Andre Gide and the Second World War : a novelist's occupation / Jocelyn Van Tuyl.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Van Tuyl, Jocelyn, 1964-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Gide, André, 1869-1951--Political and social views.

Gide, André.

World War, 1939-1945--Literature and the war.

World War, 1939-1945.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (270 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Albany : State University of New York Press, c2006.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Arguably the most influential French writer of the early twentieth century, André Gide is a paradigmatic figure whose World War II writings offer an exemplary reflection of the challenges facing a leading writer in a time of national collapse. Tracing Gide's circuitous "intellectual itinerary" from the fall of France through the postwar purge, this book examines the ambiguous role of France's senior man of letters during the Second World War. The writer's intricate maneuverings offer privileged insights into three issues of broad significance: the relationship of literature and politics in France during World War II, the repressions and repositionings that continue to fuel controversy about the period, and the role of public intellectuals in times of national crisis.With the exception of the early wartime Journal, Gide's publications during France's "dark years" have received little critical attention. This book scrutinizes the entire wartime oeuvre in depth, tracing the evolution of Gide's political views and, most importantly, reading the wartime texts against each other. It is the interplay among these texts that reveals the full complexity of Gide's political positionings and the rhetorical brilliance he deployed to redress his tarnished image.

Contents:

From Munich to Montoire : national crisis and the man of letters

Accommodation and reaction : the wartime N.R.F.

Coded messages : the "Interviews imaginaires"

Battles on the home front : domestic allegory in the Tunis journal

Repositionings : Pages de journal and Thesee

Coming home : the purge and the aftermath

Epilogue : what happened to Andre Gide.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references (p. 233-248) and index.

ISBN:

9780791481998

0791481999

9781429411813

1429411813

OCLC:

74752240