Opening of the book
THE RED LILY
By Anatole France
The real name of the subject of this preface is JacquesAnatole Thibault. He was born in Paris, April 16, 1844, the son of a bookseller of the Quai Malaquais, in the shadow of the Institute. He was educated at the College
Stanislas and published in 1868 an essay upon Alfred de
Vigny. This was followed by two volumes of poetry: ‘Les
Poemes Dores’ (1873), and ‘Les Noces Corinthiennes’
(1876). With the last mentioned book his reputation became established.
Anatole France belongs to the class of poets known as
“Les
Parnassiens.”
Yet
a
book
like
‘Les
Noces
Corinthiennes’ ought to be classified among a group of earlier lyrics, inasmuch as it shows to a large degree the influence of Andre Chenier and Alfred de Vigny. France was, and is, also a diligent contributor to many journals and reviews, among others, ‘Le Globe, Les Debats, Le
Journal Officiel, L’Echo de Paris, La Revue de Famille, and Le Temps’. On the last mentioned journal he succeeded
Jules Claretie. He is likewise Librarian to the Senate, and has been a member of the French Academy since 1896.
The above mentioned two volumes of poetry were followed by many works in prose, which we shall notice. France’s critical writings are collected in four volumes, under the title, ‘La Vie Litteraire’ (1888-1892); his political articles in ‘Opinions Sociales’ (2 vols., 1902). He combines in his style traces of Racine, Voltaire,
Flaubert, and Renan, and, indeed, some of his novels, especially ‘Thais’ (1890), ‘Jerome Coignard’ (1893), and
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