André de Richaud (6 April 1907 in

Perpignan Perpignan (, , ; ; ) is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales departments of France, department in Southern France, in the heart of the plain of Roussillon, at the foot of the Pyrenees a few kilometres from the Me ...

– 29 September 1968 in

Montpellier Montpellier (; ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of France, department of ...

) 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 (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

and writer. After his father was killed in the First World War in 1915, his mother became a lover of a German prisoner of war, which caused him a trauma that made him later sell their house and move away. At the age of twenty he wrote an

autobiographical novel An autobiographical novel, also known as an autobiographical fiction, fictional autobiography, or autobiographical fiction novel, is a type of novel which uses autofiction techniques, or the merging of autobiographical and fictive elements. The ...

''Pain'' (whose heroine's impact on her son's life seems similar to the impact of the stepfather on the life of

Baudelaire Charles Pierre Baudelaire (, ; ; 9 April 1821 – 31 August 1867) was a French poet, essayist, translator and art critic. His poems are described as exhibiting mastery of rhythm and rhyme, containing an exoticism inherited from the Romantics, an ...

) which greatly influenced

Albert Camus Albert Camus ( ; ; 7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960) was a French philosopher, author, dramatist, journalist, world federalist, and political activist. He was the recipient of the 1957 Nobel Prize in Literature at the age of 44, the s ...

. He was awarded the 1954

Prix Guillaume Apollinaire The prix Guillaume Apollinaire is a French poetry prize first awarded in 1941. It was named in honour of French writer Guillaume Apollinaire. It annually recognizes a collection of poems for its originality and modernity. Members of the jury The ...

. His works include novels, poetry, plays and essays. Despite being successful (his friends included

Jean Giraudoux Hippolyte Jean Giraudoux (; ; 29 October 1882 – 31 January 1944) was a French novelist, essayist, diplomat and playwright. He is considered among the most important French dramatists of the period between World War I and World War II. His wo ...

André Gide André Paul Guillaume Gide (; 22 November 1869 – 19 February 1951) was a French writer and author whose writings spanned a wide variety of styles and topics. He was awarded the 1947 Nobel Prize in Literature. Gide's career ranged from his begi ...

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau ( , ; ; 5 July 1889 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, film director, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost avant-garde artists of the 20th-c ...

Fernand Léger Joseph Fernand Henri Léger (; February 4, 1881 – August 17, 1955) was a French painting, painter, sculpture, sculptor, and film director, filmmaker. In his early works he created a personal form of cubism (known as "tubism") which he gradually ...

Luis Buñuel Luis Buñuel Portolés (; 22 February 1900 – 29 July 1983) was a Spanish and Mexican filmmaker who worked in France, Mexico and Spain. He has been widely considered by many film critics, historians and directors to be one of the greatest and ...

Jean Marais Jean-Alfred Villain-Marais (11 December 1913 – 8 November 1998), known professionally as Jean Marais (), was a French actor, film director, theatre director, painter, sculptor, visual artist, writer and photographer. He performed in over 100 f ...

and

Léon-Paul Fargue Léon-Paul Fargue (, 4 March 187624 November 1947) was a French poet and essayist. He was born in Paris, France, on rue Coquilliére. As a poet he was noted for his poetry of atmosphere and detail. His work spanned numerous literary movements. ...

), he could never come to terms with the world (which is typical for a

poète maudit A ''poète maudit'' is a poet living a life outside or against society. Insanity, crime, violence, abuse of alcohol or other drugs, and in general any societal sin, often resulting in an early death, are typical elements of the biography of a '' ...

), and became addicted to alcohol and drugs. He died in a hospital, self-destructed, paralyzed and penniless, but in his words "thankfully surrounded by friends - children and dogs."Slavík, Ivan, ''Rozklenout srázné'', p. 87; Olomouc, 1993

Works

''"J'ai cru tricher, et l'on m'a triché : croyant avoir deux figures, je n'en ai plus." / "I thought that I was creating delusions, but I was deluded myself: I thought I had two personalities, and I have none."'' * ''Vie de saint Delteil'', (1928) * ''La Création du monde'', (1930) * ''La Douleur'', (1930); Pain * ''La Fontaine des lunatiques'', (1932) * ''Le Village'', (1932) * ''Le Château des papes'', (1933) * ''L'Amour fraternel'', (1936) * ''Le Droit d'asile'', (1937) * ''La Barrette rouge'', (1938) * ''Le Mauvais'', (1945) * ''La Rose de Noël'', (1947) * ''L'Étrange Visiteur'', (1956) * ''Je ne suis pas mort'', (1965)

References

External links

Société des Etudes André de Richaud, in French
People from Perpignan 1907 births 1961 deaths Poètes maudits 20th-century French poets Roger Nimier Prize winners Prix Guillaume Apollinaire winners French male poets 20th-century French male writers {{France-poet-stub