Les Soirées de Médan
Encyclopedia
Les Soirées de Médan is a collection of six short stories by six different writers associated with Naturalism
, first published in 1880. All the stories concern the Franco-Prussian War
. The contents of the book are as follows:
The collection took its title from Zola's house at Médan, near Paris
, where the writers used to meet for literary dinners. The authors were often referred to collectively as the "Médan group". The aim of the collection was to promote the ideals of Naturalism, by treating the events of the Franco-Prussian War in a realistic and often unheroic way, in contrast to officially approved patriotic views of the war.
By far the most famous story in the collection is Boule de Suif
, which immediately launched the career of the young Guy de Maupassant
.
Zola's story became the basis for an opera of the same name
by Alfred Bruneau
.
Naturalism (literature)
Naturalism was a literary movement taking place from the 1880s to 1940s that used detailed realism to suggest that social conditions, heredity, and environment had inescapable force in shaping human character...
, first published in 1880. All the stories concern the Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
. The contents of the book are as follows:
- L'Attaque du moulin ("The Attack on the Mill") by Émile ZolaÉmile ZolaÉmile François Zola was a French writer, the most important exemplar of the literary school of naturalism and an important contributor to the development of theatrical naturalism...
- Boule de SuifBoule de SuifBoule de Suif is a short story by the late-19th century French writer Guy de Maupassant. It is arguably his most famous short story, and is the title story for his collection on the Franco-Prussian War, entitled "Boule de Suif et Autres Contes de la Guerre"...
("Ball of Tallow") by Guy de MaupassantGuy de MaupassantHenri René Albert Guy de Maupassant was a popular 19th-century French writer, considered one of the fathers of the modern short story and one of the form's finest exponents.... - Sac au dos ("Backpack") by Joris-Karl HuysmansJoris-Karl HuysmansCharles-Marie-Georges Huysmans was a French novelist who published his works as Joris-Karl Huysmans . He is most famous for the novel À rebours...
- La Saignée ("Bloodshed") by Henri Céard
- L'Affaire du Grand 7 ("The Affair of the Great 7") by Léon Hennique
- Après la bataille ("After the Battle") by Paul AlexisPaul AlexisPaul Alexis was a French novelist, dramatist, and journalist. He is best remembered today as the friend and biographer of Émile Zola.-Life:...
The collection took its title from Zola's house at Médan, near Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, where the writers used to meet for literary dinners. The authors were often referred to collectively as the "Médan group". The aim of the collection was to promote the ideals of Naturalism, by treating the events of the Franco-Prussian War in a realistic and often unheroic way, in contrast to officially approved patriotic views of the war.
By far the most famous story in the collection is Boule de Suif
Boule de Suif
Boule de Suif is a short story by the late-19th century French writer Guy de Maupassant. It is arguably his most famous short story, and is the title story for his collection on the Franco-Prussian War, entitled "Boule de Suif et Autres Contes de la Guerre"...
, which immediately launched the career of the young Guy de Maupassant
Guy de Maupassant
Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant was a popular 19th-century French writer, considered one of the fathers of the modern short story and one of the form's finest exponents....
.
Zola's story became the basis for an opera of the same name
L'attaque du moulin
L'attaque du moulin is an opera in four acts by the French composer Alfred Bruneau. The libretto, by Louis Gallet, is based on a short story by Emile Zola about the Franco-Prussian War which was included in the collection Les soirées de Médan...
by Alfred Bruneau
Alfred Bruneau
Louis-Charles-Bonaventure-Alfred Bruneau was a French composer who played a key role in the introduction of realism in French opera....
.
Source
- Maupassant: Oeuvres de Maupassant, tome 1 : Contes et nouvelles, romans (Robert Laffont, 1988)