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Cahiers de la guerre
Écrits entre 1943 et 1949, les Cahiers de la guerre de Marguerite Duras ont longtemps été conservés dans les mythiques «armoires bleues» de sa maison de Neauphle-le-Château. Malgré l'appellation inscrite sur l'enveloppe qui les renfermait, le contenu de ces cahiers excède amplement le cadre de la guerre. On y trouve en effet des récits autobiographiques où elle évoque les périodes les plus cruciales de sa vie, particulièrement sa jeunesse en Indochine ; des ébauches de romans en cours, comme Un barrage contre le Pacifique ou Le Marin de Gibraltar ; ou le récit à l'origine de La Douleur, publié en 1985. Dix «autres textes» inédits, contemporains de la rédaction de ces cahiers, complètent cette image d'une oeuvre naissante où se dessine l'architecture primitive de l'imaginaire durassien. À mi-chemin de l'oeuvre assumée et du document d'archive, ces Cahiers de la guerre donnent à voir tout à la fois l'enfance d'une oeuvre et l'affirmation d'un écrivain.
432 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
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535 people want to read
About the author
Marguerite Duras
396 books3,280 followersMarguerite Germaine Marie Donnadieu , known as Marguerite Duras, was a French novelist, playwright, screenwriter, essayist, and experimental filmmaker. Her script for the film Hiroshima mon amour (1959) earned her a nomination for Best Original Screenplay at the Academy Awards.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
May 13, 2023
Wartime Writings: 1943-1949 works simultaneously as a "gateway" to the immense literary work of Marguerite Duras (1914-1996). The volume ranges from excerpts from early books by the French writer, from the 1950s, such as "A Dam Against the Pacific," to earlier versions of novels that she would publish much later, in the 1980s, such as "The War."
The texts, written between 1943 and 1949, a crucial period in the author's life, thus fulfill the role of showing the reader a kind of panel of her production, at the same time that they give those who already know her the possibility of reliving from a different contact with recurring situations and characters.
Like almost everything she did, these notebooks are intensely autobiographical, and the attention they received from Duras' biographers was not small, as the organizers of the volume point out. There, the childhood lived in Indochina reappears, the relationship with the mother, the loving initiation, the return to France, the years of the Nazi occupation, and the resistance.
The texts, written between 1943 and 1949, a crucial period in the author's life, thus fulfill the role of showing the reader a kind of panel of her production, at the same time that they give those who already know her the possibility of reliving from a different contact with recurring situations and characters.
Like almost everything she did, these notebooks are intensely autobiographical, and the attention they received from Duras' biographers was not small, as the organizers of the volume point out. There, the childhood lived in Indochina reappears, the relationship with the mother, the loving initiation, the return to France, the years of the Nazi occupation, and the resistance.
June 6, 2019
I've started to get into Duras's work again after an absence of a couple of years. I'm not surprised by just how much I missed her. The clear, minimalist prose, stating and restating experience and feeling - desire, suffering, fear, passion, fury is the one of reasons she works so well for me. This was the third Duras book recently, and the one I wanted to read the most. As a big Duras fan I immediately recognized her unique voice as Wartime Writings developed: feverish, sometimes feral, spare, yet pitilessly unsentimental. As much as I enjoyed the book what interested me more is how it came about. Four small Duras notebooks from the war years were hidden and forgotten in her chateau which contained much insight into her fiction and her life. Although there are pieces in the Notebooks you can read nowhere else, all the ideas, themes and stories that were to make her famous begin here, as does that tightrope of anguish and eroticism that marks the Durasian universe - at once shocking, mischievous and heart-breaking. Duras chronicles the poignant circumstances of her childhood in colonial Vietnam and the true story behind 'The Lover', her experiences with the French Resistance during the war, and the conflicted and exhilarating time of the Liberation and the early postwar years. Throughout, Duras paints an unflinching portrait of this troubled and formative period in France's history. This is not so much the beginnings of all her best fiction as the notebooks can be distinguished as works in their own right. I would only recommend this to those who truly love her work.
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July 8, 2021Memory as inspiration
Like many writers, Marguerite Duras seems to have drawn a lot of her inspiration from her own life, and in particular from the events of her childhood and adolescence in Saigon in the 1920s. 'Cahiers de la guerre' presents the contents of some notebooks that she kept during WWII in which she recorded her memories of Vietnam, (which she fictionalised later in 'Un Barrage contre le Pacifique') and her notes/ideas for future novels. These notes are hard to read, her style is too much like screen play writing for me to appreciate, but I really enjoyed the account of the Vietnam years.
