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''Chéri'' is a novel by
Colette Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette (; 28 January 1873 – 3 August 1954), known as Colette or Colette Willy, was a French author and woman of letters. She was also a Mime artist, mime, actress, and journalist. Colette is best known in the English-speaki ...
published in France in 1920. The title character's true name is Fred Peloux, but he is known as Chéri to almost everyone, except, usually, to his wife. This novel was followed by a sequel, '' La Fin de Chéri'', published in 1926.


Plot summary

The novel opens with an exchange between Léa and Chéri. They are physically involved, and they argue while Chéri plays with Léa's pearls and thinks on her age. He mentions his marriage prospects, but she seems to take this in stride as they believe their relationship is casual. They have been involved for around six years, and she is forty-nine while he is twenty-five. Léa alternatingly obsesses over getting old and celebrates what she has done and who she has had in her life while demonstrating no remorse over her life as a courtesan. As they often do, the pair playfully fight before making up, and he runs off to meet his potential bride, Edmée. Edmée is revealed to be a reticent girl with a boisterous, rude mother (Marie-Laure). At this point, there are flashbacks through the course of their relationship. Léa considers Chéri's mother, Charlotte, a competitor but she also appears to be one of her closest friends. When Chéri was nineteen, Léa mentioned taking a trip to the country. She and Chéri argue a little, kiss and make up, and travel together to Normandy where they stay for several months as lovers. At times she thinks that he is so distant, he might as well speak another language. After attempting to have him trained in boxing, the text flashes forward to a more recent time. Chéri is telling Léa of his upcoming marriage to Edmée and is disappointed by her lack of response. Notably, his mother and Edmée's mother are at war over the couple's future financial arrangements. After their marriage, Chéri is notably depressed. Léa takes her leave without telling anyone where she is going or when she will come back. Chéri does not take this news well and wishes constantly to know more while reflecting on the shocking youth of his young (nineteen year old) bride and comparing her with Léa. After an argument with Edmée, Chéri goes for a late night walk and eventually ends up with a friend, Desmond. He has Desmond call his house for him and tell them first that he is having dinner and then that he is staying with Desmond for the night. He does not return home for months though. In this time period, he repeatedly thinks of going home or of divorce, yet he does neither. He pays Desmond for his services, yet he never actually sleeps with the women or does the drugs that are provided. In his absence, Edmée writes him to say that she will wait at their home for further instructions. After having been gone for six and a half months, Léa returns. This spurs Chéri to buy apology gifts and actually return home to his young wife (who happily accepts his return after his three months' absence). It is revealed that Léa had some lovers while she was away; however, she seems uninterested in most of her old habits once she has returned to Paris. Realizing she is being ridiculous, she begins trying to make plans to keep her mind from her longing for Chéri. Not long afterward, Chéri turns up on Léa's doorstep and she lets him in. He declares he is here to stay and they realize their relationship was one of love. They have sex that night. After awakening, she begins to plan for them to escape Paris discreetly together; however, there seem to be some prior feelings that they cannot move beyond. They begin to argue, and he must remind her of what a kind woman she typically is and how she is supposed to care for others. He admits that he has been obsessed with seeing her again and could not move past her. Although this may be true, in the light of morning, he sees how she has aged tremendously and realizes that the Léa he longed for is gone. Heartbroken, she thanks him for finding her beautiful and worthy for so long. She says he should blame her for all that is wrong with him, and sends him home to his wife despite longing to do otherwise. As he walks away, she excitedly thinks he may turn around; however, he does not. The novel ends with his back to her as he leaves and him filling his lungs with air the way an escaped convict might.


English translations

* ''Chéri'' and ''The Last of Chéri'', translated by
Roger Senhouse Roger Henry Pocklington Senhouse (18 November 1899 31 August 1970) was an English publisher and translator, and a peripheral member of the Bloomsbury Group of writers, intellectuals, and artists. He had a sado-masochistic sexual relationship with ...
(
Farrar, Straus and Giroux Farrar, Straus and Giroux (FSG) is an American book publishing company, founded in 1946 by Roger Williams Straus Jr. and John C. Farrar. FSG is known for publishing literary books, and its authors have won numerous awards, including Pulitzer P ...
, 1951) * ''Chéri'' and ''The End of Chéri'', translated by Rachel Careau (
W. W. Norton W. W. Norton & Company is an American publishing company based in New York City. Established in 1923, it has been owned wholly by its employees since the early 1960s. The company is known for its Norton Anthologies (particularly '' The Norton ...
, 2022) * ''Chéri'' and ''The End of Chéri'', translated by Paul Eprile (
New York Review Books New York Review Books (NYRB) is the publishing division of ''The New York Review of Books''. Its imprints are New York Review Books Classics, New York Review Books Collections, The New York Review Children's Collection, New York Review Comics, ...
, 2022)


