Bernard Werber
Encyclopedia
Bernard Werber is a French science fiction writer active since the 1990s.
s, notably the saga
, the science fiction of the inter-war years, and tracts of philosophy
.
In most of his novels, Bernard Werber uses the same form of construction, alternating informative articles in the style of an encyclopaedia and normal prose
. The articles define or enlarge upon the ideas in the main text.
Also there are connections between his novels. One finds characters like Edmond Wells both in the trilogy Les Fourmis
(The Ants) and in the L'Empire des anges (The Empire of the Angels). Also there are recurrent themes like l'Arbre des Possibles (The Tree of Possibilities) of Isidore Katzenberg, or even the novel Nous les dieux, which treats the ideas first presented in the short story L’École des jeunes dieux (The School of the Young Gods).
In the eight novels, Werber describes various authors. We are presented with an author who, at the end of his life, writes a last book which makes sense of his previous work. Thus in having a certain similarity of characters, themes and styles, one can conclude that he is trying to give a certain coherence
to the ideas that he is developing.
.
, released in 2007, Werber has also produced a short film, La Reine De Nacre ("The Mother-of-pearl Queen"), and written a play, Nos Amis Les Humains ("Our Friends, the Humans").
ism in his books is extensive. Animals such as the dolphin
s, rat
s and ant
s are intelligent animals, or at least are presented as such.
Also he returns frequently to the symbolism of figures that, according to the manner in which they are explained, reflect the stage of the evolution of the soul.
Bernard Werber is a member of INREES, Institute for Research on Extraordinary Experiences, an association which exists to promote the acknowledgement of extraordinary or unusual experiences among the clientele of medical health professionals, doctors and caregivers.
This approach is reflected in the contents of his novels, like for example the Thanatonautes
, which proposes a spiritualist version of near death experiences and afterlife
, or even L'Empire des Anges through to Le Mystère des Dieux which describe some kind of scientific mythology from souls to God through angels, or even Nos Amis Les Terriens
which talks of alien abductions. Science, the paranormal
and spirituality
influence several of his novels.
Novels
His style of writing mixes different literary genreGenre
Genre , Greek: genos, γένος) is the term for any category of literature or other forms of art or culture, e.g. music, and in general, any type of discourse, whether written or spoken, audial or visual, based on some set of stylistic criteria. Genres are formed by conventions that change over time...
s, notably the saga
Saga
Sagas, are stories in Old Norse about ancient Scandinavian and Germanic history, etc.Saga may also refer to:Business*Saga DAB radio, a British radio station*Saga Airlines, a Turkish airline*Saga Falabella, a department store chain in Peru...
, the science fiction of the inter-war years, and tracts of philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
.
In most of his novels, Bernard Werber uses the same form of construction, alternating informative articles in the style of an encyclopaedia and normal prose
Prose
Prose is the most typical form of written language, applying ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speech rather than rhythmic structure...
. The articles define or enlarge upon the ideas in the main text.
Also there are connections between his novels. One finds characters like Edmond Wells both in the trilogy Les Fourmis
Les Fourmis
Les Fourmis is a 1991 science fiction novel by French writer Bernard Werber. It was released in English as Empire of the Ants. The book sold more than two million copies and has been translated into more than 30 languages...
(The Ants) and in the L'Empire des anges (The Empire of the Angels). Also there are recurrent themes like l'Arbre des Possibles (The Tree of Possibilities) of Isidore Katzenberg, or even the novel Nous les dieux, which treats the ideas first presented in the short story L’École des jeunes dieux (The School of the Young Gods).
In the eight novels, Werber describes various authors. We are presented with an author who, at the end of his life, writes a last book which makes sense of his previous work. Thus in having a certain similarity of characters, themes and styles, one can conclude that he is trying to give a certain coherence
Coherence (linguistics)
Coherence in linguistics is what makes a text semantically meaningful.It is especially dealt with in text linguistics. Coherence is achieved through syntactical features such as the use of deictic, anaphoric and cataphoric elements or a logical tense structure, as well as presuppositions and...
to the ideas that he is developing.
The 3 October book launch
Several years ago Bernard Werber decided to launch a book each year on 3 October, after the end of the summer holidays. The aim is to give the public something other than the prix GoncourtPrix Goncourt
The Prix Goncourt is a prize in French literature, given by the académie Goncourt to the author of "the best and most imaginative prose work of the year"...
.
