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De la conception de l'Europe dans "La Condition Humaine" d'Andre Malraux

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Date Issued:
1999
Summary:
Although China provides the stage for most of the action of La Condition Humaine, the presence of Europe is felt throughout the text. In this ostensibly historical novel, Malraux dramatizes the tragic events that took place in Shanghai in March and April 1927: a failed coup attempt by marxist revolutionaries and the bloody scission between general Tchang-Kai-Shek's Kuomintang and the communist party. Europe is thus present in the very premises of the story, through marxism. The influence of the Old Continent permeates all the characters in one way or another, even those from Asia, mainly China, who display this influence in their political, social, religious and artistic outlook or behavior. Malraux uses the characters of the story to deliver a subtle though scathing critique of Europe, in sharp contrast to the traditional, pre-World War One depiction of the continent as the center and provider of culture for the whole world. Europe was the center of the universe, the source of all solutions and explanations in all fields of endeavor, solidly established on the concepts developed since the Renaissance: rationalism, materialism, and individualism. These concepts, which also gave birth to capitalism, were all present in the European colonial system imposed on the new territories and are the object of Malraux's critique.
Title: De la conception de l'Europe dans "La Condition Humaine" d'Andre Malraux.
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Name(s): Giner, Raymond.
Florida Atlantic University, Degree grantor
Hokenson, Jan W., Thesis advisor
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation
Issuance: monographic
Date Issued: 1999
Publisher: Florida Atlantic University
Place of Publication: Boca Raton, Fla.
Physical Form: application/pdf
Extent: 62 p.
Language(s): French
Summary: Although China provides the stage for most of the action of La Condition Humaine, the presence of Europe is felt throughout the text. In this ostensibly historical novel, Malraux dramatizes the tragic events that took place in Shanghai in March and April 1927: a failed coup attempt by marxist revolutionaries and the bloody scission between general Tchang-Kai-Shek's Kuomintang and the communist party. Europe is thus present in the very premises of the story, through marxism. The influence of the Old Continent permeates all the characters in one way or another, even those from Asia, mainly China, who display this influence in their political, social, religious and artistic outlook or behavior. Malraux uses the characters of the story to deliver a subtle though scathing critique of Europe, in sharp contrast to the traditional, pre-World War One depiction of the continent as the center and provider of culture for the whole world. Europe was the center of the universe, the source of all solutions and explanations in all fields of endeavor, solidly established on the concepts developed since the Renaissance: rationalism, materialism, and individualism. These concepts, which also gave birth to capitalism, were all present in the European colonial system imposed on the new territories and are the object of Malraux's critique.
Identifier: 9780599540583 (isbn), 15729 (digitool), FADT15729 (IID), fau:12485 (fedora)
Collection: FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection
Note(s): Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters
Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 1999.
Subject(s): Malraux, André,--1901-1976--Criticism and interpretation.
Malraux, André,--1901-1976.--Condition humaine.
Europe--In literature.
Held by: Florida Atlantic University Libraries
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/15729
Sublocation: Digital Library
Use and Reproduction: Copyright © is held by the author, with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder.
Use and Reproduction: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Host Institution: FAU
Is Part of Series: Florida Atlantic University Digital Library Collections.