Adaptations

The novel has been adapted to film twice, in 1950 by Pierre Billon and in 2009 by
Stephen Frears Sir Stephen Arthur Frears (born 20 June 1941) is a British director and producer of film and television, often depicting real life stories as well as projects that explore social class through sharply-drawn characters. He has received numerous a ...
to a screenplay by
Christopher Hampton Sir Christopher James Hampton (born 26 January 1946) is a British playwright, screenwriter, translator and film director. He is best known for his play Les Liaisons Dangereuses (play), ''Les Liaisons Dangereuses'' based on the Les Liaisons da ...
with
Rupert Friend Rupert William Anthony Friend (born October 1981) is a British actor. He first gained recognition for his roles in ''The Libertine (2004 film), The Libertine'' (2004) and ''Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont'' (2005), both of which won him awards for ...
as Chéri and
Michelle Pfeiffer Michelle Marie Pfeiffer ( ; born April 29, 1958) is an American actress. She was one of the most bankable stars in Cinema of the United States, Hollywood during the 1980s and 1990s, and her List of Michelle Pfeiffer performances, performances ...
as Léa; and for television twice, in 1962 by with
Jean-Claude Brialy Jean-Claude Brialy (30 March 1933 – 30 May 2007) was a French actor and film director. Early life Brialy was born in Aumale (now Sour El-Ghozlane), French Algeria, where his father was stationed with the French Army. Brialy moved to mainland ...
and Madeleine Robinson, and as a five-part series for the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
in 1973 by
Claude Whatham Claude Whatham (7 December 1927 – 4 January 2008) was an English film and television director, mainly known for his work on dramas. Early life In 1940, Whatham, a teenage evacuee art student, had been commissioned to paint fairytale pictures ...
with Scott Antony and
Yvonne Mitchell Yvonne Mitchell (born Yvonne Frances Joseph; 7 July 1915 – 24 March 1979) was an English actress and author. After beginning her acting career in theatre, Mitchell progressed to films in the late 1940s. Her roles include Julia in the 1954 BB ...
. South African composer David Earl wrote the music for a ballet of ''Chéri'' in 1978.


In art

''
Womanhouse ''Womanhouse'' (January 30 – February 28, 1972) was a feminist art installation and performance space organized by Judy Chicago and Miriam Schapiro, co-founders of the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) Feminist Art Program, and was the ...
'' (January 30 – February 28, 1972) was a
feminist art The feminist art movement refers to the efforts and accomplishments of feminists internationally to produce feminist art, art that reflects women's lives and experiences, as well as to change the foundation for the production and perception of co ...
installation and performance space organized by
Judy Chicago Judy Chicago (born Judith Sylvia Cohen; July 20, 1939) is an American feminist artist, art educator, and writer known for her large collaborative art installation pieces about birth and creation images, which examine the role of women in history ...
and
Miriam Schapiro Miriam Schapiro (also known as Mimi) (November 15, 1923 – June 20, 2015) was a Canadian-born artist based in the United States. She was a painter, sculptor, printmaker, and a pioneer of feminist art. She was also considered a leader of the Pa ...
, co-founders of the California Institute of the Arts (
CalArts The California Institute of the Arts (CalArts) is a private art school in Santa Clarita, California. It was incorporated in 1961 as the first degree-granting institution of higher learning in the US created specifically for students of both the ...
) Feminist Art Program, and was the first public exhibition of art centered upon female empowerment. One of the rooms in it, Leah's Room by Karen LeCocq and Nancy Youdelman, was based on the novel. Karen and Nancy borrowed an antique dressing table and rug, made lace curtains and covered the bed with satin and lace to create the effect of a boudoir. They filled the closet with old-looking clothes and veiled hats, and wallpapered the walls to add a feeling of nostalgia. LeCocq sat at the dressing table dressed in a nineteenth-century-style costume as Léa, studiously applying make-up over and over and then removing it, replicating the character’s attempts to save her fading beauty.


References


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheri (Novel) 1920 French novels French novels adapted into films French romance novels Novels by Colette Novels set in France French novels adapted into television shows Novels adapted into ballets