Claude Farrère
Encyclopedia
Claude Farrère, pseudonym of Frédéric-Charles Bargone (27 April 1876, Lyon
, – 21 June 1957, Paris
), was a French author
of novel
s set in such exotic locations as Istanbul
, Saigon, and Nagasaki. One of his novels, Les civilisés (The Civilized) won the Prix Goncourt
for 1905. He was elected for a chair at the Académie Française
on 26 March 1935. Initially, however, he imitated his father, an infantry colonel who served in the French colonies: enlisting with the naval academy in 1894, he was made lieutenant in 1906 and was promoted to captain during 1918. He resigned the next year to concentrate on his writing career.
His works have become largely disfavored, even by French readers. To date, fewer than five websites on the World Wide Web
offer his works, and fewer than 100 websites give him even a cursory mention.
Perhaps the best known reference to Farrère today is the perfume "Mitsouko
" by the long-lived perfumer Guerlain
. Mitsouko was a beautiful Japanese
woman whose name meant "mystery" and had an ill-fated love affair with an English officer during the beginning of the 20th Century. The story of Mitsouko and the officer is found in Farrère's novel La Bataille (1909). It was immediately translated into Serbian by Veljko M. Milićević under the title Boj (The Battle) and published in Sarajevo in 1912.
Farrère's name has also been given to a street in Sultanahmet, Istanbul
for his favorable description to Turkish culture and Turks
. Orhan Pamuk
's publisher, İletişim Publishing, is situated on this street ("Klod Farer Caddesi" as spelled in Turkish).
A number of Farrère's novels were published internationally by his real name, Frédéric-Charles Bargone.
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, – 21 June 1957, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
), was a French author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
of novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
s set in such exotic locations as Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, Saigon, and Nagasaki. One of his novels, Les civilisés (The Civilized) won the Prix Goncourt
Prix Goncourt
The Prix Goncourt is a prize in French literature, given by the académie Goncourt to the author of "the best and most imaginative prose work of the year"...
for 1905. He was elected for a chair at the Académie Française
Académie française
L'Académie française , also called the French Academy, is the pre-eminent French learned body on matters pertaining to the French language. The Académie was officially established in 1635 by Cardinal Richelieu, the chief minister to King Louis XIII. Suppressed in 1793 during the French Revolution,...
on 26 March 1935. Initially, however, he imitated his father, an infantry colonel who served in the French colonies: enlisting with the naval academy in 1894, he was made lieutenant in 1906 and was promoted to captain during 1918. He resigned the next year to concentrate on his writing career.
His works have become largely disfavored, even by French readers. To date, fewer than five websites on the World Wide Web
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
offer his works, and fewer than 100 websites give him even a cursory mention.
Perhaps the best known reference to Farrère today is the perfume "Mitsouko
Mitsouko (perfume)
Mitsouko is a 1919 perfume by Guerlain. Its name is derived from the French transliteration of a Japanese female personal name. Its top notes are a fruity chypre, with floral middle notes and spice base notes.-History:...
" by the long-lived perfumer Guerlain
Guerlain
Guerlain is a French perfume house, among the oldest in the world. It has a large and loyal customer following, and is held in high esteem in the perfume industry...
. Mitsouko was a beautiful Japanese
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
woman whose name meant "mystery" and had an ill-fated love affair with an English officer during the beginning of the 20th Century. The story of Mitsouko and the officer is found in Farrère's novel La Bataille (1909). It was immediately translated into Serbian by Veljko M. Milićević under the title Boj (The Battle) and published in Sarajevo in 1912.
Farrère's name has also been given to a street in Sultanahmet, Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
for his favorable description to Turkish culture and Turks
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
. Orhan Pamuk
Orhan Pamuk
Ferit Orhan Pamuk , generally known simply as Orhan Pamuk, is a Turkish novelist. He is also the Robert Yik-Fong Tam Professor in the Humanities at Columbia University, where he teaches comparative literature and writing....
's publisher, İletişim Publishing, is situated on this street ("Klod Farer Caddesi" as spelled in Turkish).
A number of Farrère's novels were published internationally by his real name, Frédéric-Charles Bargone.