The Pataphysician’s Library: An Exploration of Alfred Jarry’s ‘Livres pairs’ - Hardcover

Fisher, Ben

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0853239169 ISBN 13: 9780853239161

Publisher: Liverpool University Press, 2000

Synopsis

The Pataphysician's Library is a study of aspects of 1890s French literature, with specific reference to the traditions of Symbolism and Decadence. Its main focus is Alfred Jarry, who has proved, perhaps surprisingly, to be one of the more durable fin-de-siecle authors. The originality of this study lies in its use of the enigmatic list of books termed the livres pairs, which appears in Jarry's 1898 novel Gestes et Opinions du docteur Faustroll, pataphysicien, his best-known prose work. The greatest interest of the livres pairs lies in a group of works by Jarry's friends and contemporaries, primarily Leon Bloy, Georges Darien, Gustave Kahn, Catulle Mendes, Josephin Madan, Rachilde, and Henri de Regnier. Several of these authors feature as the lords of islands visited by the pataphysician Dr Faustroll in his curious voyage around Paris. In conjunction with Jarry's own works, the contemporary livres pairs serve to illustrate the vibrant and experimental atmosphere in which these authors worked.

About this title

Synopsis:

This work is a study of aspects of 1890s French literature, with specific reference to the traditions of symbolism and decadence. Its main focus is Alfred Jarry, who has proved to be one of the more durable fin de siecle authors. This study uses the enigmatic list of books termed the "Livres pairs", which appears in Jarry's 1898 novel "Gestes et Opinions du Docteur Faustroll Pataphysicien", his best-known prose work. While some texts are very well known, and a few very obscure, the greatest interest of the "Livres pairs" lies in a group of works by Jarry's friends and contemporaries, primarily Leon Bloy, Georges Darien, Gustave Kahn and Catulle Mendes. In conjunction with Jarry's own works, the contemporary "Livres pairs" serve to illustrate the vibrant and experimental atmosphere in which theses authors worked, which is not as well recognized as it might be in modern criticism. Examination of Jarry's reading also helps to relate Jarry's own work more closely to contemporary trends than has often been the case in the past.

About the Author:

Ben Fisher was Head of French at Bangor University.

About this edition

• Publisher: Liverpool University Press
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0853239169
• ISBN 13: 9780853239161
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 256