Lot n° 39
Estimation :
800 - 1200
EUR
Result without fees
Result
: 1 300EUR
Alphonse DAUDET (1840-1897) - Lot 39
Alphonse DAUDET (1840-1897)
Autograph notebook, Le Nabab; in-12 (16.5 x 11 cm) of 113 leaves (plus qqs ff blanks), original green cloth-backed boards (detached from boards, qqs ff detached).
Precious notebook of work and sketches for the novel The Mogul.
Le Nabab, a novel of "Parisian manners", was published in serial form in Le Temps from July to October 1877, then in volume form by Charpentier. Daudet had been working on it for a long time, and the first ideas date from the early 1870s. For this story of a man enriched in speculations in Tunisia, Bernard Jansoulet known as the Nabab, and who wants to lead a political career in the France of the Second Empire, Daudet was inspired by the deputy of the Gard François Bravay (1817-1874); one also recognized under the features of the first minister, duke of Mora, the real duke of Morny, of whom Daudet had been the secretary. Praised by Flaubert and Zola, Le Nababab is a severe picture of the society of the Second Empire. The manuscript of Le Nabab entered the BnF in 1978 (Mss, n.a.fr. 17765-17766).
The covers of the notebook are covered with notes and ideas. On the first page, under the title Roman, Daudet has thrown out some ideas: "Bravay et Chaylard/history of the hat spinning on a nail./- the throne. 3 millions./- Notes at A. 4000 raised to 400000 one asks to see the books./La Levantine"... On the following pages, Daudet has sketched a first beginning ("- At the Family-hotel, rue Galilée, 24. The coachman had a gesture of rage"...), quickly interrupted and crossed out, to summarize some data of his action and his characters (see OEuvres, Pléiade, t. II, p. 1262 ff) : " Le Comptoir Corse " ; " Jean Coste - le Nabab, - méridional aventurier "... ; " Madame Jean Coste " ; " Le docteur Montribot " ; " Le père Bethléem " ; " Madame Montribot " ; " M. de Montpavon, receveur général "... Daudet then draws up a list of characters, among whom "The Duke of Morny - has put a lot of money in the Comptoir Corse [...] The death of Morny in the middle of the book". After a draft of the chapter division, a new note on the protagonist who has found his final name: "Jansoulet - the Mogul. Son of a merchant of old nails of Bourg St Andéol. Gone from his country"... Some ideas for episodes follow. Then Daudet turns over the notebook to write, under the title The Mogul. Moeurs Parisiennes, a "General plan", of which we quote the beginning: "The novel begins with a letter that the young X. my hero writes to his mother while arriving in Paris"..., then the draft of several chapters: II Memories of an office boy, III At the Baroness Hemerlingue, IV "The Nabab was not jealous"...V Memoirs of an office boy (continued), VI At Mr. Joyeuse's, VII The nursing home of Dr. Montribot, [VIII] Memoirs of an office boy (continued), X At the Joyeuse's, XI "However, the time has come for the elections of the Mogul in Corsica", XII A reading on the 5th floor, XIII The opening of the Salon, XIV The drama at Montrichard. This is followed by a detailed breakdown of the novel, from the first chapter to the epilogue. Then Daudet writes the first chapter Un déjeuner chez le Nabab, with erasures and corrections (later crossed out). A list of characters is followed by various notes and drafts, including a chapter VII La famille du Nababab (The Mogul's Family), then a new division of the novel into chapters, and a new list of characters. Daudet then launches into a first draft of the novel, abundantly crossed out and corrected then crossed out after rewriting in the manuscript. The novel is then divided into two parts, as indicated by a new plan.
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