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Fantasio
Book by De Musset, Alfred
191 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1834
1 person is currently reading
90 people want to read
About the author
Alfred de Musset
1,577 books221 followersAlfred Louis Charles de Musset-Pathay (11 December 1810 – 2 May 1857) was a French dramatist, poet, and novelist. Along with his poetry, he is known for writing La Confession d'un enfant du siècle (The Confession of a Child of the Century, autobiographical) from 1836.
Musset was born on 11 December 1810 in Paris. His family was upper-class but poor and his father worked in various key government positions, but never gave his son any money. His mother was similarly accomplished, and her role as a society hostess, - for example her drawing-room parties, luncheons, and dinners, held in the Musset residence - left a lasting impression on young Alfred.
Early indications of Musset's boyhood talents were seen by his fondness for acting impromptu mini-plays based upon episodes from old romance stories he had read. Years later, elder brother Paul de Musset would preserve these, and many other details, for posterity, in a biography on his famous younger brother.
Alfred de Musset entered the collège Henri IV at the age of nine, where in 1827 he won the Latin essay prize in the Concours général. With the help of Paul Foucher, Victor Hugo's brother-in-law, he began to attend, at the age of 17, the Cénacle, the literary salon of Charles Nodier at the Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal. After attempts at careers in medicine (which he gave up owing to a distaste for dissections), law, drawing, English and piano, he became one of the first Romantic writers, with his first collection of poems, Contes d'Espagne et d'Italie (1829, Tales of Spain and Italy). By the time he reached the age of 20, his rising literary fame was already accompanied by a sulphurous reputation fed by his dandy side.
He was the librarian of the French Ministry of the Interior under the July Monarchy. During this time he also involved himself in polemics during the Rhine crisis of 1840, caused by the French prime minister Adolphe Thiers, who as Minister of the Interior had been Musset's superior. Thiers had demanded that France should own the left bank of the Rhine (described as France's "natural boundary"), as it had under Napoleon, despite the territory's German population. These demands were rejected by German songs and poems, including Nikolaus Becker's Rheinlied, which contained the verse: "Sie sollen ihn nicht haben, den freien, deutschen Rhein ..." (They shall not have it, the free, German Rhine). Musset answered to this with a poem of his own: "Nous l'avons eu, votre Rhin allemand" (We've had it, your German Rhine).
The tale of his celebrated love affair with George Sand, which lasted from 1833 to 1835, is told from his point of view in his autobiographical novel, La Confession d'un Enfant du Siècle (The Confession of a Child of the Century, made into a film, Children of the Century), and from her point of view in her Elle et lui. Musset's Nuits (1835–1837, Nights) trace his emotional upheaval of his love for George Sand, from early despair to final resignation. He is also believed to be the author of Gamiani, or Two Nights of Excess (1833), a lesbian erotic novel, also believed to be modeled on George Sand.
Tomb of Alfred de Musset in Père Lachaise Cemetery
Musset was dismissed from his post as librarian by the new minister Ledru-Rollin after the revolution of 1848. He was however appointed librarian of the Ministry of Public Instruction in 1853.
Musset received the Légion d'honneur on 24 April 1845, at the same time as Balzac, and was elected to the Académie française in 1852 (after two failures to do so in 1848 and 1850).
Alfred de Musset died in his sleep on 2 May 1857. The cause was heart failure, the combination of alcoholism and a longstanding aortic insufficiency. One symptom that had been noticed by his brother was a bobbing of the head as a result of the amplification of the pulse; this was later called de Musset's sign. He was buried in Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris.
Musset was born on 11 December 1810 in Paris. His family was upper-class but poor and his father worked in various key government positions, but never gave his son any money. His mother was similarly accomplished, and her role as a society hostess, - for example her drawing-room parties, luncheons, and dinners, held in the Musset residence - left a lasting impression on young Alfred.
Early indications of Musset's boyhood talents were seen by his fondness for acting impromptu mini-plays based upon episodes from old romance stories he had read. Years later, elder brother Paul de Musset would preserve these, and many other details, for posterity, in a biography on his famous younger brother.
Alfred de Musset entered the collège Henri IV at the age of nine, where in 1827 he won the Latin essay prize in the Concours général. With the help of Paul Foucher, Victor Hugo's brother-in-law, he began to attend, at the age of 17, the Cénacle, the literary salon of Charles Nodier at the Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal. After attempts at careers in medicine (which he gave up owing to a distaste for dissections), law, drawing, English and piano, he became one of the first Romantic writers, with his first collection of poems, Contes d'Espagne et d'Italie (1829, Tales of Spain and Italy). By the time he reached the age of 20, his rising literary fame was already accompanied by a sulphurous reputation fed by his dandy side.
