The dreyfus affair was a political scandal that divided the third french republic from 1894. The dreyfus affair 10 of the biggest lies in history. Father jeanpaul provides here much of the information he gives to the novices when he introduces them to the religious family they are about to enter. Robert harriss novel about dreyfus affair named thriller. Ive recently been reading prousts in search of lost time in which the characters keep discussing the affair and anyone who has read anything about zola will realise that zola played a significant part in the affair. Dreyfuss guilt was so selfevident that the revelations produced by the dreyfusards caused not a. Browse the amazon editors picks for the best books of 2019, featuring our.
Robert harriss novel about the dreyfus affair an officer and a spy has been named the best thriller of the year by the crime writers association. The dreyfus affair is distinguished by the large number of books published on this subject. The dreyfus affair deeply divided france, not just over the fate of the man at its center but also over a range of issues, including politics, religion and national. In 1894, alfred dreyfus, a captain in the french army and a jew was falsely accused of selling military secrets to germany. Today the french insistence on their secular state and thus the prohibition on the wearing of the veil or burqa is misunderstood by those often british. A few years later, a civilian court of appeals found dreyfus innocent, and he went on to have a distinguished army career and fought with honor in world war i. The dreyfus affair never goes away, and is the subject of a brave new book by the novelist and lawyer louis begley, why the dreyfus affair matters yale. Beyond being a clear introduction to the historical, legal, cultural and literary ramifications of the dreyfus affair, this book is a call to arms to contemporary creative writers to address the. The belle epoque combined a preoccupation with the noblesse of the old regime with the seeds for modernism, says oxford history professor ruth harris, author of an awardwinning book on the dreyfus affair. As everyone knows who reads the history of france between 1870 and 1914, the dreyfus case lies in his way, a vast and distracting maze, una selva oscura. Numerous books have been written about the affair in which french army officer alfred dreyfus was wrongfully accused of treason, and this volume by piers paul read, simply titled the dreyfus affair, is a solid recollection of the case that garnered worldwide attention in the 1890s. On october 15, 1894, alfred dreyfus, a jewish artillery captain attached to the french general staff. An officer and a spy by robert harris, for the soul of france. The assumptionists and the dreyfus affair 177 governments case during the ensuing trial in early 1900 accused the assumptionists of using fabulous sums to destabilize the republic, of prejudicing the outcome of elections and of brain.
The dreyfus affair was a watershed event in the history of european antisemitism. In 1898, he wrote an open letter entitled jaccuse to alert the public to what piers paul read describes as an infamous miscarriage of justice. The dreyfus affair, as it has come to be known, was the most famous court case of the belle epoque. World jewry was stunned that such an affair could occur in france, the cradle of liberty, equality, and fraternity.
Robert harriss novel about dreyfus affair named thriller of the year. Alfred dreyfus 18591935, a french artillery officer and graduate of the french military academy. Obviously antisemitism played a major role in people wanting him to be convicted, but what were the other reasons. Many books have been written about the miscarriage of justice in france in 1894 which led to the dreyfus affair. The dreyfus affair had by now sharply divided french society into two distinct camps the dreyfusards and the antidreyfusards. The dreyfus affair top 10 trials that shook the world time. Ironically, after zolas famous jaccuse was published and the affair gripped all of france, dreyfus again was forgotten as a person. Apr 17, 2016 in 1898, the main english methodist newspapers and magazines the bible christian magazine, the free methodist, the methodist recorder, and the methodist times largely ignored the dreyfus affair, but by july 1899, they were all publicly defending and sympathising with captain dreyfus. Intellectuals, the press, and the dreyfus affair abstract in his introduction to the age of revolution historian eric hobsbawm considers a few english words which were invented, or gained their modern meanings, substantially in the period between 1789 and 1848.
Drawing together dreyfusards and antidreyfusards, poets and. The dreyfus affair piers paul readbloomsbury, 416pp. David a bell on the dreyfus affair told from the catholic point of view. Numerous books and countless popular and scholarly articles have been written on the dreyfus affair. The dreyfus affair uniquely combines a fastmoving mystery story with a snapshot of france at a moment of great social flux and cultural richness the belle epoque, the impressionists, novelists such as flaubert, zola, the goncourts, proust. Project muse the assumptionists and the dreyfus affair. The book opens with the complete text of jaccuse, zolas public letter to the french authorities. Melvyn bragg and guests discuss the dreyfus affair, which tore france apart in the 1890s after a jewish army officer was wrongly convicted of spying and sent to. I will add, too, that whenever i am in france and need to introduce myself, and my listeners appear to have trouble understanding me my spoken french is not up to the level anyone. The dreyfus affair pops up time and again when reading french books from the end of the nineteenth century. Buy the dreyfus affair in french society and politics 1 by cahm, eric isbn. He followed up this article with an open letter in january 1898 in which he accused the army of hiding the truth of dreyfus. This book is the first to provide, in english translation, the full extent of zolas writings on the dreyfus affair. Culture wars in the age of dreyfus marcel proust, jean santeuil week i.
