Serge Doubrovsky

Summary

Julien Serge Doubrovsky (22 May 1928, Paris – 23 March 2017, Boulogne-Billancourt) was a French writer and 1989 Prix Médicis winner for Le Livre brisé. He is also a critical theorist, and coined the term "autofiction" in the drafts for his novel Fils (1977).[1]

Serge Doubrovsky
Born22 May 1928
Paris, France
Died23 March 2017 (2017-03-24) (aged 88)
Boulogne-Billancourt, France
Alma materÉcole Normale Supérieure
Occupation(s)Author, theorist
ChildrenRenee, Cathy
RelativesMarc Weitzmann (cousin)

Early life edit

Julien Doubrovsky was born on 22 May 1928 in Paris.[2][3] His father was a tailor and his mother was a secretary.[3] His family was Jewish; in 1943, in the midst of World War II, they fled Le Vésinet and hid with a cousin.[3]

Doubrovsky graduated from the École normale supérieure, and he earned the agrégation in English in 1949.[2][3] He subsequently earned a PhD in French Literature.[3]

Career edit

Doubrovsky became a professor of French Literature at New York University in 1966.[3] He subsequently taught at Harvard University, Smith College, and Brandeis University.[2] He retired in 2010.[3]

Along with publishing seven volumes of autobiography, he was known as a critical theorist.[4] He coined the term 'autofiction', which has now entered the French dictionary.

Death edit

Doubrovsky resided in the 16th arrondissement of Paris.[5] He died on 23 March 2017 in Boulogne-Billancourt .[2][5]

Bibliography edit

  • Le jour S, 1963.
  • Corneille et la Dialectique du héros, 1963.
  • Pourquoi la nouvelle critique : critique et objectivité, 1966.
  • La Dispersion, 1969.
  • La place de la madeleine : écriture et fantasme chez Proust, Mercure de France 1974.
  • Fils, 1977.
  • Parcours critique, 1980.
  • Un amour de soi, 1982.
  • La vie l'instant, 1985.
  • Autobiographiques : de Corneille à Sartre, 1988.
  • Le livre brisé, 1989.
  • L'après-vivre 1994.
  • Laissé pour conte, 1999.
  • Parcours critique 2, 2006
  • Un homme de passage, 2011.

References edit

  1. ^ Gronemann, Claudia (2019). "2.6 Autofiction". Handbook of Autobiography / Autofiction. De Gruyter. pp. 241–246. doi:10.1515/9783110279818-029. ISBN 9783110279818. S2CID 189334951.
  2. ^ a b c d Heliot, Armelle (March 24, 2017). "Adieu à Serge Doubrovsky, inventeur de "l'autofiction"". Le Figaro. Retrieved March 27, 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Contat, Michel (23 March 2017). "Mort de l'écrivain Serge Doubrovsky". Le Monde (in French). Retrieved 23 March 2017.
  4. ^ University of Leicester
  5. ^ a b Caviglioli, David (March 23, 2017). "Mort de Serge Doubrovsky, père de l'autofiction". L'Obs. Retrieved March 27, 2017.