1nL IkLNCn LI1LkA1UkL I1S IAMCUS WkI1LkS GkLA1 MAS1LkILCLS

Irench ||terature
WrlLLen ln Lhe lrench language parLlcularly by
clLlzens of lrance
lrance lLself ranks flrsL ln Lhe llsL of nobel rlzes ln
llLeraLure by counLry
lrench language ls a romance dlalecL derlved from
vulgar LaLln
eglnnlng ln Lhe 11Lh cenLury llLeraLure wrlLLen ln
medleval lrench was one of Lhe oldesL vernacular
(nonLaLln) llLeraLures ln wesLern Lurope
lrench llLeraLure came Lo domlnaLe Luropean leLLers
ln Lhe 17Lh cenLury
n Lhe 18Lh cenLury lrench became Lhe llLerary
lloqoo ftooco and dlplomaLlc language of wesLern
Lurope

Iamous Irench Wr|ters

1 nonor de 8a|zac 17991830
lrench novellsL and playwrlghL
one of hls mosL famous works La Comd|e
numa|ne was a commenLary on all aspecLs
of llfe a collecLlon of all Lhe works LhaL he
penned under hls own name
consldered by many llLerary crlLlcs as one of
Lhe foundlng faLhers of reallsm

Samue| 8eckett 19061989
acLually rlsh however he dld hls wrlLlng
prlmarlly ln lrench
consldered Lhe lasL greaL modernlsL and
some would argue LhaL he was Lhe flrsL
posLmodernlsL
perhaps besL known for Lhe LheaLre of Lhe
absurd and ln parLlcular hls play Ln
attendant Godot (WalLlng for CodoL)

3 A|bert Camus 19131960
lgerlan born auLhor who won Lhe nobel
rlze for LlLeraLure ln 1937
flrsL frlcan born auLhor Lo do so and he
was Lhe second youngesL wrlLer Lo do so ln
llLerary hlsLory
besL known for Lwo novels of Lhe absurd
LLtranger (1he SLranger) and Le Mythe de
S|syphe
e was perhaps besL known as a
phllosopher and hls works cerLalnly
reflecLed hls commenLary on llfe aL Lhe
Llme

I|ctor nugo 18021883
would descrlbe hlmself flrsL as a
humanlLarlan who used llLeraLure as a
means Lo descrlbe Lhe human condlLlons
and Lhe ln[usLlces of socleLy
hls Lwo mosL famous works Les M|srab|es
(1he Mlserables) and NotreDame de ar|s
(referred Lo by Lhe popular LlLle 1he
unchback of noLre uame)

S A|exandre Dumas pere 18021870
consldered Lhe mosL wldely read lrench
auLhor ln hlsLory
known for hlsLorlcal novels LhaL chronlcle
Lhe wlld advenLures of hls characLers
was prollflc ln wrlLlng and many of hls Lales
are reLold Loday 1he 1hree MuskeLeers
1he CounL of MonLecrlsLo 1he Man ln Lhe
ron Mask (Lhe lasL ln a serles of sLorles
from 1he vlcomLe de ragelonne) 1he
nuLcracker (made famous by 1chalkovskys
verslon as a balleL)

Gustave I|aubert 18211880
hls flrsL publlshed novel Madame 8ovary was
perhaps hls mosL well known work L was
orlglnally publlshed as a serlallzed novel and
Lhe lrench governmenL consequenLly broughL a
sulL agalnsL llauberL for lmmorallLy
he ls also well known for hls very close and
probably amorous relaLlonshlp wlLh Ceorge
Sand

u|es Ierne 18281903
noLable because he ls one of Lhe flrsL auLhors Lo
wrlLe abouL sclence flcLlon
ln facL by many llLerary crlLlcs he ls consldered
one of Lhe foundlng faLhers of Lhe genre
wroLe many novels buL a few of hls mosL
noLable are 1wenty 1housand Leagues Under
the Sea ourney to the Center of the Larth and
Around the Wor|d |n 80 Days

8 8|a|se asca| June 19, 1623 August 19, 1662
hls earllesL work was ln Lhe naLural and applled
sclences
also wroLe ln defense of Lhe sclenLlflc meLhod
hls Lwo mosL famous works daLe from Lhls
perlod Lhe Lettres prov|nc|a|s (1he rovlnclal
LeLLers) and Lhe enses Lhe former seL ln Lhe
confllcL beLween !ansenlsLs and !esulLs

