Lorrain, Jean (1855-1906) par Sem (Georges Goursat, 1863-1934)

Jean Lorrain (9 August 1855 in

Fécamp Fécamp () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in north-western France. Geography Fécamp is situated in the valley of the river Valmont, at the heart of the Pays de Caux, on the Alabaster Coast. It is around ...

Seine-Maritime Seine-Maritime () is a department of France in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the Seine, and includes the cities of Rouen and Le Havre. Until 1955 it was named Seine-Inféri ...

– 30 June 1906), born Paul Alexandre Martin Duval, was a French

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

and novelist of the Symbolist school. Lorrain was a dedicated disciple of dandyism and spent much of his time amongst the fashionable artistic circles in France, particularly in the cafés and bars of Montmartre. He contributed to the satirical weekly '' Le Courrier français'', and wrote a number of collections of verse, including ''La forêt bleue'' (1883) and ''L'ombre ardente'', (1897). He is also remembered for his

Decadent The word decadence, which at first meant simply "decline" in an abstract sense, is now most often used to refer to a perceived decay in standards, morals, dignity, religious faith, honor, discipline, or skill at governing among the members of ...

novels and short stories, such as '' Monsieur de Phocas'' (1901),
Monsieur de Bougrelon
' (1897), and ''Histoires des masques'' (1900), as well as for one of his best stories, ''Sonyeuse'', which he linked to portraits exhibited by

Antonio de La Gándara Antonio de La Gándara (16 December 186130 June 1917) was a French painter, pastellist and draughtsman. La Gándara was born in Paris, France, but his father was of Spanish ancestry, born in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, and his mother was from En ...

in 1893. He also wrote the

libretto A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...

Pierre de Bréville Pierre Eugène Onfroy de Bréville (21 February 1861 – 24 September 1949) was a French composer. Biography Pierre de Bréville was born in Bar-le-Duc, Meuse (department), Meuse. Following the wishes of his parents, he studied law with the goal ...

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

'' Éros vainqueur'' (1910). Manuel Orazi Illustrated his Novella ''Ma petite ville'' in 1989. Lorrain was openly gay, often citing ancient Greece as noble heritage for homosexuality and became colloquially known as 'The Ambassador from Sodom'. Due to tubercular symptoms, he started using

morphine Morphine is a strong opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin in poppies (''Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as a analgesic, pain medication, and is also commonly used recreational drug, recreationally, or to make ...

, and then moved on to drinking

ether In organic chemistry, ethers are a class of compounds that contain an ether group—an oxygen atom connected to two alkyl or aryl groups. They have the general formula , where R and R′ represent the alkyl or aryl groups. Ethers can again be c ...

, a habit he shared with

Guy de Maupassant Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant (, ; ; 5 August 1850 – 6 July 1893) was a 19th-century French author, remembered as a master of the short story form, as well as a representative of the Naturalist school, who depicted human lives, destin ...

. Under the influence of ether Lorrain wrote several horror stories, but eventually the substance gave him stomach ulcers and health problems.

Works

Poetry

* ''Le Sang des dieux'' (1882) * ''La Forêt bleue'' (1882) * ''Modernités'' (1885) * ''Les Griseries'' (1887) * ''L'Ombre ardente'' (1897)

Novels

* ''Les Lépillier'' (1885 et 1908) * ''Très russe'' (1886) * ''Un démoniaque'' (1895) * ''Monsieur de Bougrelon'' (1897) * ''La Dame turque'' (1898) * '' Monsieur de Phocas'' (1901) * ''Le Vice errant'' (1901) * ''La Maison Philibert'' (1904), adaptée par

José de Bérys José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ). In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacu ...

, Noré Brunel et

Georges Normandy Georges may refer to: Places * Georges River, New South Wales, Australia * Georges Quay (Dublin) *Georges Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania Other uses *Georges (name) * ''Georges'' (novel), a novel by Alexandre Dumas * "Georges" (song), a 19 ...

et représentée sur la scène du Moulin de la Chanson à Paris en février 1932. * ''Madame Monpalou'' (1906) * ''Ellen'' (1906) * ''Le Tétreau'' Bosc (1906), Le Livre Moderne Illustré n° 354 (1941) * ''L'Aryenne'' (1907) * ''Maison pour dames'' (1908) * ''Hélie, garçon d'hôtel'' (1908)

Novellas

* ''Sonyeuse'' (1891) * ''Buveurs d'âmes'' (1893) * ''La Princesse sous verre'' (1896) * ''Un Femme Par Jour'' (1896) * ''Âmes d'automne'' (1897) * ''Loreley'' (1897) * ''Contes pour lire à la chandelle'' (1897) * ''Ma petite ville'' (1898) * ''Princesses d'Italie'' (1898) * ''Histoires de masques'' (1900) * ''

Princesses d'ivoire et d'ivresse Princess is a regal rank and the feminine equivalent of prince (from Latin ''princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for the consort of a prince, or for the daughter of a king or prince. Princess as a subst ...

