Paul Auguste Marie Adam (7 December 1862 – 1 January 1920) was a French
novelist
A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...
who became an early proponent of
Symbolism
Symbolism or symbolist may refer to:
Arts
* Symbolism (arts), a 19th-century movement rejecting Realism
** Symbolist movement in Romania, symbolist literature and visual arts in Romania during the late 19th and early 20th centuries
** Russian sy ...
in France, and one of the founders of the Symbolist review ''
Le Symboliste''.
Career
Adam's first novel, ''Chair molle'' ("Soft Flesh"), was the story of a prostitute in the
Naturalist manner, which led to him being prosecuted for immorality before the
Cour d'assises and sentenced to a fortnight in prison and a 500-franc fine. Together with
Jean Moréas
Jean Moréas (; born Ioannis A. Papadiamantopoulos, Ιωάννης Α. Παπαδιαμαντόπουλος; 15 April 1856 – 31 March 1910), was a Greek poet, essayist, and art critic, who wrote mostly in the French language but also in Greek ...
, he co-wrote ''Les Demoiselles Goubert'', a novel that marked the transition between Naturalism and Symbolism in
French literature. His ''Lettres de Malaisie'' (1897) was speculative fiction about politics in the future.
[ He also wrote a series of ]historical novels
Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...
that dealt with the period of the Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
and their aftermath; the first installment in the series, ''La Force'', was published in 1899. It was followed by ''L'enfant d'Austerlitz'' (1901), ''La ruse'' (1902) and ''Au soleil de Juillet'' (1903).[ His novel ''Stephanie'', which appeared in 1913, argued in favour of ]arranged marriage
Arranged marriage is a type of marital union where the bride and groom are primarily selected by individuals other than the couple themselves, particularly by family members such as the parents. In some cultures a professional matchmaker may be us ...
s as opposed to those founded on romantic
Romantic may refer to:
Genres and eras
* The Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement of the 18th and 19th centuries
** Romantic music, of that era
** Romantic poetry, of that era
** Romanticism in science, of that e ...
attachments. His work was part of the literature event in the art competition at the 1912 Summer Olympics
The 1912 Summer Olympics ( sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1912), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad ( sv, Den V olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, be ...
.
He was born and died in Paris.
Works
* ''Chair molle'' (1885)
* ''Soi'' (1886)
* ''Les Demoiselles Goubert'' (with Jean Moréas, 1886)
* ''Le Thé chez Miranda'' (with Jean Moréas, 1886)
* ''La glèbe'' (1887)
* ''Les Volontés merveilleuses: Être'' (1888)
* ''Les Volontés merveilleuses: L'essence de soleil'' (1890)
* ''Les Volontés merveilleuses: en décor'' (1890)
* ''L'Époque: Le Vice filial'' (1891)
* ''L'Époque: Robes rouges'' (1891)
* ''L'Époque: Les Cœurs utiles'' (1892)
* ''L'Automne'' (1893, a censored play)
* ''Le Conte futur'' (1893)
* ''Critique des mœurs'' (1893)
* ''Les Images sentimentales'' (1893)
* ''Princesses byzantines'' (1893)
* ''La Parade amoureuse'' (1894)
* ''Le Mystère des foules'' (1895)
* ''Les Cœurs nouveaux'' (1896)
* ''La Force du mal'' (1896)
* ''L'Année de Clarisse'' (1897, illustrated by Gaston Darbour
Gaston is a masculine given name of French origin and a surname. The name "Gaston" may refer to:
People
First name
*Gaston I, Count of Foix (1287–1315)
*Gaston II, Count of Foix (1308–1343)
*Gaston III, Count of Foix (1331–1391)
*Gaston I ...
)
* ''La bataille d'Uhde'' (1897)
* ''Le Vice filial'' (1898, illustrated by Jan Dědina)
* ''Le Temps et la Vie'':
# ''La Force'' (1899)
# ''L'Enfant d'Austerlitz'' (1901)
# ''La Ruse, 1827-1828'' (1903)
# ''Au soleil de juillet, 1829-1830'' (1903)
* ''Basile et Sophia'' (1901)
* ''Lettres de Malaisie'' (1898)
* ''Le Troupeau de Clarisse'' (1904)
* ''Le Serpent noir'' (1905)
* ''Vues d'Amérique'' (1906)
* ''Clarisse et l'homme heureux'' (1907)
* ''La Morale des Sports'' (1907)
* ''La cité prochaine'' (1908)
* ''Les Impérialismes et la morale des peuples'' (1908)
* ''Le Malaise du monde latin'' (1910)
* ''Le Trust'' (1910)
* ''Contre l’Aigle'' (1910)
* ''Stéphanie'' (1913)
* ''Le Lion d'Arras'' (1919)
* ''Notre Carthage'' (1922)
* ''Dieu'' (1924, published posthumously in La Phalange)
References
*
External links
*
*
*
Works by Paul Adam
at Hathi Trust
''Signac, 1863-1935''
a fully digitized exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries, which contains material on Paul Adam (see index)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adam, Paul
1862 births
1920 deaths
Writers from Paris
19th-century French novelists
French historical novelists
French erotica writers
20th-century French novelists
20th-century French male writers
French art critics
French male novelists
19th-century French male writers
French male non-fiction writers
Olympic competitors in art competitions