9 Irano|s de La kochefoucau|d 15 September 1613
17 March 1680
was a noLed lrench auLhor of maxlms and
memolrs
consldered an exemplar of Lhe accompllshed
17LhCenLury nobleman
unLll 1630 he bore Lhe LlLle of 9tloce Je
Motcllloc
hls llLerary work conslsLs of Lhree parLs hls
Memo|rs Lhe Max|mes and hls leLLers

10 eanau| Sartre 21 June 1905 15 April 1980
was a lrench exlsLenLlallsL phllosopher
playwrlghL novellsL screenwrlLer pollLlcal
acLlvlsL blographer and llLerary crlLlc
one of Lhe leadlng flgures ln 20Lh cenLury
lrench phllosophy exlsLenLlallsm and Marxlsm
also noLed for hls long polyamorous relaLlonshlp
wlLh Lhe femlnlsL auLhor and soclal LheorlsL
Slmone de eauvolr
was awarded Lhe 1964 nobel rlze ln LlLeraLure
buL refused Lhe honor

11 Ldmond kostand 1 prll 1868 2 uecember 1918
was a lrench poeL and dramaLlsL
assoclaLed wlLh neoromanLlclsm and ls besL
known for hls play Cyrano de 8ergerac
hls romanLlc plays provlded an alLernaLlve Lo Lhe
naLurallsLlc LheaLre popular durlng Lhe laLe
nlneLeenLh cenLury
anoLher of hls works Les komanesques was
adapLed Lo Lhe muslcal comedy @e
lootostlcks

1 ean8apt|ste oque||n January 15, 1622
February 17, 1673
known by hls sLage name Mollere
was a lrench playwrlghL and acLor who ls
consldered Lo be one of Lhe greaLesL masLers of
comedy ln WesLern llLeraLure
among hls besLknown works are Le
MlsanLhrope (1he MlsanLhrope) LLcole des
femmes (1he School for Wlves) 1arLuffe ou
LmposLeur (1arLuffe or Lhe ypocrlLe) Lvare
ou LLcole du mensonge (1he Mlser) Le Malade
lmaglnalre (1he maglnary nvalld) and Le
ourgeols CenLllhomme (1he ourgeols
CenLleman)

13 Lm||e 2o|a 2 prll 1840 29 SepLember 1902
Lhe mosL lmporLanL exemplar of Lhe llLerary
school of naLurallsm
lmporLanL conLrlbuLor Lo Lhe developmenL of
LheaLrlcal naLurallsm
was a ma[or flgure ln Lhe pollLlcal llberallzaLlon
of lrance and ln Lhe exoneraLlon of Lhe falsely
accused and convlcLed army offlcer lfred
ureyfus whlch ls encapsulaLed ln Lhe renowned
newspaper headllne ccose

1 Io|ta|re 21 november 1694 30 May 1778
lranolsMarle roueL beLLer known by Lhe pen
name volLalre
famous for hls wlL and for hls advocacy of clvll
llberLles lncludlng freedom of rellglon and free
Lrade
was an ouLspoken supporLer of soclal reform
desplLe sLrlcL censorshlp laws and harsh
penalLles for Lhose who broke Lhem
as a saLlrlcal polemlclsL he frequenLly made use
of hls works Lo crlLlclze lnLolerance rellglous
dogma and Lhe lrench lnsLlLuLlons of hls day

1S Mar|enenr| 8ey|e 23 !anuary 1783 23 March
1842
beLLer known by hls pen name SLendhal
known for hls acuLe analysls of hls characLers
psychology
he ls consldered one of Lhe earllesL and
foremosL pracLlLloners of reallsm ln hls Lwo
novels Le kouge et |e No|r (1he 8ed and Lhe
lack 1830) and La Chartreuse de arme (1he
CharLerhouse of arma 1839)

1 A|fred de Musset 11 uecember 1810 2 May 1837
was a lrench dramaLlsL poeL and novellsL
along wlLh hls poeLry he ls known for wrlLlng La
Confess|on dun enfant du s|c|e (1he
Confesslon of a Chlld of Lhe CenLury
auLoblographlcal) from 1836

1 Marce| roust 10 !uly 1871 18 november 1922
was a lrench novellsL crlLlc and essaylsL besL
known for hls monumenLal |a recherche du
temps perdu (n Search of LosL 1lme earller
LranslaLed as 8emembrance of 1hlngs asL)
lL was publlshed ln seven parLs beLween 1913
and 1927

18 Madame de La Iayette18 March 1634 23 May
1693
Lhe auLhor of La r|ncesse de C|ves lrances
flrsL hlsLorlcal novel and one of Lhe earllesL
novels ln llLeraLure

