Prosper Mérimée, Prosper Mérimée's Short Stories

Scott Carpenter (Carleton College)

Ed. by Tim Unwin, University of Bristol
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.5.2.05: French Writing and Culture: The Nineteenth-Century , 1800-1900.
Vol. editors: David Elwyn Evans (University of St Andrews), Edward Forman (University of Bristol), Elisabeth Gerwin (University of Lethbridge), Nigel Harkness (University of Newcastle upon Tyne), Tim Unwin (University of Bristol), David Williams (University of Sheffield), Jennifer Yee (University of Oxford)

Domains

Literature Topic

Dates

First circulation or publication 1833 - 1873

Places

France (Publication/ performance)

Genres and Modes

Story Collection

Resources

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Recommended Reading

In many ways Prosper Mérimée may be considered the founder of the modern French short story. Certainly narrative works characterized by their brevity had appeared earlier in France, all the way back to medieval

fabliaux

and up through eighteenth-century philosophical tales (

contes philosophiques

); more recently, Charles Nodier had published a number of supernatural tales (such as “Smarra ou les démons de la nuit”, 1821, and “Trilby”, 1822). But Mérimée brought to short literature a modern infatuation with psychological realism and deep characterization. These elements, combined with his uncanny aptitude for stylistic and narrative concision, made Mérimée the standard-bearer for short fiction throughout much of the nineteenth-century, influencing writers as diverse as Balzac…

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2894 words

Citation: Carpenter, Scott. "Prosper Mérimée's Short Stories". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 20 August 2010 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=31201, accessed 31 October 2024.]

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