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Michel Tournier

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Michel Tournier.
French literature By category French literary history Medieval 16th century 17th century 18th century 19th century 20th century Contemporary French writers Chronological list Writers by category Novelists Playwrights Poets Essayists Short story writers France portal Literature portalThis box: view talk edit

Michel Tournier (born 19 December 1924) is a French writer.

His works are highly considered and have won important awards such as the Grand Prix du roman de l'Acadmie franaise in 1967 for Vendredi ou les limbes du Pacifique. and the Prix Goncourt for Le Roi des aulnes in 1970. His works dwell on the fantastic, his inspirations including traditional German culture, Catholicism, and the philosophies of Gaston Bachelard. He currently lives in Choisel and is a member of the Acadmie Goncourt. His autobiography has been translated and published as The Wind Spirit (Beacon Press, 1988).

Contents
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1 Biography 2 Selected works 3 References 4 External links

[edit] Biography
Born in Paris from parents who met at the Sorbonne while studying German, he spent his youth in Saint-Germain-en-Laye. He learned German early, staying each summer in Germany. His education was deeply marked by the German culture, music and Catholicism. Later he discovered the thought of Gaston Bachelard. He studied philosophy at the Sorbonne and at the university of Tbingen and attended Maurice de Gandillac's course. He wished to teach philosophy at high-school but, like his father, failed to obtain the French agrgation. He joined Radio France as a journalist and translator and hosted L'heure de la culture franaise. In 1954 he worked in advertisement for Europe 1. He also collaborated for Le Monde and Le Figaro. From 1958 to 1968, he was the chief editor of Plon. In 1967 he published his first book, Vendredi ou les Limbes du Pacifique, retelling Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, adding to the story a philosophical depth. He was awarded the Grand Prix du roman de l'Acadmie franaise for it.

[edit] Selected works


Vendredi ou les Limbes du Pacifique (Friday) (1967) - Grand Prix du roman de l'Acadmie franaise Le Roi des aulnes (1970) (The Erl-King translated 1972 by Barbara Bray, aka The Ogre) Le Roi des aulnes was made into a 1996 movie Der Unhold (The Ogre) directed by Volker Schlndorff

It has also been adapted for the stage by Tom Perrin. This originated as a post-graduate research project at the Mountview Academy of Dramatic Arts in 2002. The show The Erl King was then taken to the 2003 Edinburgh Festival.[1].

Les Mtores (Gemini, 1975) Le Vent Paraclet (The Wind Spirit, 1977) Vendredi ou la Vie sauvage (Friday and Robinson, 1977) Le Coq de bruyre (The Fetishist and Other Stories, 1978) Gaspard, Melchior et Balthazar (The Four Wise Men, 1980) Le Vol du vampire (1981) Gilles et Jeanne (Gilles and Jeanne, 1983) La Goutte d'or (The Golden Droplet, 1986) Petites Proses (1986) Le Medianoche amoureux (The Midnight Love Feast, 1989) La Couleuvrine (1994) Le Miroir des ides (The Mirror of Ideas, 1994) Elazar ou la Source et le Buisson (Eleazar, Exodus to the West, 1996) Journal extime (2002)

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