19 Su||y rudhomme 16 March 1839 6 SepLember
1907
was a lrench poeL and essaylsL wlnner of Lhe
flrsL nobel rlze ln LlLeraLure ln 1901
born ln arls rudhomme orlglnally sLudled Lo
be an englneer buL Lurned Lo phllosophy and
laLer Lo poeLry
he declared poeLry as hls lnLenL Lo creaLe
sclenLlflc poeLry for modern Llmes

0 Anato|e Irance 16 prll 1844 12 CcLober 1924
born lranolsnaLole 1hlbaulL
was a lrench poeL [ournallsL and novellsL
successful novellsL wlLh several besLsellers
lronlc and skepLlcal he was consldered ln hls
day Lhe ldeal lrench man of leLLers
was a member of Lhe cademle franalse and
won Lhe nobel rlze for LlLeraLure

1 S|mone de 8eauvo|r !anuary 9 1908 prll 14
1986
was a lrench exlsLenLlallsL phllosopher publlc
lnLellecLual and soclal LheorlsL
ls now besL known for her meLaphyslcal novels
lncludlng She Came to Stay and 1he Mandar|ns
and for her 1949 LreaLlse 1he Second Sex a
deLalled analysls of womens oppresslon and a
foundaLlonal LracL of conLemporary femlnlsm
also noLed for her llfelong polyamorous
relaLlonshlp wlLh !eanaul SarLre

Char|es 8aude|a|re prll 9 1821 ugusL 31 1867
was a lrench poeL who also produced noLable
work as an essaylsL arL crlLlc and ploneerlng
LranslaLor of Ldgar llan oe

3 Guy de Maupassant 3 ugusL 1830 6 !uly 1893
orn enrl 8ene lberL Cuy de MaupassanL)
was a popular 19LhcenLury lrench wrlLer
consldered one of Lhe faLhers of Lhe modern
shorL sLory and one of Lhe forms flnesL
exponenLs
proLege of llauberL MaupassanLs sLorles are
characLerlzed by Lhelr economy of sLyle and
efflclenL efforLless denouemenL
also wroLe slx novels


Great Irench Masterp|eces

1 Les M|srab|es (llLerally 1he Mlserable Cnes)
ls an 1862 lrench novel by auLhor vlcLor ugo
and ls wldely consldered one of Lhe greaLesL
novels of Lhe nlneLeenLh cenLury
Lhe novel focuses on Lhe sLruggles of exconvlcL
!ean val[ean and hls experlence of redempLlon
examlnes Lhe naLure of law and grace and
expounds upon Lhe hlsLory of lrance
archlLecLure of arls pollLlcs moral phllosophy
anLlmonarchlsm [usLlce rellglon and Lhe Lypes
and naLure of romanLlc and famlllal love


1he Neck|ace or 1he D|amond Neck|ace (lrench La
arure)
ls a shorL sLory by Cuy de MaupassanL flrsL
publlshed ln 1884 ln Lhe lrench newspaper Le
Caulols
1he sLory has become one of MaupassanLs
popular works and ls well known for lLs LwlsL
endlng
Lells Lhe sLory of Madame MaLhllde Lolsel and
her husband
MaLhllde always lmaglned herself ln a hlgh
soclal poslLlon wlLh wonderful [ewels owever
she has noLhlng and marrles a low pald clerk
who Lrles hls besL Lo make her happy
MaLhllde confesses abouL LhaL nlghL and how
she worked so hard Lo reLurn her necklace
Mme loresLler deeply moved Lells MaLhllde
LhaL Lhe one she had borrowed was fake and
LhaL lL was worLh aL mosL 300 francs

3 Cand|de
ls a lrench saLlre wrlLLen ln 1739 by volLalre a
phllosopher of Lhe ge of LnllghLenmenL
lL beglns wlLh a young man Candlde who ls
llvlng a shelLered llfe ln an Ldenlc paradlse and
belng lndocLrlnaLed wlLh Lelbnlzlan opLlmlsm
(or slmply CpLlmlsm) by hls menLor angloss
Lhe work descrlbes Lhe abrupL cessaLlon of Lhls
llfesLyle followed by Candldes slow palnful
dlsllluslonmenL as he wlLnesses and experlences
greaL hardshlps ln Lhe world

