What is Guy de Maupassant famous for?
Guy de Maupassant. Written By: Guy de Maupassant, in full Henry-René-Albert-Guy de Maupassant, (born August 5, 1850, Château de Miromesnil?, near Dieppe, France—died July 6, 1893, Paris), French naturalist writer of short stories and novels who is by general agreement the greatest French short-story writer.
How did Maupassant get his start in writing?
With the help of Flaubert, Maupassant began making a name for himself by writing short stories and newspaper articles. ''Boule de Suif,'' his first major short story, was published in 1880 and is still considered his best short story.
Where was Guy de Maupassant born?
Henri-René-Albert-Guy de Maupassant was born 5 August 1850 at the Château de Miromesnil (Castle Miromesnil, near Dieppe in the Seine-Inférieure (now Seine-Maritime) department in France. He was the first son of Laure Le Poittevin and Gustave de Maupassant, both from prosperous bourgeois families.
How did Guy de Maupassant die?
On 2 January 1892, Maupassant tried to commit suicide by cutting his throat, and was committed to the private asylum of Esprit Blanche at Passy, in Paris, where he died 6 July 1893. Guy De Maupassant penned his own epitaph: "I have coveted everything and taken pleasure in nothing.".
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How many stories did Guy de Maupassant write?
Bel‑Ami: roman1885Boule de Suif1880Une vie1883The Horla1887Pierre et Jean1888ara1882Guy de Maupassant/Books
Why did Guy de Maupassant become a writer?
Through her parenting, he was exposed to literature, which would set him on the path to becoming a writer. Guy de Maupassant met Gustave Flaubert, another French writer, in high school in 1867. His mother, seeing his love for literature, encouraged him to connect with Flaubert, which paid off later in his life.
What was Guy de Maupassant most famous works?
Guy de Maupassant is regarded as the best French writer of short stories. His 300 stories were written in the naturalist style and often described the life of the lower and middle classes. “Boule de suif” (“Ball of Fat”) is regarded as his best story, while the best known is “La Parure” (“The Necklace”).
Who is the father of short story in the whole world?
Maupassant is often described as the father of the modern short story—a literary form that's more condensed and immediate than the novel. His work was admired by his contemporaries and imitated by those who came after him.
Who is the first person to write a short story?
Germany soon followed the United Kingdom's example by producing short stories; the first collection of short stories was by Heinrich von Kleist in 1810 and 1811. Edgar Allen Poe became one of the first American short story writers, taking a cosmopolitan approach to writing.
Who discovered short story?
First, it was the publication of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales, then Edgar Allen Poe's Gothic fiction, and eventually, stories by Anton Chekhov, who is often credited as a founder of the modern short story.
What is the theme in The Necklace story?
Greed: This short story has the theme of not being greedy in life as Mathilde has been. Mathilde's greed for a better life leads her husband to get a ticket for an even where Mathilde purchases a dress they cannot afford and borrows a necklace she believes to be worth thousands.
What are the 5 characteristics of a short story?
They are true masters at combining the five key elements that go into every great short story: character, setting, conflict, plot and theme. The ELLSA web-site uses one of these five key elements as the focus of each of the five on-line lessons in the Classics of American Literature section.
Why did Chekhov write short stories?
The son of a shopkeeper and grandson of a serf, Chekhov was himself well educated and aspired to a career in medicine. His family entered financial difficulties when Chekhov was a medical student in Moscow, prompting the young man to write short stories for publication.
What is the best story ever written?
12 Novels Considered the “Greatest Book Ever Written”Anna Karenina. Greta Garbo in Anna Karenina Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. ... To Kill a Mockingbird. To Kill a Mockingbird Grand Central Publishing/Hachette Book Group. ... The Great Gatsby. F. ... One Hundred Years of Solitude. ... A Passage to India. ... Invisible Man. ... Don Quixote. ... Beloved.More items...
Who is the most famous short story writer?
Edgar Allan Poe, American short-story writer, poet, critic, and editor who is famous for his cultivation of mystery and the macabre.
Who is the best short story writer of all time?
20 Great Writers on Their Favorite Story CollectionsThe Collected Stories by Grace Paley.Red Cavalry, Isaac Babel.Drifting House, Krys Lee.The Collected Stories, Grace Paley.Open Secrets, Alice Munro.Our Story Begins, Tobias Wolff.Slaughterhouse-Five, Kurt Vonnegut.More items...•
Why Guy de Maupassant wrote The Necklace?