Like many writers, Marguerite Duras seems to have drawn a lot of her inspiration from her own life, and in particular from the events of her childhood and adolescence in Saigon in the 1920s. 'Cahiers de la guerre' presents the contents of some notebooks that she kept during WWII in which she recorded her memories of Vietnam, (which she fictionalised later in 'Un Barrage contre le Pacifique') and her notes/ideas for future novels. These notes are hard to read, her style is too much like screen play writing for me to appreciate, but I really enjoyed the account of the Vietnam years.
October 31, 2018
3.75 stars
From its two parts: I. The War Notebooks & II. Other Texts, I read and found part I arguably more enjoyable than part II. since its contents taken/edited from (i) Pink Marbled Notebook, (ii) 20th Century Press Notebook, (iii) Hundred-Page Notebook, (iv) Beige Notebook cover a wide range of stories with title in italics (1), in regular fonts (7) and rough drafts in italics (10). While part II's contents focus on 'Stories' itself (1) and other story-like titles (7); all with titles in italics (6) and in regular fonts (2).
While reading her story variety in this book, I was a bit disappointed due to its contents in which I looked forward to reading her writings (reports, columns, essays, etc.) out of her direct/indirect experiences related to World War II. I had no choice but made up my mind, contemplating myself that this book should do as another optional genre. However, I liked her first story entitled "Childhood and Adolescence in Indochina" most so I voraciously enjoyed reading all of its 42 pages in which it might have been in parts based on her life there. It's a pity I can't take some extracts for us to see due to copyright reasons so we may find one to have a look and read this story from a copy in a good public or university library anywhere in major cities in your countries. As for the rest, I found some readable but a few fair, I think one of the reasons is that this book is her tentative drafts in the guise of stories published posthumously; therefore, all of them should be useful and worth studying in terms of their analyses or interpretations for some ideas/intuitions that might throw more light on her stories themselves or solidify something publishable as a literary metamorphosis.
To continue . . .
From its two parts: I. The War Notebooks & II. Other Texts, I read and found part I arguably more enjoyable than part II. since its contents taken/edited from (i) Pink Marbled Notebook, (ii) 20th Century Press Notebook, (iii) Hundred-Page Notebook, (iv) Beige Notebook cover a wide range of stories with title in italics (1), in regular fonts (7) and rough drafts in italics (10). While part II's contents focus on 'Stories' itself (1) and other story-like titles (7); all with titles in italics (6) and in regular fonts (2).
While reading her story variety in this book, I was a bit disappointed due to its contents in which I looked forward to reading her writings (reports, columns, essays, etc.) out of her direct/indirect experiences related to World War II. I had no choice but made up my mind, contemplating myself that this book should do as another optional genre. However, I liked her first story entitled "Childhood and Adolescence in Indochina" most so I voraciously enjoyed reading all of its 42 pages in which it might have been in parts based on her life there. It's a pity I can't take some extracts for us to see due to copyright reasons so we may find one to have a look and read this story from a copy in a good public or university library anywhere in major cities in your countries. As for the rest, I found some readable but a few fair, I think one of the reasons is that this book is her tentative drafts in the guise of stories published posthumously; therefore, all of them should be useful and worth studying in terms of their analyses or interpretations for some ideas/intuitions that might throw more light on her stories themselves or solidify something publishable as a literary metamorphosis.
To continue . . .
January 4, 2020
Savaş Yılları Defterleri ve Diğer Metinler 'i okurken aklımdan sıklıkla şu soru geçti: "Bir kitap hem hazine hem de eziyet olabilir mi?". Şu kesin ki kitaptan keyif alabilmek ve hatta kitabı bitirebilmek için Duras'ya özel bir ilgi besliyor olmak gerekiyor. Bir Duras hayranı olmama rağmen elim 5 yıldız vermeye gitmedi zira kitap ilk kez Duras okuyacak birinden olabildiğince uzakta tutulmalı. Kitap yazarın tamamlanmamış kısa öykülerini,Acı kitabının ve daha sonra yayımlanacak pek çok metnin taslaklarını, kısa bilinç akışlarını ve hatta yer yer Duras'nın karalamaları ile aldığı notları bir araya getirdiği için kendisinin diline ve eserlerine hakim olmayan kişiler için bir eziyete dönüşme ihtimali yüksek. Aynı sebepten kitabı bir hazine olarak da görmek mümkün ki buna odaklanmak daha doğru.
