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Guy de Maupassant


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Guy de Maupassant (1850-1893), French author of the naturalistic school who is generally considered the greatest French short story writer.

Guy de Maupassant was probably born at the Château de Miromesniel, Dieppe on August 5, 1850. In 1869 Maupassant started to study law in Paris, but soon, at the age of 20, he volunteered to serve in the army during the Franco-Prussian War. Between the years 1872 and 1880 Maupassant was a civil servant, first at the ministry of maritime affairs, then at the ministry of education.

As a poet Maupassant made his debut with Des Vers (1880). In the same year he published in the anthology Soirées de Medan (1880), edited by E. Zola, his masterpiece, "Boule De Suif" ("Ball of Fat", 1880). During the 1880s Maupassant created some 300 short stories, six novels, three travel books, and one volume of verse. In tone, his tales were marked by objectivity, highly controlled style, and sometimes by sheer comedy. Usually they were built around simple episodes from everyday life, which revealed the hidden sides of people. Among Maupassant's best-known books are Une Vie (A Woman's Life, 1883), about the frustrating existence of a Norman wife and Bel-Ami (1885), which depicts an unscrupulous journalist. Pierre Et Jean (1888) was a psychological study of two brothers. Maupassant's most upsetting horror story, Le Horla (1887), was about madness and suicide.

Maupassant had suffered from his 20s from syphilis. The disease later caused increasing mental disorder - also seen in his nightmarish stories, which have much in common with Edgar Allan Poe's supernatural visions. Critics have charted Maupassant's developing illness through his semi-autobiographical stories of abnormal psychology, but the theme of mental disorder is present even in his first collection, La Maison Tellier (1881), published at the height of his health.

On January 2, in 1892, Maupassant tried to commit suicide by cutting his throat and was committed to the celebrated private asylum of Dr. Esprit Blanche at Passy, in Paris, where he died on July 6, 1893.

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Recent Forum Posts on Guy de Maupassant

at sea, help

i just read the short story "at sea" and im a little confused about it. im told that there is irony in the story but i dont seem to see it. what is the irony and what was guy trying to say when he wrote this? can anyone give me a short analysis of the story? so i have a total of three questions: 1) what is the irony 2)what was he trying to get accross when he wrote "at sea" 3)if anyone can write a short analysis of the story thank you

Posted By worksux at Sun 5 Apr 2009, 7:19 PM in Maupassant, Guy de || 1 Reply

In The Wood

I just finished reading this story and I really enjoyed it. I rather like Maupassant's writing and it seems in many ways we are of a same mind in our views about human society and the human psychology. Out of what little I have read so far In The Wood was a bit more upbeat than his other works though it was still a touch bittersweet in nature. It was quite a charming little story while still touched in sadness. Like his other works (from what I have read) it seems to have an important message to impart to us. How indeed sometimes we get too caught up in the things that appear important, the materialism, that we neglect the things that are truly important until it passes us by before we even notice and then we attempt to recapture those fleeting moments feeling regret for all the time we have let ourselves live without them. I think that the lessons of this story are turly timeless and I think many can relate. It also refelcts that no matter what. No matter how much time has passed and what has happend the passion never really dies. It is still there even if perhaps it has gown dormat.

Posted By Dark Muse at Thu 26 Mar 2009, 11:00 PM in Maupassant, Guy de || 0 Replies

Short Story Recomendations

Someone recomended the works of Guy de Maupassant to me but I have no idea where I should begin. So I am open to suggestions and recomendations.

Posted By Dark Muse at Mon 23 Mar 2009, 6:43 PM in Maupassant, Guy de || 1 Reply

help finding story about man who pays wife for sex

I remember reading a story where the husband is kind of a prick and mistreats his wife by cheating on her. She eventually won't spend anytime unless he pays for it. Can someone please, if you know, tell me the story's name. I have been randomly guessing the title and opening various stories. With over 300, this hasn't worked. Thanks, mramon

Posted By mramon at Wed 11 Mar 2009, 7:28 PM in Maupassant, Guy de || 3 Replies

Maupassant: Best Editions/Translations?

I need suggestions from those of you who have read him more than I have. I had the older Selected Stories Penguin edition translated by Colet. The swooshy arrow logo bookseller lists various translations of selected works, but I am after Collected stories... It does not look like any larger contemporary literary publisher has tried to re-issue his collected works or his novels. I am after all his stories and his novel, Bel Ami I have a VERY old tattered 1905 ed NY books hardcover of what appears to be most of his stories. I am not sure of the quality of the english translation. I am picky about translation versions. To you experts out there, do older, english idiom translations butcher his prose? There are a couple of paperback "Collected Stories" edditons listed but they don't even list the translator so I am leary...

Posted By promtbr at Thu 5 Feb 2009, 9:13 AM in Maupassant, Guy de || 6 Replies

Short Story Title

I am trying to remember the title of a deM short story about a man who meets the woman of his dreams but who will never let him walk her home. She meets him one day wearing a dress that his mother or sister has thrown in the trash. Then she dies after he puts rat poison in the trash behind his house. I read this when I was a young kid and hope I didn't make it all up.

Posted By Yama at Mon 22 Dec 2008, 8:36 PM in Maupassant, Guy de || 0 Replies

Guy de Maupassant

I am amazed that nobody using this website appears to have read Maupassant's novels. Of course, the short stories are brilliant examples of the genre and although his novels are uneven and relatively few in number, Bel Ami and Une Vie are among the best writing to be found anywhere. Perhaps the lack of interest shown in the novels is due to teachers relying on the short stories because of the limited attention span of their students. However, if you don't make the effort, you could be missing some of the most wonderful writing you will ever come across.

Posted By Brian Bean at Sun 17 Aug 2008, 4:44 AM in Maupassant, Guy de || 4 Replies

Finding a lost short story

I remember reading a short story with two hunters (It's narrated in 1st person) and 2 birds and the love between the birds. I'd love to know the title...I've suddenly got this urge to read it again. Help...please? ;) P.S: Oh and, thanks in advance! :)

Posted By chasing360 at Thu 17 Jul 2008, 10:19 AM in Maupassant, Guy de || 4 Replies

help me about this..

could any one there help me about my reseach regarding the shotort story "the diamond necklace" of Guy de maupassant..about the early life of Guy de maupassant when he was writting "the diamond necklace"

Posted By jena at Mon 14 Jul 2008, 4:53 AM in Maupassant, Guy de || 0 Replies

need help finding a poem

I am looking for a poem by Guy de Maupassant, that I read decades ago in school. I believe it was the Fox and the crow or the crow and the fox. I have tried and tried to find it on the web, but was hoping someone has the literature it is in. The starting lines are A crow sat perched upon and oak and in his beak he held a cheese, a fox snuffed up the savory breeze, and thus, in honeyed accent spoke... I know the poem, but not perfectly. I would love to find it. I would appreciate any help

Posted By bleepingroach at Thu 3 Jul 2008, 8:23 PM in Maupassant, Guy de || 3 Replies

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