Stage and screen
In addition to the film Nos Amis Les TerriensNos Amis Les Terriens
Nos Amis Les Terriens is a French science-fiction movie released in April 2007 and produced by Claude Lelouch. It has been adapted from the play written by Bernard Werber Nos Amis Les Humains ....
, released in 2007, Werber has also produced a short film, La Reine De Nacre ("The Mother-of-pearl Queen"), and written a play, Nos Amis Les Humains ("Our Friends, the Humans").
Symbolism
The symbolSymbol
A symbol is something which represents an idea, a physical entity or a process but is distinct from it. The purpose of a symbol is to communicate meaning. For example, a red octagon may be a symbol for "STOP". On a map, a picture of a tent might represent a campsite. Numerals are symbols for...
ism in his books is extensive. Animals such as the dolphin
Dolphin
Dolphins are marine mammals that are closely related to whales and porpoises. There are almost forty species of dolphin in 17 genera. They vary in size from and , up to and . They are found worldwide, mostly in the shallower seas of the continental shelves, and are carnivores, mostly eating...
s, rat
Rat
Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus...
s and ant
Ant
Ants are social insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from wasp-like ancestors in the mid-Cretaceous period between 110 and 130 million years ago and diversified after the rise of flowering plants. More than...
s are intelligent animals, or at least are presented as such.
Also he returns frequently to the symbolism of figures that, according to the manner in which they are explained, reflect the stage of the evolution of the soul.
Werber's philosophy
None of his works are intended to prove or support any particular scientific theory, but to present in a work of fiction various little-known discoveries to the public at large. L'Ultime secret (The Ultimate Secret) is a good illustration of this. It contains the following sentence: « Ils vont aller de surprise en surprise jusqu'à l'extraordinaire dénouement basé sur une découverte scientifique peu connue mais réelle. » (They are going to go from surprise to surprise eventually leading to the extraordinary conclusion, which is based on a little known but nevertheless real scientific discovery. )Bernard Werber is a member of INREES, Institute for Research on Extraordinary Experiences, an association which exists to promote the acknowledgement of extraordinary or unusual experiences among the clientele of medical health professionals, doctors and caregivers.
This approach is reflected in the contents of his novels, like for example the Thanatonautes
Les Thanatonautes
Les Thanatonautes is a 1994 science fiction novel by French writer Bernard Werber. The book deals with the search for afterlife.Les Thanatonautes is first in a five-part series. Together with L'Empire des anges and Nous les dieux , it makes up the Les Thanatonautes trilogy...
, which proposes a spiritualist version of near death experiences and afterlife
Afterlife
The afterlife is the belief that a part of, or essence of, or soul of an individual, which carries with it and confers personal identity, survives the death of the body of this world and this lifetime, by natural or supernatural means, in contrast to the belief in eternal...
, or even L'Empire des Anges through to Le Mystère des Dieux which describe some kind of scientific mythology from souls to God through angels, or even Nos Amis Les Terriens
Nos Amis Les Terriens
Nos Amis Les Terriens is a French science-fiction movie released in April 2007 and produced by Claude Lelouch. It has been adapted from the play written by Bernard Werber Nos Amis Les Humains ....
which talks of alien abductions. Science, the paranormal
Paranormal
Paranormal is a general term that designates experiences that lie outside "the range of normal experience or scientific explanation" or that indicates phenomena understood to be outside of science's current ability to explain or measure...
and spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
influence several of his novels.
Les Fourmis trilogy
- Les Fourmis, Prix des lecteurs de Science et Avenir, 1991, ISBN 2-226-05257-7. (lit. The Ants, translated into English as Empire of the Ants). This book sold more than two million copies and has been translated into more than 30 languages.
- Le Jour des FourmisLe Jour Des FourmisLe Jour Des Fourmis is a 1992 science fiction novel byFrench writer Bernard Werber.Le Jour Des Fourmis is the second part of a trilogy, preceded by Les Fourmis and followed by La Révolution des fourmis .- Plot summary :The Day of the Ants again, just as its predecessor has several connected...
, 1992, ISBN 2-226-06118-5 (lit. The Day of the Ants) - La Révolution des Fourmis, 1996, ISBN 2-226-08636-6 (lit. The Revolution of the Ants)
Les Thanatonautes trilogy
- Les ThanatonautesLes ThanatonautesLes Thanatonautes is a 1994 science fiction novel by French writer Bernard Werber. The book deals with the search for afterlife.Les Thanatonautes is first in a five-part series. Together with L'Empire des anges and Nous les dieux , it makes up the Les Thanatonautes trilogy...