Duras'nın ölümünden önce bir arşive bağışladığı ve 1943-49 yılları arasında kaleme aldığı metinlerden oluşan kitap kendisinin yazarlık yolculuğunda bir seyahat yaratıyor. Duras severler bilir ki kendisinin eserlerinde ölüm, şiddet, sefalet ve sorunlu ilişkiler gibi temalara sıklıkla rastlanır. Bu açıdan kitabın ilk bölümü olan ve Duras'nın çocukluğunu anlattığı defter tüm bu temaların kökenini ortaya koyuyor. Aynı zamanda Sevgili kitabında anlatılan ilişkinin gerçek hayattaki karşılığını okumamıza da imkan tanıyor. Acı'nın taslaklarından oluşan bölüm hem bir kitabın yazım sürecini izlemek hem de yaşamdan doğan temaları anlamak açısından değerli diye düşünüyorum. Her ne kadar Acı'yı okumadan bu taslakları okumanın üzüntüsünü yaşasam da bu kısımlar Duras'nın "ölümü beklemek" temasına olan tutkusunun nedenini ortaya koyuyor. Yazarın daha önce yayımlanmamış öykülerini ve hatta yarım kalan ve yayımlanamayan tek romanı olan Theodora'nın küçük bir parçasını okumak da hazine niteliğini artırıyor.
Kitabın en önemli hazinesi ise tüm okurlara yönelik diye düşünüyorum. Savaşın öncelikle bir insanı ardından da bir yazarı nasıl etkilediğini görmek oldukça hüzünlü. Savaş yıllarında yazılan bu metinlerde, çok nadir karşılaşılan umutlu anlar bile yarım kalıyor. Güzel bir sahil görüntüsü çürümek üzere olan bir bedenle, güneşli bir gün tasviri sefaletin ve açlığın anlatısı ile bölünüyor. Ve Duras, zaman zaman okuması çok zor olan bu bölümlerden rahatsız olacak okuyuculara hiç çekinmeden "size de bu türden bir bahtsızlık diliyorum" diyor.
Başta da belirttiğim gibi kitabın her okuyucuya hitap ettiğini söylemek yanlış olur. Belki de kitap için şöyle bir özet doğru olacaktır: "Duras serüvenine başlamak için oldukça yanlış ama bu serüveni sonlandırmak için şahane bir kitap".
Duras'nın ölümünden önce bir arşive bağışladığı ve 1943-49 yılları arasında kaleme aldığı metinlerden oluşan kitap kendisinin yazarlık yolculuğunda bir seyahat yaratıyor. Duras severler bilir ki kendisinin eserlerinde ölüm, şiddet, sefalet ve sorunlu ilişkiler gibi temalara sıklıkla rastlanır. Bu açıdan kitabın ilk bölümü olan ve Duras'nın çocukluğunu anlattığı defter tüm bu temaların kökenini ortaya koyuyor. Aynı zamanda Sevgili kitabında anlatılan ilişkinin gerçek hayattaki karşılığını okumamıza da imkan tanıyor. Acı'nın taslaklarından oluşan bölüm hem bir kitabın yazım sürecini izlemek hem de yaşamdan doğan temaları anlamak açısından değerli diye düşünüyorum. Her ne kadar Acı'yı okumadan bu taslakları okumanın üzüntüsünü yaşasam da bu kısımlar Duras'nın "ölümü beklemek" temasına olan tutkusunun nedenini ortaya koyuyor. Yazarın daha önce yayımlanmamış öykülerini ve hatta yarım kalan ve yayımlanamayan tek romanı olan Theodora'nın küçük bir parçasını okumak da hazine niteliğini artırıyor.
Kitabın en önemli hazinesi ise tüm okurlara yönelik diye düşünüyorum. Savaşın öncelikle bir insanı ardından da bir yazarı nasıl etkilediğini görmek oldukça hüzünlü. Savaş yıllarında yazılan bu metinlerde, çok nadir karşılaşılan umutlu anlar bile yarım kalıyor. Güzel bir sahil görüntüsü çürümek üzere olan bir bedenle, güneşli bir gün tasviri sefaletin ve açlığın anlatısı ile bölünüyor. Ve Duras, zaman zaman okuması çok zor olan bu bölümlerden rahatsız olacak okuyuculara hiç çekinmeden "size de bu türden bir bahtsızlık diliyorum" diyor.
Başta da belirttiğim gibi kitabın her okuyucuya hitap ettiğini söylemek yanlış olur. Belki de kitap için şöyle bir özet doğru olacaktır: "Duras serüvenine başlamak için oldukça yanlış ama bu serüveni sonlandırmak için şahane bir kitap".
