Bashkirtseff
Orig | CZ

Alphonse Daudet

Person - Writer Comprehensive Aktualizováno: 2025-11-23

Research Status: Comprehensive Last Updated: 2025-11-23 Diary Coverage: Book 14 (1880) Type: Person - Writer

Overview

Alphonse Daudet (1840-1897) was a French novelist and short story writer, famous for his vivid, observational style and his ability to capture contemporary Parisian life with both humor and pathos.

Major Works

  • Lettres de mon moulin (1869) - Short stories set in Provence
  • Tartarin de Tarascon (1872) - Comic novel about a Provençal braggart
  • Le Nabab (1877) - Novel about Parisian high society
  • Numa Roumestan (1881) - Political novel about a Southern politician in Paris
  • Sapho (1884) - Semi-autobiographical novel about artistic life in Paris

Literary Style

Daudet was known for:

  • Detailed observation of contemporary life
  • Mix of humor and sentiment
  • Naturalistic description without Zola's theoretical framework
  • Accessible, engaging prose style
  • Characters drawn from real Parisian types

Marie's High Opinion (October 9, 1880)

When comparing contemporary writers, Marie declares her preference clearly:

"J'aime mieux Daudet dans les modernes, il écrit des romans mais semés d'observations justes, de choses vraies, senties. On vit là-dedans."

("I prefer Daudet among the moderns, he writes novels but sown with just observations, true things, felt things. One lives in there.")

Why Marie Prefers Daudet

Marie's appreciation reveals her aesthetic values:

1. Truth and observation: "just observations, true things, felt things" 2. Vitality: "One lives in there" - his novels feel alive and real 3. Authenticity: Things are "felt" (senties), not just constructed 4. Engagement: His work captures lived experience, not just ideas

This contrasts with her criticism of Georges Sand, whose novels she finds boring despite their "pretty descriptions," and Théophile Gautier, whose technical mastery she respects but doesn't find "sympathetic."

Context in 1880

By 1880, Daudet was at the height of his powers and reputation:

  • Close friend of Émile Zola and the Naturalist movement (though not strictly a Naturalist himself)
  • Regular attendee at literary salons and cultural gatherings
  • Living in Paris in the same social and artistic world Marie aspired to join
  • Known for Le Nabab (1877), a satirical portrait of Second Empire society

His work represented a middle path between Romantic idealization and Naturalist scientific detachment - exactly the kind of vital, truthful art Marie valued.

Related Entries