The author's purpose for writing The Necklace was to show things happen for a reason. Mathilde did not know her own worth or value and ended up doing foolish things to feel satisfied. The new dress was not necassary but she just asked for more than the good things she didn't cherish enough.
Why did Chekhov write short stories?
The son of a shopkeeper and grandson of a serf, Chekhov was himself well educated and aspired to a career in medicine. His family entered financial difficulties when Chekhov was a medical student in Moscow, prompting the young man to write short stories for publication.
Who influenced Guy de Maupassant?
Gustave FlaubertHonoré de BalzacÉmile ZolaEdgar Allan PoeArthur Schopenh...Hippolyte TaineGuy de Maupassant/Influenced by
When did Guy de Maupassant write The Necklace?
1884First published in 1884, "The Necklace" was written by Guy de Maupassant.
Where is Guy de Maupassant from?
Henri-René-Albert-Guy de Maupassant was born on 5 August 1850 at the late 16th-century Château de Miromesnil, near Dieppe in the Seine-Inférieure (now Seine-Maritime) department in France. He was the first son of Laure Le Poittevin and Gustave de Maupassant, both from prosperous bourgeois families. His mother urged his father when they married in 1846 to obtain the right to use the particule or form "de Maupassant" instead of "Maupassant" as his family name, in order to indicate noble birth. Gustave discovered a certain Jean-Baptiste Maupassant, conseiller-secrétaire to the King, who was ennobled in 1752. He then obtained from the Tribunal Civil of Rouen by decree dated 9 July 1846 the right to style himself "de Maupassant" instead of "Maupassant" and this was his surname at the birth of his son Guy in 1850.
Who was Maupassant?
Maupassant was a protégé of Gustave Flaubert and his stories are characterized by economy of style and efficient, seemingly effortless dénouements. Many are set during the Franco-Prussian War of the 1870s, describing the futility of war and the innocent civilians who, caught up in events beyond their control, are permanently changed by their experiences. He wrote 300 short stories, six novels, three travel books, and one volume of verse. His first published story, " Boule de Suif " ("The Dumpling", 1880), is often considered his masterpiece.
What was Maupassant's first short fiction?
In 1880 he published what is considered his first masterpiece, " Boule de Suif ", which met with instant and tremendous success. Flaubert characterized it as "a masterpiece that will endure." This was Maupassant's first piece of short fiction set during the Franco-Prussian War, and was followed by short stories such as " Deux Amis ", " Mother Savage ", and " Mademoiselle Fifi ".
How did Maupassant's mother influence his life?
After the separation, Laure Le Poittevin kept her two sons. With the father's absence, Maupassant's mother became the most influential figure in the young boy's life. She was an exceptionally well-read woman and was very fond of classical literature, particularly Shakespeare. Until the age of thirteen, Guy lived happily with his mother, at Étretat, in the Villa des Verguies, where, between the sea and the luxuriant countryside, he grew very fond of fishing and outdoor activities. At age thirteen, his mother next placed her two sons as day boarders in a private school, the Institution Leroy-Petit, in Rouen—the Institution Robineau of Maupassant's story La Question du Latin —for classical studies. From his early education he retained a marked hostility to religion, and to judge from verses composed around this time he deplored the ecclesiastical atmosphere, its ritual and discipline. Finding the place to be unbearable, he finally got himself expelled in his penultimate year.
What is the surname of Maupassant?
In this article, the surname is Maupassant, not de Maupassant. Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant ( UK: / ˈmoʊpæsɒ̃ /, US: / ˈmoʊpəsɒnt, ˌmoʊpəˈsɒ̃ /; French: [ɡi d (ə) mopasɑ̃]; 5 August 1850 – 6 July 1893) was a 19th-century French author, remembered as a master of the short story form, and as a representative of the Naturalist school, ...
Where did Maupassant go to high school?
Next year, in autumn, he was sent to the Lycée Pierre-Corneille in Rouen where he proved a good scholar indulging in poetry and taking a prominent part in theatricals.
What was the name of the comedy that Flaubert wrote?