, 1994, ISBN 2-226-06758-2 (lit. The Thanatonauts) - L'Empire des Anges, 2000, ISBN 2-226-11526-9 (lit. The Empire of the Angels)
- Nous, les Dieux, 2004, ISBN 2-226-15498-1 (lit. Us, Gods)
- Le Souffle des Dieux, 2005, ISBN 2-226-16807-9 (lit. The Breath of the Gods)
- Le Mystère des Dieux 2007, ISBN 2-226-17979-8 (lit. The Mystery of the Gods)
Le Père De Nos Pères trilogy
- Le père de nos pèresLe père de nos pèresLe Père de nos pères is a novel, by Bernard Werber, released in 1998. It is the first volume in the trilogy of Lucrèce et Isidore, named for the two main characters....
, 1998, ISBN 2-226-10562-X (lit. The Father of our Fathers) - L'ultime secret, 2001, ISBN 2-226-12740-2 (lit. The Ultimate Secret)
- Le rire du Cyclope, 2010, ISBN 2-226-21529-8 (lit. The Laughter of the Cyclops)
Other novels
- Le papillon des étoiles, 2006, ISBN 2-226-17349-8 (lit. The Butterfly of the Stars)
- Le miroir de CassandreLe miroir de CassandreLe miroir de Cassandre is a book written by Bernard Werber.The themes of the book are: future-seeing, freedom, exclusion, the future of humanity and autism...
, 2009, ISBN 2-226-19402-9 (lit. The Mirror of Cassandra)
Experimental books
- L'Encyclopédie du savoir relatif et absoluL'Encyclopédie Du Savoir Relatif Et AbsoluL'Encyclopédie du Savoir Relatif et Absolu or Livre secret des fourmis.English: The Encyclopedia of Absolute and Relative KnowledgeAlso known as L'ESRA by readers, this book by Bernard Werber is actually a dictionary of things ranging from bread recipes to the explanation of the number "Zero".The...
, 1993, ISBN 2-226-06583-0 (lit. The Encyclopedia of Relative and Absolute Knowledge) - Le Livre du Voyage, 1997, ISBN 2-226-09445-8 (lit. The Book of Travel)
- Le Livre secret des Fourmis, 2002 (lit. The Secret Book of the Ants)
- Nos amis, les humains, 2003 (lit. Our Friends, the Humans)
Short stories
- L'Arbre des possibles, 2002, ISBN 2-226-13459-X (lit. The Tree of Possibles)
- Paradis sur mesure, 2008, EAN13 9782226188502 (lit. Custom Paradise(s)*) – (*:Probably in the sense of "A paradise for everyone" (hence, many ones), as in French, Paradise is "Paradis", it is therefore impossible to say if it is singular or plural; but the fact that the book is composed of multiple stories points towards the use of the plural meaning.)
Comics
- ExitExit (comic)Exit is a French graphic novel about suicide, written by Bernard Werber, drawn by Alain Mounier and published by Albin Michel.- Synopsis :Amandine is a journalist, working for a videogame magazine. One day, she gets fired, finds her boyfriend with another woman, and contemplates suicide...
- Exit Tome 1, 1999, ISBN 2-226-10451-8
- Le Deuxième Cercle, 2000, ISBN 2-226-11474-2 (lit. The Second Circle)
- Jusqu'au dernier souffle, 2002 (lit. Until the Last Breath)
- Les Enfants D'Ève, May 2005 (lit. The Children of Eve)
Films
- La Reine de nacre (short, 15'), 2001 (lit. The Mother-of-pearl Queen)
- Les Humains (short, 9'), 2003 (lit. The Humans)
- Nos Amis Les TerriensNos Amis Les TerriensNos Amis Les Terriens is a French science-fiction movie released in April 2007 and produced by Claude Lelouch. It has been adapted from the play written by Bernard Werber Nos Amis Les Humains ....
(full length), produced by Claude Lelouch, 2007 (lit. Our Friends, the Earthlings)
Theatre
- Nos amis, les humains, 2003, ISBN 2-226-13793-9, produced in 2004 by Jean-Christophe Barc with Audrey DanaAudrey DanaAudrey Dana is a French actress. She studied drama in Orléans and Paris. After two years in New York, she came back to France where she acted in various plays, especially in Nos amis, les humains by Bernard Werber. She was also cast in the movie adaptation Nos amis les Terriens, and Roman de Gare...
and Jean-Christophe Barc