My Father's Glory
Encyclopedia
My Father's Glory is a 1957 autobiographical novel
by Marcel Pagnol
. Its sequel
is My Mother's Castle. It is the first of four volumes in Pagnol's Souvenirs d'enfance
series. It is also a 1990 film
based on the novel
, and directed
by Yves Robert
.
. His father, Joseph, is a hard-working strongly atheist public school teacher in Marseille. Marcel's Aunt Rose marries the round, jovial, and very theistic and Roman Catholic Uncle Jules. Joseph and Uncle Jules come into conflict over religion.
Over summer break, Joseph and Jules decide to take their families to a house in the country.
Jules decides to educate Joseph in hunting techniques. Marcel wants to come hunting with them, but the two adults don't like the idea; they lie to him that he can come, but leave the house while he is still just waking up. Marcel, aware of their deceit, gets up and follows them stealthily. He observes Jules making a fool out of Joseph over his hunting prowess. This enrages Marcel. But while he is following them he gets lost in the wilderness.
Hearing the hunters later, he follows the sounds to the top of a high cliff. His presence there scares out the legendary birds, the Rock Partridge
s. Joseph shoots two down with his side-by-side loading musket
. Jules does not believe that Joseph has made the kill. Marcel retrieves the birds and holds them by the legs in his outspread arms on the cliff for the sight of the hunters in the valley below. He "lifts his father's glory to the sky", hence the name "My Father's Glory."
Back in the village, the residents are amazed at Joseph's skill. Marcel is very proud of him, but realizes his father's vanity
when Joseph poses for a photograph with the birds. Earlier, Joseph had mocked a colleague who posed with fish, saying that such poses lacked dignity.
Autobiographical novel
An autobiographical novel is a form of novel using autofiction techniques, or the merging of autobiographical and fiction elements. The literary technique is distinguished from an autobiography or memoir by the stipulation of being fiction...
by Marcel Pagnol
Marcel Pagnol
Marcel Pagnol was a French novelist, playwright, and filmmaker. In 1946, he became the first filmmaker elected to the Académie Française.-Biography:...
. Its sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
is My Mother's Castle. It is the first of four volumes in Pagnol's Souvenirs d'enfance
Souvenirs d'enfance
Souvenirs d'enfance is a series of autobiographical novels by French filmmaker and académicien, Marcel Pagnol . Souvenirs d'enfance comprises four volumes covering the years from his birth in 1895 to about 1910, which were spent in Marseille, with family summer holidays in La Treille, about ten...
series. It is also a 1990 film
My Father's Glory (film)
My Father's Glory is a 1990 French film directed by Yves Robert, based on the novel My Father's Glory by Marcel Pagnol...
based on the novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
, and directed
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
by Yves Robert
Yves Robert
Yves Robert was a French actor, screenwriter, director, and producer.Born in Saumur, Maine-et-Loire, in his teens Robert went to Paris to pursue a career in acting, starting with unpaid parts on stage in the city's various theatre workshops. To support himself, he worked at a variety of jobs...
.
Plot summary
Young Marcel was born in the country but raised in MarseilleMarseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
. His father, Joseph, is a hard-working strongly atheist public school teacher in Marseille. Marcel's Aunt Rose marries the round, jovial, and very theistic and Roman Catholic Uncle Jules. Joseph and Uncle Jules come into conflict over religion.
Over summer break, Joseph and Jules decide to take their families to a house in the country.
Jules decides to educate Joseph in hunting techniques. Marcel wants to come hunting with them, but the two adults don't like the idea; they lie to him that he can come, but leave the house while he is still just waking up. Marcel, aware of their deceit, gets up and follows them stealthily. He observes Jules making a fool out of Joseph over his hunting prowess. This enrages Marcel. But while he is following them he gets lost in the wilderness.
Hearing the hunters later, he follows the sounds to the top of a high cliff. His presence there scares out the legendary birds, the Rock Partridge
Rock Partridge
The Rock Partridge, Alectoris graeca, is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds.This partridge has its main range in southwestern Asia and southeastern Europe, and is closely related and very similar to its eastern equivalent, the Chukar...
s. Joseph shoots two down with his side-by-side loading musket
Musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
. Jules does not believe that Joseph has made the kill. Marcel retrieves the birds and holds them by the legs in his outspread arms on the cliff for the sight of the hunters in the valley below. He "lifts his father's glory to the sky", hence the name "My Father's Glory."
Back in the village, the residents are amazed at Joseph's skill. Marcel is very proud of him, but realizes his father's vanity
Vanity
In conventional parlance, vanity is the excessive belief in one's own abilities or attractiveness to others. Prior to the 14th century it did not have such narcissistic undertones, and merely meant futility. The related term vainglory is now often seen as an archaic synonym for vanity, but...
when Joseph poses for a photograph with the birds. Earlier, Joseph had mocked a colleague who posed with fish, saying that such poses lacked dignity.