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Louis Pergaud | |
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 Louis Pergaud | |
| Born | (1882-01-22)22 January 1882 Belmont, Doubs, France |
| Died | 8 April 1915(1915-04-08) (aged 33) Marchéville-en-Woëvre, France |
Louis Pergaud (French pronunciation:[lwipɛʁɡo]; 22 January 1882 – 8 April 1915) was a French novelist,war poet, and soldier, whose principal works were known as "Animal Stories" due to his featuring animals of theFranche-Comté in lead roles. His most notable work was the novelLa Guerre des boutons (1912) (English:The War of the Buttons). It has been reprinted more than 30 times, and is included on the French high-school curriculum.[1]
A village schoolteacher by profession, Pergaud came into conflict withRoman Catholic clergy and laity because of his orders to instill the ideology favoured by theThird French Republic, which owed more to theanti-religious currents of theAge of Enlightenment than to the values being instilled at home by his pupils' parents. In 1907, Pergaud gave up permanently on teaching and moved to Paris to pursue a literary career. Pergaud's prose works are often considered to reflect the influences ofRealist,Decadent andSymbolist movements. During theFirst World War, he was serving with theFrench Army nearMarchéville-en-Woëvre. During an attack by his company on a German position, he disappeared without a trace on the night of 7 to 8 April 1915. He was declared dead in 1921.
The War of the Buttons has been adapted five times as a film, four times in French productions and once in an Irish one. It was adapted most recently in France in two films released the same week in September 2011. Both were set during the twentieth century.
Pergaud was born on 22 January 1882, inBelmont, Doubs. Son of a republican schoolmaster, Louis was encouraged to excel in his studies. His academic successes earned him scholarships permitting him to continue school with the intention of following in his father's footsteps. In 1901 he completed his studies at the École Normale inBesançon.
After a year of teaching and a year of military service, in 1903, Pergaud married his first wife. They lived in Durnes, where he was teaching again. After moving toLandresse for a time, Pergaud separated from his wife in 1907 and moved to Paris.
They later divorced and he married a second time.
Louis Pergaud accepted his first teaching position inDurnes. After a year, he was called to complete a year of military service with the 35th infantry regiment stationed inBelfort. According toIan Higgins, "National service in 1902-03 did nothing to cure him of hisanti-militarism."[2]
In the fall of 1903, Pergaud returned to his post in Durne.
In 1905 Pergaud transferred with his wife toLandresse. Initially, life in this small, isolated village was difficult.
According to Ian Higgins, "The predominantly Catholic villagers of Landresse were hostile to their local teacher, by definition a servant of the Republic, and who never went toMass. Feeling cut off in an alien environment, tired of constantly battling against suspicion, ill-feeling, innuendo, and accusation, Pergaud resigned his post and went to Paris to work in an office."[3]
In 1907, Pergaud left Landresse and his wife, forParis, where he joinedLeon Deubel, a longtime friend and inspiration. In Paris, Pergaud suffered through extreme poverty, even as he worked as a clerk and then as a schoolteacher, in an effort to realize his dream of literary success.
His earliest works were collections of poetry that were published at his own expense through a literary review calledLe Beffroi. The first collection, entitledL'Aube, appeared in 1904. The second,L'Herbe d'Avril, was published in 1908. In 1910Mercure de France published a collection of Pergaud's short stories under the titleDe Goupil à Margot. This work was awarded the prestigiousPrix Goncourt, which led to some national recognition.
A second collection of short stories about animals,La Revanche du corbeau appeared in 1911. His novel,La Guerre des boutons, described below, was published in 1912. In 1913 Pergaud published the novel,Le Roman de Miraut, in which an animal had the leading role. He wrote numerous other short stories about the people and animals of his native Franche-Comté, which would be published posthumously.
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In 1912La Guerre des boutons was published, a tale of a play-war between the small boys of two neighbouring villages. Those "killed" would have their buttons removed as trophies before being sent home. The novel begins humorously, but becomes more sinister as the distinctions between play and real violence among the boys become blurred. It has been described as having a "touch ofLord of the Flies" in tone, although the book substantially pre-dates that novel byWilliam Golding. Pergaud's works remain popular in France;La Guerre des boutons has been reprinted more than thirty times. It is included in the French high school curriculum for literature.[1]
Pergaud had tried to register as apacifist, but he wasconscripted into the French Army at the outbreak of theFirst World War. He had been placed in the active reserve following his national service twelve years before. In this capacity he served in theBattle of Lorraine during the German invasion of France, and subsequently on theWestern Front.
On 7 April 1915, Pergaud's regiment attacked theImperial German Army's trenches nearFresnes-en-Woëvre, during which Pergaud was shot and wounded. He fell intobarbed wire, where he became trapped. Some hours later, German soldiers rescued him and other wounded, taking the French soldiers to a temporaryfield hospital behind German lines. On the morning of 8 April, Pergaud and otherPOWs were killed byfriendly fire from a French artillery barrage that destroyed the hospital. The deliberate targeting of field hospitals,hospital ships, and medical personnel was classified asa war crime under theHague Conventions of 1899 and 1907, which had been signed by the government of theThird French Republic.
La Guerre des boutons has been developed as a film five times:
A Paris society,Les Amis de Louis Pergaud, is devoted to study of him and his works.
Media related toLouis Pergaud at Wikimedia Commons
FrenchWikisource has original text related to this article:Louis Pergaud(in French)
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