Table Of ContentAlfred
Jarry
JillFell
Alfred Jarry
TitlesintheseriesCriticalLivespresenttheworkofleadingculturalfigures
ofthemodernperiod.Eachbookexploresthelifeoftheartist,writer,
philosopherorarchitectinquestionandrelatesittotheirmajorworks.
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JeanGenet ErikSatie GertrudeStein
StephenBarber MaryE.Davis LucyDaniel
MichelFoucault GeorgesBataille PabloNeruda
DavidMacey StuartKendall DominicMoran
PabloPicasso LudwigWittgenstein ConstantinBrancusi
MaryAnnCaws EdwardKanterian SandaMiller
FranzKafka OctavioPaz WilliamS.Burroughs
SanderL.Gilman NickCaistor PhilBaker
GuyDebord WalterBenjamin StéphaneMallarmé
AndyMerrifield EstherLeslie RogerPearson
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CarolineCros RosemaryLloyd BarbaraWyllie
JamesJoyce JeanCocteau GabrielGarcíaMárquez
AndrewGibson JamesS.Williams StephenM.Hart
FrankLloydWright SergeiEisenstein EdweardMuybridge
RobertMcCarter MikeO’Mahony MartaBraun
Jean-PaulSartre SalvadorDalí CaludeDebussy
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NoamChomsky SimonedeBeauvoir
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JasonWilson KevinJ.Hayes
Alfred Jarry
Jill Fell
reaktion books
InmemoryofBarbaraWright
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Firstpublished2010
Copyright©JillFell2010
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Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,storedinaretrievalsystem,
ortransmitted,inanyformorbyanymeans,electronic,mechanical,
photocopying,recordingorotherwise,withoutthepriorpermission
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PrintedandboundinGreatBritain
bycpi/AntonyRowe,Chippenham,Wiltshire
BritishLibraryCataloguinginPublicationData
Fell,Jill,1947–
AlfredJarry.–(Criticallives)
1.Jarry,Alfred,1873–1907–Criticismandinterpretation
I.TitleII.Series
842.8-dc22
isbn:9781861897558
Contents
Prologue 7
1 Laval,Saint-BrieucandRennes 13
2 LiterarySuccessandaRejectedCoat 26
3 TheArtMagazineEditor 40
4 MilitaryService:FictionandFact 61
5 ‘AfterUstheSavageGod’ 75
6 ‘TheRisingLightoftheQuartierLatin’? 96
7 FromPuppetstoPataphysics 116
8 ThroughtheDimensions 137
9 Journalism,LeSurmâleandBrussels 151
10 Poverty,IllnessandDeath 171
Epilogue 195
References 199
Bibliography 213
Acknowledgements 217
PhotoAcknowledgements 219
Prologue
Thebronzestatue(seeoverleaf)ofAlfredJarrythatstandsinthe
townsquareofhisbirthplace,Laval,showshimwithhistwomost
importantpossessions:hisracingbicycleandhisBulldogrevolver.
Thesculptor,OssipZadkine,hasmouldedthemtohisbody.
Shootingepisodes,realorinvented,punctuateJarry’slifestory.
Varyingversionsofthesameeventpresentaproblemforthebio-
grapher.Jarry’sbehaviourmadesuchastrongimpressiononthe
youngAndréGidethathelaterplacedhimamongthefictitious
charactersofhisnovelTheCounterfeiters.Gideperceivedthatthe
tinywriter,withhisclown-whitefaceandviolentantics,had
belongedmoretotheworldoffictionthantotherealone:
Intraditionalcircusclown’sclothes,everythingaboutJarry
seemedaffected;especiallyhiswayofspeaking,thatothers
oftenimitated...hammeringouteachsyllable,inventingbizarre
words,strangelydeformingothers;butonlyJarryhimselfcould
achievetheutterflatnessofvoice,withnowarmth,intonation
orrelief.
Whenyougettoknowhim,Iassureyouhe’scharming,said
Olivier.
I’drathernot.Hehasaviolentlookabouthim.
Heputsiton.Passavantthinkshe’sverygentleinreality.
Buthe’sdrunkahugeamountthisevening;andnotadropof
water,wouldyoubelieve;norwine:nothingbutabsintheand
7
strongliqueurs.Passavantisworriedthathe’lldosomething
eccentric.1
AtthispointinthestoryJarryisheardtomutter‘Andnowwe’re
goingtokilllittleBercail.’Thepersoninquestionchallengeshim
torepeathisthreatmoreloudly,whichhedoes,drawingalarge
pistoloutofhispocketandtwirlingit.Bercailnowstandsona
chairtoshowthatheisnotafraid.Jarrydoesthesameandtakes
aim.Someoneturnsoutthelights.Ashotisheard,butthepistol
onlyhasblanksinit.WhenthelightsgoonBercailisseentobe
stillstandingonhischair.
Attheactualdinnerof1897thatGidefictionalized,Jarryhadhit
hisvictimwithhisbarefists.Noshotswerefiredonthatoccasion,
butGideprobablycombineditwithalaterrealshootingincident.
Adramaticepisodein1905,whenJarrydidshootatafellowdinner
guest,hasbeendepictedbythreeotherwriters,whoserecollections
arealldifferent.Whatisunclearfromthethreeaccountsiswhether
Picasso,wholaterdeniedhavingknownJarry,tookoverhisgunat
orafterthedinneratwhichtheshootingtookplace.Hemaynot
evenhavebeenpresent.
Thehostofthe1905dinnerwasMauriceRaynal,ayoungpoet
whoentertainedwell,andwhohadagreataffectionforJarry.His
accountwasnotwrittenuntiltwenty-eightyearsaftertheevent:
Thateveningseveralfriendshadgottogetheratmylittleplace
intheruedeRennes.AmongthesewereApollinaire,Maurice
Cremnitz,Picasso,AndréSalmon,Manolo,MaxJacob,Alfred
Jarryandthreeyoungwomenwhowereallexpecting,Ithink.
Thedinnerhadbeenquitelively.Ahuntingfriendhadsentme
somemagnificentwildduck,whichwerethepiècesderésistance
ofthedinner.Whentheywereputonthetable,Jarryoffered
hisservices.‘I’manexpertatcarvingthesebirds,’hesaid,then
graspedthebirdswithbothhandsandtorethemtopieces.
8
Description:Alfred Jarry’s (1873–1907) creation of the monster-tyrant Ubu in his play Ubu Roi was a watershed in theater history and brought him instant notoriety following its Paris premiere in 1896. In this concise, critical biography, Jill Fell explores this and the many achievements that this multi-tale