October 3, 2018
Μετά την προβολή της εξαιρετικής ταινίας "Οδύνη" ήθελα να διαβάσω πάρα πολύ το παραπάνω βιβλίο.Πολύ δυνατά κείμενα,αν και αποσπασματικά σε κάποια σημεία.Αυτό που μένει κυρίως είναι το πώς ο Β' Παγκόσμιος πόλεμος άλλαξε τη ζωή των ανθρώπων,τους στιγμάτισε!Ορισμένα σημεία θα έπρεπε να διδάσκονται ως πηγές στην Ιστορία,ως στοιχεία ενσυναίσθησης και όχι μυθοπλασίας.Το βιωματικό στοιχείο είναι πολύ ισχυρό και η ματιά της Ντυράς κοφτερή.
June 25, 2025
Anteckningar från kriget är just anteckningar - variationer, prologer till texter Duras kommer att skriva sen. Hon är yngre, texterna inte renskrivna. Kände igen mycket från Smärtan, som jag nyss läst, men även från En fördämning mot stilla havet. Läs och njut, att hon aldrig fick Nobelpriset är ett skämt - jag har kommit på att det inte är omöjligt att Marguerite Duras kanske är den bästa författaren någonsin
July 17, 2017
Självbiografiskt stoff, synopsisar, noveller. Kvaliteten varierar en aning, men samlingen är högst läsvärd eftersom vissa stycken, t ex utkasten till ”Smärtan”, håller absolut högsta Duras-klass. Och visst är det lyxigt att få en inblick i dessa delar av hennes författarskap.
August 2, 2011
She never fails. I could read her grocery lists and feel purified. I don't mind saying that she is a genius, or that I wish Americans would read her (more). Or that she would be Ernest Hemingway were this country not a Francophobic auction house. Or that when, at last, the world learns to brook a woman with a human spine, she will be called what she is: one of the three dozen best writers of her century.
I do not know why it is so common that a certain kind of autobiographical writer, the kind who lives for the story, who intends her life as art, is so rarely also a master of style. I am thinking of Anaϊs Nin, or Henry Miller, or Kerouac, though the phenomenon does not end there. But Duras is both kinds. Her life is art; as story it stands alone. And her style, the voice in which she utters this life, is virtuosic, brutal, entirely alone.
There are writers we read almost entirely for the back-story of their brave, bizarre, or harrowing lives. We read their books as sources secondary to the texts of their imagined biographies. We read their interesting lives, their personas, in what, without these, might be much less interesting literature. I am thinking of Isabelle Eberhardt or the fiction of Bataille.
But Duras is one of the only writers I know who stands absolutely equal on either side. Her biography and her books perfect one another in her style.
I do not know why it is so common that a certain kind of autobiographical writer, the kind who lives for the story, who intends her life as art, is so rarely also a master of style. I am thinking of Anaϊs Nin, or Henry Miller, or Kerouac, though the phenomenon does not end there. But Duras is both kinds. Her life is art; as story it stands alone. And her style, the voice in which she utters this life, is virtuosic, brutal, entirely alone.
There are writers we read almost entirely for the back-story of their brave, bizarre, or harrowing lives. We read their books as sources secondary to the texts of their imagined biographies. We read their interesting lives, their personas, in what, without these, might be much less interesting literature. I am thinking of Isabelle Eberhardt or the fiction of Bataille.
But Duras is one of the only writers I know who stands absolutely equal on either side. Her biography and her books perfect one another in her style.
April 17, 2016
I mistakenly thought this was MD's wartime DIARIES and so I was rather disappointed to realise, once I'd started reading, that it wasn't.
The book contains the contents of three notebooks filled with bits and pieces of writing from the period 1943-1949 and includes some autobiographical pieces and some sections that were later incorporated into novels. As I haven't read any of MD's novels I skipped through the fiction pieces and just read the autobiographical stuff. This comprised a few short pieces about her childhood and family and a few bits about her husband's recovery after being released from Dachau after WWII, but as there is no explanation about how long they had been married, how they met, why he was in Dachau, for how long, etc, I found these fragments more frustrating than illuminating.
This is a book that assumes you're already a MD fan and that you're familiar with her work and her biography, neither of which was true in my case. It did encourage me to learn more about her though and I've now ordered her biography, which will hopefully answer my questions.