'' (1902) * ''Vingt femmes'' (1903) * ''Quelques hommes'' (1903) * ''La Mandragore'' (1903) * ''Fards et poisons'' (1904) * ''Propos d'âmes simples'' (1904) * ''L'École des vieilles femmes'' (1905) * ''Le Crime des riches'' (1906) * ''Narkiss'' (1909) * ''Les Pelléastres'' (1910)

Stage

* ''Viviane'', conte en 1 acte (1885) * ''Très russe'', pièce en 3 actes, avec

Oscar Méténier Oscar Méténier (17 January 1859 – 9 February 1913) was a French playwright and novelist. In 1897 he founded ''Le Théâtre du Grand-Guignol'' in Paris, planning it as a space for naturalist performance. Life Born in Sancoins, Cher, th ...

, Paris, Théâtre d'Application (

La Bodinière The Théâtre La Bodinière was a theater in Paris directed by Charles Bodinier between 1890 and 1902. It staged lectures and performances for a distinguished audience of aristocrats, grand bourgeois and intelligentsia. Background Charles Bodi ...

), 3 mai 1893 * ''Yanthis'', comédie en 4 actes, en vers (1894) * ''Prométhée'', avec André-Ferdinand Hérold (1900) * ''Neigilde'' (1902) * ''Clair de lune'', drame en un acte et deux tableaux, avec

Fabrice Delphi Fabrice is a French masculine given name from the Roman name ''Fabricius'', which is itself derived from the Latin ''faber'' meaning blacksmith or craftsman. Notable people with the name include: * Fabrice Balanche (born 1969), French geographer * ...

, Paris,

Concert de l'Époque A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variety ...

, 17 décembre 1903 * ''Deux heures du matin, quartier Marbeuf'', avec

Gustave Coquiot Gustave Coquiot (24 September 1865 – 6 June 1926) was a French art critic and writer. A collector of paintings by Maurice Utrillo, he also was one of Auguste Rodin's secretaries. Theatre * 1904: ''Deux heures du matin, quartier Marbeuf'' ...

(1904) * 1904: ''Sainte-Roulette'' de Jean Lorrain et

Théâtre des Bouffes du Nord The Bouffes du Nord is a theatre at 37 bis, boulevard de la Chapelle, in the 10th arrondissement of Paris located near the Gare du Nord. It has been listed since 1993 as a ''monument historique'' by the French Ministry of Culture. History Founde ...

* ''Hôtel de l'Ouest, chambre 22'', avec Gustave Coquiot (1905) * ''Théâtre: Brocéliandre, Yanthis, La Mandragore, Ennoïa'' (1906)

Chronicles and travel writing

* ''Dans l'oratoire'' (1888) * ''La Petite Classe'' (1895) * ''Sensations et souvenirs'' (1895) * ''Une femme par jour'' (1896) * ''Poussières de Paris'' (1896–1902) * ''Madame Baringhel'' (1899) * ''Heures d'Afrique'' (1899) * ''Heures de Corse'' (1905)''Heures de Corse'' (1905)
online text * ''La Ville empoisonnée'' (1930) * ''Femmes de 1900'' (1932) * ''Voyages'', (2009), Les Promeneurs solitaires, préface de Sébastien Paré.

Translations into English

* '' Monsieur de Phocas'', Dedalus Books (1994) * ''

Nightmares of an Ether-Drinker A nightmare, also known as a bad dream, Retrieved 11 July 2016. is an unpleasant dream that can cause a strong emotional response from the mind, typically fear but also despair, anxiety or great sadness. The dream may contain situations of d ...

'' (translation of ''Sensations et souvenirs'', with additional material, by

Brian Stableford Brian Michael Stableford (born 25 July 1948) is a British academic, critic and science fiction writer who has published more than 70 novels. His earlier books were published under the name Brian M. Stableford, but more recent ones have dropped ...

), Snuggly Books (2016) * '' The Soul-Drinker and Other Decadent Fantasies'' (includes translations of ''Sonyeuse'', ''La Mandragore'', ''La Princesse sous verre'', with additional material, by

), Snuggly Books (2016)
Monsieur de Bougrelon
translated and with an afterword by Eva Richter, Spurl Editions (2016)

Notes

External links

* Poems by Jean Lorrain (in French): https://web.archive.org/web/20080423034855/http://poesie.webnet.fr/auteurs/lorrain.html * Short stories by Jean Lorrain (in French): https://web.archive.org/web/20030216165829/http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/bib_lisieux/lorrain.htm

on

glbtq.com glbtq.com (also known as the glbtq Encyclopedia Project) was an online encyclopedia of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer ( GLBTQ) culture. Launched in 2003, it was edited by Claude J. Summers, emeritus professor at the University of ...

Monsieur de Bougrelon
by Jean Lorrain * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lorrain, Jean 1855 births 1906 deaths French fantasy writers French poets French gay writers French opera librettists People from Fécamp French LGBT poets French LGBT novelists French male poets French male novelists French male dramatists and playwrights 19th-century French poets 19th-century French novelists 19th-century French dramatists and playwrights 19th-century French male writers French duellists