Madame 8ovary
ls CusLave llauberLs flrsL publlshed novel and ls
consldered hls masLerplece
Lhe sLory focuses on a docLors wlfe Lmma
ovary who has adulLerous affalrs and llves
beyond her means ln order Lo escape Lhe
banallLles and empLlness of provlnclal llfe
Lhough Lhe baslc ploL ls raLher slmple even
archeLypal Lhe novels Lrue arL lles ln lLs deLalls
and hldden paLLerns
llauberL was noLorlously a perfecLlonlsL abouL
hls wrlLlng and clalmed always Lo be searchlng
for le moL [usLe (Lhe rlghL word)

S 1he CounL of MonLe CrlsLo (lrench Le ComLe de
MonLeCrlsLo)
ls an advenLure novel by lexandre uumas pere
ofLen consldered Lo be along wlLh 1he 1hree
MuskeLeers uumas mosL popular work
Lhe wrlLlng of Lhe work was compleLed ln 1844
llke many of hls novels lL ls expanded from Lhe
ploL ouLllnes suggesLed by hls collaboraLlng
ghosLwrlLer ugusLe MaqueL
Lhe sLory Lakes place ln lrance Laly lslands ln
Lhe MedlLerranean and Lhe LevanL durlng Lhe
hlsLorlcal evenLs of 18131838 (from [usL before
Lhe undred uays Lhrough Lo Lhe relgn of Louls
hlllppe of lrance)
Lhe hlsLorlcal seLLlng ls a fundamenLal elemenL
of Lhe book L ls an advenLure sLory prlmarlly
concerned wlLh Lhemes of hope [usLlce
vengeance mercy and forglveness


Cther Irench Wr|t|ngs

A M|dd|e Ages

ChreLlen de 1royes ?valn ou le Chevaller au Llon
(?valn Lhe knlghL of Lhe Llon) LanceloL ou le
Chevaller la charreLLe (LanceloL Lhe knlghL of Lhe
CarL)
Culllaume de Lorrls and !ean de Meung 8oman de
la 8ose (8omance of Lhe 8ose)

8 1th century

lranols 8abelals CarganLua anLagruel
(CarganLua and anLagruel)
Mlchel de MonLalgne Les Lssals

C 1th century

Madame de LafayeLLe La rlncesse de Cleves

D 18th century

bbe revosL Manon LescauL
volLalre Candlde
!ean!acques 8ousseau !ulle ou la nouvelle eloise

L 19th century

en[amln ConsLanL dolphe
onore de alzac La Comedle humalne (1he
uman Comedy)
lexandre uumas 1he CounL of MonLe CrlsLo 1he
1hree MuskeLeers
vlcLor ugo noLre uame de arls (1he unchback
of noLre uame) Les Mlserables
1heophlle CauLler Mademolselle de Maupln
CusLave llauberL Madame ovary
Cuy de MaupassanL el ml La arure (1he
necklace) oLher shorL sLorles


I 0th century
ndre Clde Les lauxmonnayeurs (1he
CounLerfelLers) 1he mmorallsL
Marcel rousL A la recherche du Lemps
perdu (n Search of LosL 1lme)
CasLon Leroux Le lanLme de lCpera (1he
hanLom of Lhe Cpera)
Loulslerdlnand Cellne voyage au bouL de
la nulL (!ourney Lo Lhe Lnd of Lhe nlghL)
lberL Camus LLLranger (1he SLranger)
Mlchel uLor La ModlflcaLlon
8oberL lngeL assacallle
!eanaul SarLre Lge de 8alson (1he ge
of 8eason)

Irench 1heatre
Ldmond 8osLand Cyrano de ergerac
!ean Clraudoux 1he 1ro[an War Wlll noL 1ake lace
!ean noullh eckeL nLlgone
!eanaul SarLre no LxlL
Lugene onesco 1he ald Soprano 8hlnoceros
!ean CeneL 1he Malds 1he alcony

Irench Nonf|ct|on

Mlchel de MonLalgne 1he Lssays
lalse ascal Les ensees
lranols de La 8ochefoucauld 1he Maxlms
!ean!acques 8ousseau ulscourse on Lhe rLs and
Sclences 1he Soclal ConLracL Les Confesslons
lranols8ene de ChaLeaubrland Cenlus of
ChrlsLlanlLy Memolrs from eyond Crave
lexls de 1ocquevllle uemocracy ln merlca
!ules MlcheleL lsLolre de lrance La Sorclere
lberL Camus 1he MyLh of Slsyphus
!eanaul SarLre LxlsLenLlallsm ls a umanlsm
elng and noLhlngness



Prepored Presented by

DANILC IkCGAAN k

AkIANNL LUGLNIC