He wrote and played himself in a comedy in 1875 (with the benediction of Flaubert), " À la feuille de rose, maison turque ". In 1878, he was transferred to the Ministry of Public Instruction and became a contributing editor to several leading newspapers such as Le Figaro, Gil Blas, Le Gaulois and l'Écho de Paris.
What are some interesting facts about Guy de Maupassant?
Fast Facts: Guy de Maupassant 1 Known For: French author of short stories, novels, and poetry 2 Also Known As: Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant, Guy de Valmont, Joseph Prunier, Maufrigneuse 3 Born: August 5, 1850 in Tourville-sur-Arques, France 4 Parents: Laure Le Poittevin, Gustave de Maupassant 5 Died: July 6, 1893 in Passy, Paris, France 6 Education: Institution Leroy-Petit, in Rouen, Lycée Pierre-Corneille in Rouen 7 Published Works : Boule de Suif, La Maison Tellier, The Necklace, A Piece of String, Mademoiselle Fifi, Miss Harriet, My Uncle Jules, Found on a Drowned Man, The Wreck, Une Vie, Bel-Ami, Pierre et Jean 8 Notable Quote: "If I could, I would stop the passage of time. But hour follows on hour, minute on minute, each second robbing me of a morsel of myself for the nothing of tomorrow. I shall never experience this moment again."
Where was Maupassant born?
It's believed de Maupassant was born at the Château de Miromesniel, Dieppe on Aug. 5, 1850. His paternal ancestors were noble, and his maternal grandfather Paul Le Poittevin was the artist Gustave Flaubert's godfather.
What school of writing did Flaubert use?
It was through Flaubert that de Maupassant became familiar with (and part of) the naturalist school of writers, a style that would permeate nearly all of his stories.
What disease did De Maupassant have?
De Maupassant Mental Illness. At some point in his 20s, de Maupassant contracted syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease that, if left untreated, leads to mental impairment. This is unfortunately what happened to de Maupassant. By 1890, the disease had started to cause increasingly strange behavior.
How many stories does De Maupassant have?
But de Maupassant's horror fiction is only a small portion of his work, some 39 stories or so. But even these works had significance; Stephen King's famous novel " The Shining " has been compared to Maupassant's "The Inn."
What was Flaubert's influence on de Maupassant?
Flaubert would prove to be a major influence on de Maupassant's life and career. Much like Flaubert's paintings, de Maupassant's stories told the plight of the lower classes. Flaubert took young Guy as a kind of protege, introducing him to significant writers of the day such as Emile Zola and Ivan Turgenev.
Where did Flaubert move to?
He moved from Normandy to Paris after the war, and after leaving his clerkship in the French Navy he worked for several prominent French newspapers. In 1880, Flaubert published one of his most famous short stories "Boule du Suif," about a prostitute pressured to provide her services to a Prussian officer.
Synopsis
French writer Guy de Maupassant is famous for his short stories, which paint a fascinating picture of French life in the 19th century. He was prolific, publishing over 300 short stories and six novels, but died at a young age after ongoing struggles with both physical and mental health.
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Who Was Guy de Maupassant?
Guy de Maupassant was essentially a writer who published over 300 short stories during his career. And if you think that's a lot, it doesn't even count his novels, poetry, and creative nonfiction. Guy de Maupassant was a prolific writer during the 19th century in France. Many consider his first short story ''Boule de Suif'' to be his best work. In this lesson, we will discuss Guy de Maupassant's life.
Why did Guy de Maupassant spend so much time traveling?
Even with his continued health concerns, he spent a lot of time traveling, largely because he didn't like society. In fact, he penned three travel books. However, his desire to be alone grew as he aged. Guy de Maupassant: Death.
What disease did Maupassant have?
Maupassant contracted syphilis in his 20s, and the disease also fatally afflicted one of his brothers at an early age. It's suggested that Maupassant's own mental and physical health troubles due to the disease may have influenced the types of characters, imagery, and dialogues that encompassed his work.
How many short stories did Guy de Maupassant write?
Guy de Maupassant was essentially a writer who published over 300 short stories during his career. And if you think that's a lot, it doesn't even count his novels, poetry, and creative nonfiction. Guy de Maupassant was a prolific writer during the 19th century in France.
What did Maupassant say about life?
As Maupassant said, ''It is the lives we encounter that make life worth living.'' . By 1868, he had earned his baccalaureate and started to study law up until the Franco-Prussian War (also known as the Franco-German War) began in 1870.
