Louise Bovie
Encyclopedia
Louise Bovie, full name Josine Natalie Louise Bovie (1810 – 11 January 1870), was a Belgian writer. She published a novella
(un petit roman) called "La Perdrix" (The Partridge) under the pen name
Marie Sweerts. She also wrote poetry and short stories, and contributed to the monthly literary journal Revue de belgique, where she was eulogized as having "a distinguished spirit."
Bovie was the elder sister of the painter and arts patron Virginie Bovie
, with whom she toured Italy in 1855. Neither of the sisters ever married, and Louise lived with Virginie at her home on the rue du Trône for many years. A third sister, Hortence, had married but was soon widowed. Louise Bovie died at Ixelles and is interred at Dilbeek
.
, with some Romantic
influence in the choice and treatment of the subject matter, which included unjust imprisonment, revenge, suicide, incest, and spiritual trials.
A critic for The Athenaeum
, writing in 1870, the year the Contes were published, remarked that Belgian writers of the day suffered from a lack of domestic interest, as Francophone
readers preferred literature from France: "what keeps down authors is the coldness of the public, and the silence or hostility of criticism. This is also the reason why authors often go on to the end of their lives without curing themselves of certain faults which no one has been at the pains to draw their attention to." He adduces Bovie as an example, noting the "strong powers" evidenced by her writing, as well as a "warm sensibility" that in the story "Raphaël", about the incestuous desire between a young painter and his mother, became excessive. As a whole, however, the collection was judged to be marred by "sad inequalities, failures and exaggerations." The review in what might be considered her "home" publication, Le revue belgique, thought the collection earned her a worthy place among Belgian short-story writers, but was overall tepid even in its praise.
Novella
A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative usually longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000...
(un petit roman) called "La Perdrix" (The Partridge) under the pen name
Pen name
A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
Marie Sweerts. She also wrote poetry and short stories, and contributed to the monthly literary journal Revue de belgique, where she was eulogized as having "a distinguished spirit."
Bovie was the elder sister of the painter and arts patron Virginie Bovie
Virginie Bovie
Virginie Bovie , full name Joséphine-Louise-Virginie Bovie, was a Belgian painter and arts patron. In 1870, she was described as "well known", but she has fallen into neglect in the 20th and early 21st centuries and only seven of her more than 200 works have been located.-Life and career:Bovie was...
, with whom she toured Italy in 1855. Neither of the sisters ever married, and Louise lived with Virginie at her home on the rue du Trône for many years. A third sister, Hortence, had married but was soon widowed. Louise Bovie died at Ixelles and is interred at Dilbeek
Dilbeek
Dilbeek is a municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. The municipality comprises the villages of Dilbeek proper, Groot-Bijgaarden, Itterbeek , Schepdaal , Sint-Martens-Bodegem, and Sint-Ulriks-Kapelle...
.
Contes posthumes
Contes posthumes, a 339-page collection of Bovie's stories published posthumously within a year of her death, included '"La Perdrix'" along with "Raphaël," "L'éducation particulière," "Le missionaire," and "Souvenirs d'un caillou." They were mostly realisticLiterary realism
Literary realism most often refers to the trend, beginning with certain works of nineteenth-century French literature and extending to late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century authors in various countries, towards depictions of contemporary life and society "as they were." In the spirit of...
, with some Romantic
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
influence in the choice and treatment of the subject matter, which included unjust imprisonment, revenge, suicide, incest, and spiritual trials.
A critic for The Athenaeum
Athenaeum (magazine)
The Athenaeum was a literary magazine published in London from 1828 to 1921. It had a reputation for publishing the very best writers of the age....
, writing in 1870, the year the Contes were published, remarked that Belgian writers of the day suffered from a lack of domestic interest, as Francophone
Francophone
The adjective francophone means French-speaking, typically as primary language, whether referring to individuals, groups, or places. Often, the word is used as a noun to describe a natively French-speaking person....
readers preferred literature from France: "what keeps down authors is the coldness of the public, and the silence or hostility of criticism. This is also the reason why authors often go on to the end of their lives without curing themselves of certain faults which no one has been at the pains to draw their attention to." He adduces Bovie as an example, noting the "strong powers" evidenced by her writing, as well as a "warm sensibility" that in the story "Raphaël", about the incestuous desire between a young painter and his mother, became excessive. As a whole, however, the collection was judged to be marred by "sad inequalities, failures and exaggerations." The review in what might be considered her "home" publication, Le revue belgique, thought the collection earned her a worthy place among Belgian short-story writers, but was overall tepid even in its praise.
External links
- "L'Éducation particulière," a story by Louise Bovie (in French) published posthumously, Revue de belgique (April 1870), pp. 260–287 online.
- Bibliographical information on Contes posthumes