Aymé, Marcel

Aymé, Marcel
born March 29, 1902, Joigny, Fr.
died Oct. 14, 1967, Paris

French novelist, essayist, and playwright.

His novels include The Hollow Field (1929), The Fable and the Flesh (1943), and The Transient Hour (1946). He delighted a vast public with witty tales of talking farm animals (reflecting his own farm upbringing), some of which were published in English as The Wonderful Farm (1951). Though his extravagant creations mingling fantasy and reality were long dismissed as minor, he was belatedly recognized as a master of light irony and storytelling.

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▪ French author
born March 29, 1902, Joigny, France
died Oct. 14, 1967, Paris
 French novelist, essayist, and playwright, known as a master of light irony and storytelling.

      He grew up in the country among farmers, in a world of close-knit families bounded by the barnyard on one side, the schoolhouse on the other. Aymé drew most of his characters from this setting. After a short-lived attempt at a career in journalism, he launched into writing. His first novels, Brûlebois (1926) and La Table-aux-crevés (1929; The Hollow Field, 1933; Prix Théophraste-Renaudot), are comedies on rural life. The broad wit of La Jument verte (1933; The Green Mare, 1938) runs through his next novels, La Vouivre (1943; The Fable and the Flesh, 1949) and Le Chemin des écoliers (1946; The Transient Hour, 1948). In these works the universe of Aymé takes shape. Through the familiar sites of town and field, strange denizens roam unquestioned, side by side with normal beings who, in turn, often act in absurd ways. This counterpoint of fantasy and reality finds its perfect format in the short story. "Le Nain" (1934; “The Dwarf”) is about a dwarf who starts growing at 30, and "Le Passe-muraille" (1943; “The Man Who Could Pass Through Walls”) deals with a timid clerk who walks through walls and mystifies the police. Les Contes du chat perché, which appeared in three series in 1939, 1950, and 1958, delighted a vast public of children from “4 to 75” with its talking farm animals that include an ox that goes to school and a pig that thinks it is a peacock. Selections were published in English as The Wonderful Farm (1951).

      Aymé made a late debut in the theatre with Lucienne et le boucher (1947; “Lucienne and the Butcher”). Clérambard (1950) begins with St. Francis of Assisi appearing to a country squire. The initial absurdity is developed with rigorous logic in the manner of the Theatre of the Absurd. The mood in La Tête des autres (1952; “The Head of Others”), an indictment of the judicial corps, is one of savage humour.

      Though Aymé's theatrical works are often cruel and heavy-handed, the wit, wisdom, and morality of his short stories place them in the tradition of the fables of Jean de La Fontaine (La Fontaine, Jean de) and the fairy tales of Charles Perrault (Perrault, Charles). Aymé was long considered a secondary writer whose extravagant creations could not be taken seriously; only belatedly was he recognized for his skill in tone and technique.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Aymé, Marcel — (1902 1967)    writer    Marcel Aymé was born in Joingy and, after a childhood spent in the countryside, came to Paris (1925), where he held various jobs. Later, he became a journalist. The success of his account La Jument verte (1933), in which… …   France. A reference guide from Renaissance to the Present

  • Aymé, Marcel — ► (1902 67) Escritor francés. Obras: La yegua verde y La cabeza de los otros, entre otras. * * * (29 mar. 1902, Joigny, Francia–14 oct. 1967, París). Novelista, ensayista y dramaturgo francés. Entre sus novelas se cuentan La table aux Crevés… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Marcel Ayme — Marcel Aymé Marcel Aymé Activité(s) Écrivain Naissance 29 mars 1902 Joigny Décès 14 octobre 1967 (à 65 ans) Paris Genre(s) romancier, essayiste …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Marcel Aymé — s grave. Cimetière Saint Vincent, Paris. Marcel Aymé (March 29, 1902 – October 14, 1967) was a French novelist, children s writer, humour writer and also a screenwriter and theatre playwright. Contents …   Wikipedia

  • Marcel Ayme — Marcel Aymé (* 29. März 1902 in Joigny; † 14. Oktober 1967 in Paris) war ein französischer Erzähler und Dramatiker. Aus einfachen Verhältnissen stammend (sein Vater war von Beruf Schmied), begann Aymé zunächst ein Medizinstudium und arbeitete… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Marcel Aymé — (* 29. März 1902 in Joigny; † 14. Oktober 1967 in Paris) war ein französischer Erzähler und Dramatiker. Aus einfachen Verhältnissen stammend (sein Vater war von Beruf Schmied), begann Aymé zunächst ein Medizinstudium und arbeitete danach als… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Marcel — Marcel, Gabriel * * * (as used in expressions) Aymé, Marcel Breuer, Marcel (Lajos) Carné, Marcel Dassault, Marcel Marcel Bloch Duchamp, Marcel Marceau, Marcel Marcel, Gabriel (Honoré) …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Aymé — aymé. interj. desus. Ay de mí. * * * Aymé, Marcel …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Aymé — (Marcel) (1902 1967) écrivain français: nombr. romans (la Jument verte, 1941) et nouvelles pleins de verve (le Passe Muraille, 1943), pièces de théâtre, contes (Contes du chat perché, 1934 1958) …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Marcel Aymé — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Aymé. Marcel Aymé Activités Écrivain Naissance 29 mars 1902 Joigny Décès 14 octobre  …   Wikipédia en Français

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