The dreyfus affair never goes away, and is the subject of a brave new book by the novelist and lawyer louis begley, why the dreyfus affair. With the facts of the case long settled, the archives thoroughly mined, and hundreds of books and articles published, it would seem unlikely that there is much left to be discovered or said. The dreyfus affair led directly to the separation of church and state in france in 1905. Oct 11, 1991 dreyfus a family affair, 17891945 by michael burns 576 pages. Other pamphlets proclaiming dreyfus s innocence include bernard lazares a miscarriage of justice. Many eminent historians express different hypotheses about the affair but all arrive at the same conclusion. He was tried and convicted by a courtmartial and sentenced to life imprisonment on devils island off the south american. The strength of ruth harriss book is to present the dreyfus affair as a human and.
Robert harriss novel about the dreyfus affair an officer and a spy has been named the best thriller of the year by the crime writers association harriss book, which won him the. Feb 18, 2015 written and produced by lorraine beitler directed by jonathan gruber, black eye productions. Hence, she argues, the dreyfusards were not the pure, highminded individuals portrayed in the history books, and she urges her readers to put aside their preconceptions of the dreyfus affair as a civil war between the two frances. Its the dreyfus affair, a scandal that embroiled france and reverberated throughout europe and the united states. In 1894 captain alfred dreyfus, a career army officer of jewish origin, was charged with selling military secrets to the germans. How to understand the dreyfus affair by robert gildea the. Read quotes zola in defence of his decision to publish. The dreyfuss affair was a critical event or series of events in forming france, but i must confess that i knew very few of the details.
The dreyfus affair united all these simmering fantasies, which explain why no new factual information could shift their conviction of his guilt. All the official records are readily available including. Michael marrus and robert paxton, vichy and the jews basic books regis debray, teachers, writers, celebrities. In the cafes, in the halls of state, in public, in print, and amid the bosoms of their families men argued as to whether dreyfus was innocent or guilty. Zola was tried for libel and sentenced to jail, but he escaped to england. The assumptionists of the united states region go wherever. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.
Has no one noticed that this dreyfus affair, this gigantic drama that has aroused the universe, seems to have been. As a result of the book, devotion to our lady of lourdes grew. It represents, in its polemical entirety, a classic defense of human rights and a searing denunciation of fanaticism and prejudice. Even esterhazy took advantage of his secrets and sold several different versions of the text of his statement to the consul of france. Feb 16, 2012 in this company, piers paul reads the dreyfus affair feels somewhat poorly timed and redundant, and all the more so since it is based on a very thin job of research. Kleeblatt and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. When i saw this book come up at a kindle sale price its back up to full price now, i jumped at it. The origin of the dreyfus affair, although fully clarified since the 1960s, has aroused much controversy for nearly a century. Dreyfus s younger brother, mathieu, proved indefatigable in garnering support, convincing journalist bernard lazare to take up the causethey needed a jewish traitor fit to replace the classic judas, lazare wrotewhile novelist emile zola, attracted to the affair above all because it was a good story, didnt publish his. Even as the historiography of the past generation has argued against accepting the dreyfusard conception of the affair at face value and a recent major study has shown that it.
In the early 1890s, the opportunist regime sought to levy new taxes on religious orders, a move that the assumptionists, along with most bishops, opposed. The saga of dreyfus s many trialshe was not exonerated until 1906, twelve years after first being arrestedthe fight to free him, and the intrigues on both sides, is a fastmoving mystery story rife with heroes and villains, loose women, loyal wives, bisexual men, tricksters, and charlatans. She is also the editor and publisher of the practicing writer, a free and popular enewsletter that features opportunities and resources for fictionists, poets, and writers of creative nonfiction. The fact that the public, including nobles and members of the clergy, saw dreyfusan assimilated jewas an outsider seemed to suggest that. Dreyfus the person dropped out, and dreyfus the innocent victim became a potentially more dangerous threat to the army than dreyfus the supposed spy would have been or esterhazy the actual spy was.
List of books and articles about alfred dreyfus online. The assumptionists and the dreyfus affair researchgate. Feb 01, 2012 the dreyfus affair pops up time and again when reading french books from the end of the nineteenth century. Dreyfus affair, harris claims that catholics were unjustly persecuted by the state during the affair s aftermath. Mar 27, 2010 thus began the dreyfus affair, in which an innocent man was unjustly convicted, amid rising xenophobia and antisemitism, and sent off to rot on a deserted island in south america.
