Nick Hammond
Letters of Madame de Sévigné
On the Road with the Marquise
Note to readers: You may choose to read this commentary on the letters of Madame de Sévigné here or listen to it on the audio file at the end of the article. At a time when France and many other … Read More
Été 85
Summer Love
Director François Ozon’s Été 85, originally scheduled to be part of the official Cannes Film Festival lineup this year before the coronavirus crisis forced the festival’s cancellation, is the first major movie to be released in France post-lockdown. It also … Read More
Paris Regained
Return to Café Life
With the devastation and terrible loss that Covid-19 has wrought across the world, it might seem churlish to bemoan the lot of anglophone lovers of all things Parisian, but communication by Zoom and its equivalents with my British and American … Read More
Pensées
To Read or Not To Read Pascal: Countering Objections
Note to readers: You may choose to read this analysis of Blaise Pascal‘s Pensées here or listen to it on the audio file at the end of the article. At first glance, there are many reasons why modern readers might decide … Read More
Germinal
Mythic Symbolism
Note to readers: You may choose to read this analysis of Émile Zola‘s Germinal here or listen to it on the audio file at the end of the article. As a companion to last week’s discussion of Gustave Flaubert’s famous … Read More
Madame Bovary
Aspirational Heroine
Note to readers: You may choose to read this analysis of Gustave Flaubert‘s Madame Bovary here or listen to it on the audio file at the end of the article. I suspect that Gustave Flaubert’s 1856 novel Madame Bovary is … Read More
Arrête avec Tes Mensonges
The Power of Clandestine Love
Note to readers: You may choose to read this review of Philippe Besson’s Arrête avec Tes Mensonges (Lie with Me) here or listen to it on the audio file at the end of the article. Over the last few weeks, I … Read More
Letters of Madame de Sévigné
The Bons Mots of the Marquise
Note to readers: You may choose to read this commentary on the letters of Madame de Sévigné here or listen to it on the audio file at the end of the article. When asked to give a list of what … Read More
Le Pont Mirabeau
Dangerous New Poetry
Note to readers: You may choose to read this analysis of Le Pont Mirabeau here or listen to it on the audio file at the end of the article. I wanted to concentrate this week on a single poem with an … Read More
Bérénice
Classic Love Triangle
Note to readers: You may choose to read this analysis of Bérénice here or listen to it on the audio file at the end of the article. On December 3, 1670, the secretary to the British Embassy in Paris, Francis … Read More