What was Guy de Maupassant's mental illness?
He grew fearsome and paranoid; he discovered that he had neurasthenia, which caused many of his symptoms. His mental flaws were related to syphilis, which he had for most of his life.
What was Maupassant's first short story?
With the help of Flaubert, Maupassant began making a name for himself by writing short stories and newspaper articles. ''Boule de Suif,'' his first major short story, was published in 1880 and is still considered his best short story.
Who is Guy de Maupassant?
Henri Ren Albert Guy de Maupassant (Aug 5, 1850 - Jul 6, 1893) was a popular French author who wrote under the pen name Guy de Maupassant . He is considered one of the fathers of the modern short story as well as one of its finest practitioners. His prolific and deeply admired body of work influenced a great number of writers including William ...
What is Guy de Maupassant's best short story?
If you have the stomach for it, you might try his truly terrifying piece of Gothic Fiction, The Hand. Boule de Suif is arguably considered Guy de Maupassant's finest short story. It's a bit long for the short story form, but it's length is justified by Maupassant's mastery and the treatment of his high society targets.
What was Guy de Maupassant's mental illness?
In time, the true character of each participant is revealed as Maupassant passes scathing judgement upon his fellow countrymen. Guy de Maupassant suffered from mental illness in his later years and attempted suicide on January 2nd, 1892. He was committed to a private asylum in Paris and died the following year.
What did De Maupassant do?
Early in his career, as de Maupassant began developing his own novels and short stories, he worked as a journalist for several prominent newspapers.
Who was the first son of Gustave de Maupassant?
Henri-René-Albert-Guy de Maupassant was born on August 5, 1850. He was the first son of Laure Le Poittevin and Gustave de Maupassant, both from prosperous bourgeois families. When Maupassant was eleven and his brother Hervé was five, his mother, an independent-minded woman, risked social disgrace to obtain a legal separation from her husband. With the father’s absence, Maupassant’s mother became the most influential figure in the young boy’s life.
What happened to Maupassant in 1880?
With the publication of “Boule de Suif” (1880; English translation, 1903), a tale which Flaubert praised extravagantly, Maupassant ceased working for the government and devoted himself to a career as a writer, excelling especially in the genre of the conte, or short story, which was quite popular at the time in periodical magazines and newspapers. Before achieving this initial success, however, Maupassant contracted syphilis, which was to take his life after a relatively brief writing career of ten years.
What is the best biography of Maupassant?
Steegmuller, Francis. A Lion in the Path. New York: Random House, 1949. Not only the best biographical study of Maupassant but also one of the most perceptive critical estimates of Maupassant’s works; it is the one indispensable book on Maupassant by an excellent biographer and critic who clearly understands the important role that Maupassant plays in the history of French literature.
What year did Maupassant go to a sanatorium?
Just after the first of the year in 1892 , Maupassant had to be taken to a sanatorium in a straitjacket after having slashed his own throat in a fit of what he himself called “an absolute case of madness.” In the sanatorium, he disintegrated rapidly until he died on July 6, 1893.
What was Maupassant's last major contribution?
Moreover, those who argue that with the writing of “The Horla” Maupassant was already going mad cannot explain the fact that the following year he published the short novel Pierre et Jean (1888; Pierre and Jean, 1890), which is one of his best-conceived and best-executed works. This work was his last major contribution, however, for after its publication his intensive production of stories slowed almost to a halt, and he began to complain of migraine headaches, which made it impossible for him to write. His eyesight began to fail, his memory faded, and he began to suffer from delusions.
What is the name of the first story Maupassant wrote?
Maupassant’s first published story, “La Main d’écorché” (1875; “The Skinned Hand,” 1909), which was reworked in 1883 as simply “La Main” or “The Hand,” belongs to a tradition of supernatural short fiction that is as old as legend itself; in reworking the story, however, Maupassant grounded it in the revenge-tale tradition popularized by his countryman Prosper Mérimée and at the same time managed to make the story an ironic comment on supernatural fictions.
Education
Guy’s Henry-René-Albert-Guy de Maupassant attended Lycée Pierre-Corneille.
Family
Guy De Maupassant’s mother’s name is unknown at this time and his father’s name is under review. We will continue to update information on Guy De Maupassant’s parents.
