François-René de Chateaubriand
François-René, vicomte de Chateaubriand was a French writer, politician, diplomat and historian who influenced French literature of the nineteenth century. Descended from an old aristocratic family from Brittany, Chateaubriand was a royalist by political disposition. In an age when large numbers of intellectuals turned against the Church, he authored the Génie du christianisme in defense of the Catholic faith. His works include the autobiography Mémoires d'Outre-Tombe, published posthumously in 1849–1850.
Chateaubriand Meditating on the Ruins of Rome (ca.1810s) by Anne-Louis Girodet de Roussy-Trioson. Oil on canvas.
The château de Combourg, where Chateaubriand spent his childhood
Young Chateaubriand, by Anne-Louis Girodet (c. 1790)
Chateaubriand as a Peer of France (1828)
French literature generally speaking, is literature written in the French language, particularly by citizens of France; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of France other than French. Literature written in the French language by citizens of other nations such as Belgium, Switzerland, Canada, Senegal, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, etc. is referred to as Francophone literature.
Paul Verlaine (far left) and Arthur Rimbaud (second to left) in an 1872 painting by Henri Fantin-Latour.
Samuel Beckett Walk, Paris (France). Nobel Prize 1969.
Seminar with Claude Simon, Cerisy (France). Nobel Prize 1985.
French contemporary literature workshop with Marc Avelot, Philippe Binant, Bernard Magné, Claudette Oriol-Boyer, Jean Ricardou, Cerisy (France), 1980.