Dominique Fernandez

Dominique Fernandez - L'Aube
Dominique Fernandez is a french author, essayist and critic with over 30 novels published. He won the Prix Goncourt in 1982 with Dans la main de L'ange. LAube was his second novel originally published in 1962, but was revised revised by the Author in 2003. It is a short novel of 126 pages in fairly large type and so almost of novella length, which is fitting for the subject matter of the book.

Jean a young man of 27 years is taking a break with his girlfriend Agatha. They have decided to spend the night at an old mill surrounded by willow trees. Jean is reluctant from the start, he has forebodings about the situation and his relationship with Agatha has become strained. During the night after they have made love there is a storm and a branch of one of the trees strikes the shutters waking them up. Jean is on edge anyway and gets out of bed. Agatha is also restless and from their stilted conversation it appears they are going over old ground about their relationship, but Jean opens up more and talks about his childhood. He was brought up by an aunt who was herself living alone. Her husband had left her and she has become a misandrist, she is over protective of Jean and tries to stop him growing up. Jean admits to being a sensitive and sickly boy with few friends of his own age. He does not start growing up until he leaves home, but then drifts from one relationship to the next. He is suspicious and afraid of committing to Agatha and this confession of sorts is dragged out of him by the more mature female figure: Agatha.

A stormy night and a psychological examination of the tortured adolescence of Jean, makes for a sensitive and interesting read. 3.5 stars.… (more)

D'après la mythologie grecque, Ganymède était le plus bel adolescent vivant sur la terre. Zeus, le dieu suprême, étant tombé amoureux du jeune homme, prit la forme d'un aigle pour l'enlever et en faire son compagnon dans le ciel. Le rapt de Ganymède est resté le symbole de l'audace nécessaire à un amour qui défie les règles communes. Quand j'étais étudiant, deux mots étaient synonymes : homosexuel et paria. Aux hommes et aux femmes de ma génération a manqué la possibilité de découvrir, chez des modèles que le monde entier admire, une légitimation de goûts que l'opinion publique réprouve sous l'épithète de "contre nature". J'ai voulu montrer, d'une part que la persécution de l'homosexualité à partir du XIXe siècle s'explique par des raisons exclusivement économiques et politiques, d'autre part que certains des plus grands esprits, des meilleurs poètes et romanciers, compositeurs de musique, peintres et cinéastes de tous les temps, de Sapho à Platon, de Whitman à Cavafy, de Melville à Yourcenar, du Caravage à David, de Mozart à Schubert, d'Eisenstein à Visconti, ont tissé un réseau d'oeuvres qui peuvent servir désormais de culture, c'est-à-dire d'exemple et d'encouragement. Bien mieux que les paternes et hypocrites absolutions prononcées depuis cent ans par les psychiatres et psychanalystes, véritable imposture de notre temps, dévoilée ici dans un sottisier réjouissant. D.F.… (more)