Personal Life
Like many famous people and celebrities, Guy De Maupassant kept his personal life private. Once more details are available, we will update this section.
Horoscope
Zodiac Sign: Guy De Maupassant was a Leo. People of this zodiac sign like to be admired, expensive things, bright colors, and dislike being ignored, facing difficulties, not being treated specially.
Overview
Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant was a 19th-century French author, remembered as a master of the short story form, as well as a representative of the Naturalist school, who depicted human lives, destinies and social forces in disillusioned and often pessimistic terms.
Maupassant was a protégé of Gustave Flaubert and his stories are characterize…
Biography
Henri-René-Albert-Guy de Maupassant was born on 5 August 1850 at the late 16th-century Château de Miromesnil, near Dieppe in the Seine-Inférieure (now Seine-Maritime) department in France. He was the first son of Laure Le Poittevin and Gustave de Maupassant, both from prosperous bourgeois families. His mother urged his father when they married in 1846 to obtain the right to use the
Significance
Maupassant is considered a father of the modern short story. Literary theorist Kornelije Kvas wrote that along "with Chekhov, Maupassant is the greatest master of the short story in world literature. He is not a naturalist like Zola; to him, physiological processes do not constitute the basis of human actions, although the influence of the environment is manifested in his prose. In many respects, Maupassant's naturalism is Schopenhauerian anthropological pessimism, as he …
Legacy
Leo Tolstoy used Maupassant as the subject for one of his essays on art: The Works of Guy de Maupassant. His stories are second only to Shakespeare in their inspiration of movie adaptations with films ranging from Stagecoach, Oyuki the Virgin and Masculine Feminine.
Friedrich Nietzsche's autobiography mentions him in the following text:
Bibliography
An uncomfortable Bed
• "A Country Excursion"
• "A Coup d'État"
• "A Coward"
• "A Cremation"
Further reading
• Abamine, E. P. "German-French Sexual Encounters of the Franco-Prussian War Period in the Fiction of Guy de Maupassant." CLA Journal 32.3 (1989): 323–334. online
• Dugan, John Raymond. Illusion and reality: a study of descriptive techniques in the works of Guy de Maupassant (Walter de Gruyter, 2014).
External links
• Works by Guy de Maupassant in eBook form at Standard Ebooks
• Works by Guy de Maupassant at Project Gutenberg
• Works by or about Guy de Maupassant at Internet Archive
• Guy de Maupassant timeline and stories at AsNotedIn.com
Early Life
Flaubert and de Maupassant
- Flaubert would prove to be a major influence on de Maupassant's life and career. Much like Flaubert's paintings, de Maupassant's stories told the plight of the lower classes. Flaubert took young Guy as a kind of protege, introducing him to significant writers of the day such as Emile Zola and Ivan Turgenev. It was through Flaubert that de Maupassant became familiar with (and …
de Maupassant Writing Career
- From 1870-71, Guy de Maupassant served in the French Army. He then became a government clerk. He moved from Normandy to Paris after the war, and after leaving his clerkship in the French Navy he worked for several prominent French newspapers. In 1880, Flaubert published one of his most famous short stories "Boule du Suif," about a prostitute pressu...
de Maupassant Mental Illness
- At some point in his 20s, de Maupassant contracted syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease that, if left untreated, leads to mental impairment. This is unfortunately what happened to de Maupassant. By 1890, the disease had started to cause increasingly strange behavior. Some critics have charted his developing mental illness through the subject matter of his stories. But d…
Death
- After a gruesome suicide attempt in 1891 (he tried to cut his throat), de Maupassant spent the last 18 months of his life in a Paris mental home, the celebrated private asylum of Dr. Espirit Blanche. The suicide attempt was believed to be a result of his impaired mental state.
Legacy
- Maupassant is often described as the father of the modern short story—a literary form that's more condensed and immediate than the novel. His work was admired by his contemporaries and imitated by those who came after him. Some of the best-known authors for whom Maupassant was an inspiration include W. Somerset Maugham, O. Henry, and Henry James.
Sources
- Dumesnil, René, and Martin Turnell. “Guy De Maupassant.” Encyclopædia Britannica, 1 Aug. 2018.
- “Guy De Maupassant.” Short Stories and Classic Literature.
- "Guy De Maupassant.” Guy De Maupassant - New World Encyclopedia.