Three French Writers and the Great War: Studies in the Rise of Communism and Fascism

Field, Frank

ISBN 10: 0521209161 / ISBN 13: 9780521209168

Published by Cambridge University Press, 1975

About this Item

First edition. Light wear to boards. Content has light toning to page ends. DJ with some edge wear and tears.

Seller Inventory # 9999-99998665755

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Three French Writers and the Great War: Studies in the Rise of Communism and Fascism
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication Date: 1975
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0521209161
• ISBN 13: 9780521209168
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Good

About this title

Synopsis

The impact of the First World War on European society and the rise of Communism and Fascism are important subjects that concern all students of recent history. The object of this book is to study these themes through the careers of three French writers: Henri Barbusse, Drieu la Rochelle and Georges Bernanos. Each of these writers served in the war and was subsequently attracted towards Communism or Fascism. Barbusse first achieved fame through his anti-war novel Le Feu, but in the years after 1918 he made a new career for himself as a rallying point for Communist sympathizers amongst the French intellectuals. After becoming one of the most intelligent and sophisticated advocates of Fascism in the 1930s, Drieu la Rochelle opted for a policy of collaboration with the Germans in 1940 and committed suicide in 1945. Bernanos moved to a position very close to Fascism in the 1930s, but his experiences in the Spanish Civil War, experiences that he so memorably described in Les grands cimeliires sous la lune, made him devote the remaining years of his life to an attack on all forms of totalitarianism.

Book Description

The impact of the First World War on European society and the rise of Communism and Fascism are important subjects that concern all students of recent history. The object of this book is to study these themes through the careers of three French writers: Henri Barbusse, Drieu la Rochelle and Georges Bernanos.