Pascal Lainé
Encyclopedia
Pascal Lainé is a French writer born in 1942 in Anet
(Eure-et-Loir
).
He studied philosophy at l'École normale supérieure de Saint-Cloud
and began his career as a teacher first at the Lycée technique de Saint-Quentin and later at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand
in Paris. He then became a professor in 1974 at the Institut universitaire de technologie in Villetaneuse. He currently serves as an administrator at the Société des auteurs et compositeurs dramatiques (SACD).
Awarded both the Prix Médicis
(1971 for l'Irrévolution) and the Goncourt
(1974 for La Dentellière
), Pascal Lainé has published over twenty novels and has written for television, theater and film.
Lainé discovered Dumas
and Hugo
as he recovered from childhood illnesses and he aspired to that kind of voluminous writing. But he focused on philosophy and history in school, becoming an avid student of Kant
, Merleau-Ponty and Heidegger. He was also drawn to Marxism (both by conviction and from a desire to rile his parents) and he chose Russian as his second foreign language, permitting him to read Chekhov
and Dostoyevsky in the original.
With Rimbaud, he discovered the "fireworks" of poetry, and in Mallarmé
he discovered the pleasure of deciphering a text and studying its structure. He is also fascinated by Witold Gombrowicz
: "I felt with this joker, this aristocratic Rabelais an instant kinship. He taught me that a writer gives up his homeland and is always a foreigner wherever he finds himself."
Anet
Anet is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France. It is situated between the rivers Eure and Vègre, northeast of Dreux by rail....
(Eure-et-Loir
Eure-et-Loir
Eure-et-Loir is a French department, named after the Eure and Loir rivers.-History:Eure-et-Loir is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790 pursuant to the Act of December 22, 1789...
).
He studied philosophy at l'École normale supérieure de Saint-Cloud
École normale supérieure lettres et sciences humaines
The École Normale Supérieure Lettres et Sciences Humaines, or ENS LSH, was an elite French grande école specialising in the arts, humanities and social sciences...
and began his career as a teacher first at the Lycée technique de Saint-Quentin and later at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand
Lycée Louis-le-Grand
The Lycée Louis-le-Grand is a public secondary school located in Paris, widely regarded as one of the most rigorous in France. Formerly known as the Collège de Clermont, it was named in king Louis XIV of France's honor after he visited the school and offered his patronage.It offers both a...
in Paris. He then became a professor in 1974 at the Institut universitaire de technologie in Villetaneuse. He currently serves as an administrator at the Société des auteurs et compositeurs dramatiques (SACD).
Awarded both the Prix Médicis
Prix Médicis
The Prix Médicis is a French literary award given each year in November. It was founded in 1958 by Gala Barbisan and Jean-Pierre Giraudoux. It is awarded to an author whose "fame does not yet match his talent."...
(1971 for l'Irrévolution) and the Goncourt
Goncourt
Goncourt is a commune in the Haute-Marne department in north-eastern France....
(1974 for La Dentellière
La Dentellière
La Dentellière , is a French novel by Pascal Lainé. It was awarded the Prix Goncourt in 1974...
), Pascal Lainé has published over twenty novels and has written for television, theater and film.
Lainé discovered Dumas
Alexandre Dumas, père
Alexandre Dumas, , born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie was a French writer, best known for his historical novels of high adventure which have made him one of the most widely read French authors in the world...
and Hugo
Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....
as he recovered from childhood illnesses and he aspired to that kind of voluminous writing. But he focused on philosophy and history in school, becoming an avid student of Kant
KANT
KANT is a computer algebra system for mathematicians interested in algebraic number theory, performing sophisticated computations in algebraic number fields, in global function fields, and in local fields. KASH is the associated command line interface...
, Merleau-Ponty and Heidegger. He was also drawn to Marxism (both by conviction and from a desire to rile his parents) and he chose Russian as his second foreign language, permitting him to read Chekhov
Anton Chekhov
Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was a Russian physician, dramatist and author who is considered to be among the greatest writers of short stories in history. His career as a dramatist produced four classics and his best short stories are held in high esteem by writers and critics...
and Dostoyevsky in the original.
With Rimbaud, he discovered the "fireworks" of poetry, and in Mallarmé
Stéphane Mallarmé
Stéphane Mallarmé , whose real name was Étienne Mallarmé, was a French poet and critic. He was a major French symbolist poet, and his work anticipated and inspired several revolutionary artistic schools of the early 20th century, such as Dadaism, Surrealism, and Futurism.-Biography:Stéphane...
he discovered the pleasure of deciphering a text and studying its structure. He is also fascinated by Witold Gombrowicz
Witold Gombrowicz
Witold Marian Gombrowicz was a Polish novelist and dramatist. His works are characterized by deep psychological analysis, a certain sense of paradox and an absurd, anti-nationalist flavor...
: "I felt with this joker, this aristocratic Rabelais an instant kinship. He taught me that a writer gives up his homeland and is always a foreigner wherever he finds himself."