among the literary celebrities of his day: Alexandre Dumas, fils had a paternal affection for him; at Aix-les-Bains he met Hippolyte Taine (1828-1893) and became devoted to the philosopher-historian. The story is particularly known for its surprising ending. Hes my disciple and I love him like a son, Flaubert said of Maupassant. Guy de Maupassant - Mature life and works | Britannica Biography: You Need to Know: Agness Underwood. Who is Guy De Maupassant: Guy De Maupassant is a famous Novelist. But even these works had significance; Stephen King's famous novel "The Shining" has been compared to Maupassant's "The Inn.". 4) At the age of 13, Maupassant was placed at a private school which he disliked and got himself expelled from. However, his studies were interrupted by the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Guy-de-Maupassant, New York Review Books - Guy de Maupassant, All Poetry - Biography of Guy de Maupassant, Guy de Maupassant - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). Zola described the young Maupassant as a terrific oarsman able to row fifty miles on the Seine in a single day for pleasure. Maupassant was a passionate lover of the sea and of rivers, which accounts for the setting of much of his fiction and the prevalence in it of nautical imagery. Gustave Flaubert is a good friend of Laure Le Poittevin (Maupassants mother). Gustave Flaubert, a good friend of Maupassants mother noticed Maupassants interest in writing and introduced him to Emile Zola and Henry James. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/guy-de-maupassant-biography-740701. She took custody of Guy and his younger brother, and it was her influence that led her sons to develop an appreciation for literature. Novelist #137442. Book Review: The German Girl by Armando Lucas Correa. --- Please like and follow ManOfLaBook.com ---. This story is one of his most well-known works. In 1880, Flaubert published one of his most famous short stories "Boule du Suif," about a prostitute pressured to provide her services to a Prussian officer. When asked why, he said it was because it is the only place in Paris were one cannot see the structure. .css-m6thd4{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;display:block;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;font-family:Gilroy,Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.2;font-weight:bold;color:#323232;text-transform:capitalize;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-m6thd4:hover{color:link-hover;}}Who Is Dilbert Cartoonist Scott Adams? Maupassant is considered a father of the modern short story. Guy De Maupassant Popularity . [9] From his early education he retained a marked hostility to religion, and to judge from verses composed around this time he deplored the ecclesiastical atmosphere, its ritual and discipline. "Biography of Guy de Maupassant, Father of the Short Story." Guy de Maupassant comes from rich family. Two years saw six new books of short stories: Mademoiselle Fifi (1883), Contes de la bcasse (1883; Tales of the Goose), Clair de lune, Les Soeurs Rondoli (The Rondoli Sisters), Yvette, and Miss Harriet. In 1883 he finished his first novel, Une Vie (translated into English as A Woman's Life), 25,000 copies of which were sold in less than a year. . During this time his only recreation and relaxation was boating on the Seine on Sundays and holidays. On February 17, 1884, his short story titled, La Parure' was published in the French newspaper called, 'Le Gaulois'. His mothers claim that he was born at the Chteau de Miromesnil has been disputed. Famous Birthdays. Biography and associated logos are trademarks of A+E Networksprotected in the US and other countries around the globe. Maupassants story, Boule de suif (Ball of Fat), was not only by far the best of the six. He suffered from Syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease that he contracted in his youth. He would lecture Maupassant on prose style and correct his youthful literary exercises. Also Known As: Henri Ren Albert Guy de Maupassant, siblings: Creig de Maupassant, Herv de Maupassant, Notable Alumni: Lyce Pierre-Corneille, Lyce Henri-IV, education: Lyce Henri-IV, Lyce Pierre-Corneille, Quotes By Guy De Maupassant | His work is characterized by the clarity of its prose and the objective irony of its presentation, as well as its keen re-creation of the physical world. This led him to be expelled in his penultimate year. Maupassant is a modern exemplar of traditional French psychological realism; he portrays his characters as unhappy victims of their greed, desire, or vanity but presents even the most sordid details of their lives without sermonizing. In 1871, he left Normandy and moved to Paris, where he spent ten years as a clerk in the Navy Department. This was the first of his stories that was cantered on the Franco-Prussian War. Guy de Maupassant is considered one of the finest short-story writers of all time and a champion of the realistic approach to writing. NEVEUX "I entered literary life as a meteor, and I shall leave it like a thunderbolt." These words of Maupassant to Jose Maria de Heredia on the occasion of a memorable meeting are, in spite of their morbid solemnity, not an inexact summing up of the brief career during which, for ten years, the writer, by turns undaunted and sorrowful, with the fertility . Author of. Much like Flaubert's paintings, de Maupassant's stories told the plight of the lower classes. All rights reserved. Guy De Maupassant: Biography, Facts & Style | StudySmarter Guy de Maupassant's "Two Friends" takes place in January 1871, toward the end of the Franco-Prussian (or Franco-German) War. His father managed to have him transferred, at his own wish, to the Ministry of Public Instruction in 1879. "Art and the Artist in Babel's" Guy de Maupassant".". The turning point came in April 1880, the month before Flauberts death. In 1880 he published what is considered his first masterpiece, "Boule de Suif", which met with instant and tremendous success. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. One of his famous short stories, "The Necklace", was imitated with a twist by Maugham ("Mr Know-All", "A String of Beads"). Copyright Network18 Media and Investments Ltd 2023. How was the French writer, Guy de Maupassant, influenced by - MyTutor Guy de Maupassant, in full Henry-Ren-Albert-Guy de Maupassant, (born August 5, 1850, Chteau de Miromesnil?, near Dieppe, Francedied July 6, 1893, Paris), French naturalist writer of short stories and novels who is by general agreement the greatest French short-story writer. [20], Leo Tolstoy used Maupassant as the subject for one of his essays on art: The Works of Guy de Maupassant. From his early education, Guy de Maupassant retained a marked hostility to religion. He first gained attention with Boule de Suif (1880; Ball of Fat), probably his finest story. We hope this study guide is particularly useful for teachers and students eager to appreciate the nuances of the story. Literary theorist Kornelije Kvas wrote that along "with Chekhov, Maupassant is the greatest master of the short story in world literature. Guy De Maupassant Biography - Facts, Childhood, Family Life & Achievements Whenever Flaubert was staying in Paris, he used to invite Maupassant to lunch on Sundays, lecture him on prose style, and correct his youthful literary exercises. In fact, he tried to commit suicide by cutting his throat on January 2, 1892 and was committed to the private asylum of Esprit Blanche at Passy, in Paris. This is unfortunately what happened to de Maupassant. His passion of writing is visible from his letter-writing during he serves as soldier. Guy de Maupassant Biography - eNotes.com He was born on August 5, 1850 as Henri Rene Albert Guy de Maupassant and died on July 6, 1893 inPassy, Paris at the age of 42. Guy de Maupassant was born on August 5, 1850, in the Normandy region of France. He published the story in 1880. Flaubert introduced Maupassant to some of the leading writers of the time. He was later admitted into a private mental institute, Esprit Blanche at Passy, in Paris. 5) In junior high school and high-school he was proven to be a good student. Maupassant is considered the father of the modern short story. It's believed de Maupassant was born at the Chteau de Miromesniel, Dieppe on Aug. 5, 1850. He then became a government clerk. In 2007, it was produced at the Edinburgh Festival. Guy de Maupassant - Biography He is not a naturalist like Zola; to him, physiological processes do not constitute the basis of human actions, although the influence of the environment is manifested in his prose.