An officer and a spy thus opens with what seems to be the end of the dreyfus affair, but it proves to be only the beginning of what harris, the bestselling british author of fatherland. A complete bibliography of the affair published in 1970 listed 551 titles1 and many more have been published since then. Reads first notable success was his book monk dawson 1969, which won him a. Alfred dreyfus and the affair that divided france by ruth harris carmen callil finds that a rigorous investigation of the dreyfus affair repays attention carmen callil. Oct 27, 2014 robert harriss novel about the dreyfus affair an officer and a spy has been named the best thriller of the year by the crime writers association harriss book, which won him the.
The title of the small book you have in hand, a brief history of the assumptionists, could theoretically recall no more than a list of facts, but for its author it is much more than that. Esterhazy, maurice weil, and henry at the intelligence office. An officer and a spy, a thrilling novelization of the. Dreyfus affair, political crisis, beginning in 1894 and continuing through 1906, in france during the third republic. The assumptionists and the dreyfus affair the assumptionists and the dreyfus affair harris, ruth 20070201 00. The 1890s also saw the third republics greatest political and moral crisisthe dreyfus affair. Online shopping from a great selection at books store. It seems that the french media at the time was obsessed with espionage and spies, so i think that added to the action surrounding the affair.
On october 15, 1894, alfred dreyfus, a jewish artillery captain attached to the french general staff, was arrested on charges of having betrayed his country by selling military secrets to the germans. Reliving the gigantic drama of the dreyfus affair the new. The visual and the historical paula hyman yale university a bibliography of the dreyfus affair would make a hefty volume. Watergate scandal, hillsborough disaster, flint water crisis, irancontra affair, my lai massacre, dreyfus affair. Meanwhile, the scandal had changed the face of politics in france. Unlike the crooks and prostitutes who normally sat on the defence benches, these twelve apostles. Jun 26, 2011 erika dreifus is a reader, writer, and literary advocate whose latest book, birthright.
Why the dreyfus affair matters by louis begley, lawyer and author of wartime lies, among other books, puts in the foreground the detective story, with its elements of antisemitism, although his writing is particularly powerful in drawing lessons for american society after september 11. The controversy centered on the question of the guilt or innocence of army captain alfred dreyfus, who had been convicted of treason for allegedly selling military secrets to the germans in 1894. Book sheds light on the dreyfus affair the canadian jewish news. The controversy centred on the question of the guilt or innocence of army captain alfred dreyfus, who had been convicted of treason for. Dreyfus at the general staff esterhazy a major in rouen june 23. As a result of the popularity of the letter, even in the englishspeaking world, jaccuse. Mar 24, 20 ive been reading up on the alfred dreyfus affair and in the process trying to determine why he was selected and framed. The besthitting, bestfielding young shortstop in america, randy dreyfus is his countrys hero, but when his affair with second baseman d. Feb 27, 2016 this video is about the dreyfus affair in france in the late 19th century, an event that laid bare deeply held antisemitic beliefs of the time.
The affair, as it is known in french, has come to symbolise modern injustice in the francophone world, and it remains one of the most notable examples of a complex miscarriage of justice and antisemitism. He was convicted of treason by military courtmartial and sentenced to life imprisonment on devils island, but over the next 12 years a small group of human rights supporters was able to clear. Hyman for over a century the dreyfus affair has attracted the attention of. Culture wars in the age of dreyfus by frederick brown, dr. The dreyfus affair by leslie derfler, 97803317910, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide.
Most famous among the participants was frances greatest living novelist, emile zola. In addition to an historical overview, other essays examine the french political context before dreyfus, the issue of antisemitism in the affair, the socialists position, and how historical perceptions of the dreyfus affair have shifted over the last hundred years. The intellectuals of modern france frederick brown, for the soul of france. The unending parade of books and papers and movies and miniseries and madefortvspecials and documentaries and websites all devoted to retelling and consecrating the dreyfus affair have, over the years, covered over the events with an intricate and multilayered tapestry. More than 115 years have passed since dreyfus was convicted of treason, and it has been more than a century since he was exonerated. As the appearance of three new books within a year indicates, how ever, scholars still can find new ways to look at the affair and draw fresh insights from it. France and the legacy of the dreyfus affair, examines the background, the intense media scrutiny both at home and abroad, the continued abuses of french jews during the vichy era of the 1930s and. Robert harriss novel about dreyfus affair named thriller of. As the appearance of three new books within a year indicates, however, scholars still can find new ways to. Dreyfus affair definition, summary, history, significance. By reviving the story of the dreyfus affair for a modern audience, roman polanskis latest film, an officer and a spy, offers a historyspanning study of societies at war with themselves. Those individuals in the church who came closest to making this associationfor example, the french assumptionists at the time of the dreyfus affair were rather unrepresentative figures. The story of the most infamous miscarriage of justice in french history. Numerous books have been written about the affair in which french army officer alfred dreyfus was wrongfully accused of treason, and this volume by piers paul.