He was the librarian of the French Ministry of the Interior under the July Monarchy. During this time he also involved himself in polemics during the Rhine crisis of 1840, caused by the French prime minister Adolphe Thiers, who as Minister of the Interior had been Musset's superior. Thiers had demanded that France should own the left bank of the Rhine (described as France's "natural boundary"), as it had under Napoleon, despite the territory's German population. These demands were rejected by German songs and poems, including Nikolaus Becker's Rheinlied, which contained the verse: "Sie sollen ihn nicht haben, den freien, deutschen Rhein ..." (They shall not have it, the free, German Rhine). Musset answered to this with a poem of his own: "Nous l'avons eu, votre Rhin allemand" (We've had it, your German Rhine).
The tale of his celebrated love affair with George Sand, which lasted from 1833 to 1835, is told from his point of view in his autobiographical novel, La Confession d'un Enfant du Siècle (The Confession of a Child of the Century, made into a film, Children of the Century), and from her point of view in her Elle et lui. Musset's Nuits (1835–1837, Nights) trace his emotional upheaval of his love for George Sand, from early despair to final resignation. He is also believed to be the author of Gamiani, or Two Nights of Excess (1833), a lesbian erotic novel, also believed to be modeled on George Sand.
Tomb of Alfred de Musset in Père Lachaise Cemetery
Musset was dismissed from his post as librarian by the new minister Ledru-Rollin after the revolution of 1848. He was however appointed librarian of the Ministry of Public Instruction in 1853.
Musset received the Légion d'honneur on 24 April 1845, at the same time as Balzac, and was elected to the Académie française in 1852 (after two failures to do so in 1848 and 1850).
Alfred de Musset died in his sleep on 2 May 1857. The cause was heart failure, the combination of alcoholism and a longstanding aortic insufficiency. One symptom that had been noticed by his brother was a bobbing of the head as a result of the amplification of the pulse; this was later called de Musset's sign. He was buried in Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
June 18, 2018
Elsbeth : J'ai peu connu la vie, et j'ai beaucoup rêvé.
May 30, 2025
Texte relativement complexe. Le côté grotesque et les discours absurdes rendent parfois l’interprétation difficile…
July 6, 2023
Incroyable ! Je me suis souvenue du génie de Musset ; tout est parfait jusqu’à la fin qui m’a fait tourné les pages afin d’être sûre que ce bien fini. Et on peut toujours compter sur Franck Lestringant pour écrire les meilleures préfaces.
July 30, 2025
Très rapide à lire.
J’avoue pas avoir tout bien compris je pense ou du moins de ce qui se cache derrière l’écriture !
Cependant le personnage de Fantasio est très intéressant et me rappelle particulièrement le personnage d’Octave des caprices de Marianne du meme auteur !
J’avoue pas avoir tout bien compris je pense ou du moins de ce qui se cache derrière l’écriture !
Cependant le personnage de Fantasio est très intéressant et me rappelle particulièrement le personnage d’Octave des caprices de Marianne du meme auteur !
June 28, 2024
DNF. Ennuiiiii!
December 25, 2013
A beautiful comedy by Alfred de Musset that is basically based on the “role-within-a-role” technique, which might be considered a kind of experimental theater then! The play seems to be centered on Fantasio who was escaping the persecution of his creditors and imprisonment, even his property and furniture were to be sold in public. However, this cynical character sought after a refuge and protection from the king of Bavaria under the disguise of the king’s foul (jester), who died recently. The major themes the play may include are: Identity & identity change, person’s image in society, ranks, seriousness vs. playing/joke of one’s action, altruism, filial sacrifice, and parent-child mutual affection and respect. Under disguise Fantasio was truer to his inner self, which implies that the disguise gave him the strength he lacked in real life; hence he was very serious and courageous in his attempts to save princess Elsbeth’s indirectly forced marriage (for political reasons). On the other hand, We find the Duke of Mantua exchanged his cloth with his aid-de-camp in order to come closer to the queen and flirt her romantically prior the marriage. However, changing his gown, which is attached and associated with his higher social rank, led him to face undesirable and humiliating treatment, either by the king or his daughter. Fantasio’s joke; namely, hooking the wig of the presumed prince, led to adverse consequences as the Duke asked the king for Fantasio’s head in return for the insult. This showed how the duke was superficial and conceited person who wanted to kill a person for a trivial insult. I loved in particular, Elsbeth’s sacrifice as well as her help to Fantasio at the end.
May 11, 2015
Ça va. Enjoyed the character of Fantasio and his ruse.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews