was published by Mercure de France in 1909, after appearing in serialised form in the first three numbers of

. 1924 saw its publication in English as

in an elegant translation by Dorothy Bussy. It belongs to the French

tradition of first-person confessional narratives, exemplified by Prévost’s

(1731). Gide had already published

[

]

(1902) in this genre, and would pen five more

. The work is dedicated to Madeleine Gide, Gide’s first cousin, who became his wife in 1895.

Jérôme, who is in his late thirties, relates the tale of his relationship with his beloved cousin, Alissa. Their engagement, for which he longs almost throughout the text, never happens. The

2483 words

Citation: Reid, Victoria. "La Porte étroite". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 21 September 2011 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=11390, accessed 26 April 2024.]

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