The book contains the contents of three notebooks filled with bits and pieces of writing from the period 1943-1949 and includes some autobiographical pieces and some sections that were later incorporated into novels. As I haven't read any of MD's novels I skipped through the fiction pieces and just read the autobiographical stuff. This comprised a few short pieces about her childhood and family and a few bits about her husband's recovery after being released from Dachau after WWII, but as there is no explanation about how long they had been married, how they met, why he was in Dachau, for how long, etc, I found these fragments more frustrating than illuminating.
This is a book that assumes you're already a MD fan and that you're familiar with her work and her biography, neither of which was true in my case. It did encourage me to learn more about her though and I've now ordered her biography, which will hopefully answer my questions.
September 20, 2021
One of the editors wonderfully described this book as the "primitive architecture of the entire Durassian universe.” Here, you do get a glimpse at how she wrote about her own life then used some of those details in her fiction over and over in different ways. When she does write of her life, she seems to be creating as much as remembering.
This collection is really best for those who've already read at least a few books by Duras and really liked them. I admire Duras greatly and am about twelve books into her oeuvre, so reading these early writings, largely consisting of rough drafts of work both later published and not, was fascinating and I enjoyed taking my time with this book.
March 20, 2016
Algunas cosas están mejor guardadas. O perdidas. O no dichas. La existencia misma de Marguerite Duras es una confirmación de eso. Este libro es voyerismo, fisgonería (los esbozos). No es Duras. No podría ser Duras. Y sin embargo me gusta, como ver el armazón subterráneo de una casa. Un vértigo obsceno se extiende por los brazos.
July 23, 2023
Citaat : Haar gezicht met de dichte ogen bevatte tijd, en tijd zoals andere gezichten frisheid en onschuld.Tot dan toe had ik zoiets alleen gevoeld als ik naar de gezichten van sommige mannen keek!
Review : Zelfportret van een wild meisje is de titel van een verzameling nagelaten geschriften van Marguerite Duras. Jarenlang lagen de schriften met schetsen van de jonge Marguerite Duras vergeten in een kast. Met ander jeugdwerk van Duras zijn ze nu in het Nederlands te lezen in Zelfportret van een wild meisje. Duras verwijst in haar oeuvre verschillende keren naar deze schriften, die ze tussen 1943 en 1949 schreef, helemaal aan het begin van haar schrijverschap. De vier schriften zaten bij elkaar in een bruine enveloppe met daarop in Duras' handschrift: 4 cahiers de la guerre, en, daaronder + 1 cahier. Deze enveloppe lag opgeborgen in de 'blauwe kasten' in Duras' buitenhuis. Lange tijd was de schrijfster het bestaan ervan vergeten. Pas in 1976 dacht ze er weer aan, toen een literair tijdschrift haar vroeg om een jeugdverhaal. Toen ook las ze met verbazing en ontroering de teksten terug die later het eerste deel van de roman La douleur (1985) zouden vormen.
In deze uitgave, vertaald door Marianne Kaas onder de titel Zelfportret van een wild meisje, zijn de vier 'oorlogsschriften' bijna integraal opgenomen, gevolgd door tien korte verhalen die in dezelfde periode door Duras zijn geschreven en waarvan er negen nog niet eerder werden gepubliceerd. Aan elk schrift en ook aan de verhalen gaat een korte toelichting van de tekstbezorgers vooraf. Duras noemde ze: Les cahiers de la Guerre. Sommige teksten zijn zuiver autobiografisch. Zo staat er in het oudste schrift een tekst -veruit de interessantste in het boek- over haar jeugdjaren in Indochina, die de lezer toont waar Duras haar inspiratie voor l'Amant vandaan haalde. Ze laat hem er kennismaken met Léo, de rijke vriend uit haar tienerjaren, de tijd dat ze een wild meisje was, die model stond voor de Chinees in de beroemde roman. Andere schriften tonen een bijna voltooide roman, Theodora, en ruwe schetsen voor wat later Un barrage contre le Pacifique werd. Ze schrijft over haar eerste kus en over het overlijden van haar kind, en ze weidt uit over de terugkeer van haar man uit het kamp na de oorlog, het thema van haar aangrijpende roman De pijn.
Interessante teksten voor wie tot een beter begrip van Duras' werk wil komen. De schrijfster zelf koesterde haar schriften, die ze ‘een van de belangrijkste dingen van mijn leven' noemde. Liever nog hield ze ze verborgen, waarschijnlijk omwille van de hier en daar confronterende teksten, die je als lezer soms bij de keel grijpen. Deze teksten vormen de sleutel tot haar gepassioneerde oeuvre, tot het werk dat haar in de jaren daarna wereldberoemd zal maken. Een must voor de fan! Het 'zelfportret' is bovendien interessant omdat het, zoals de tekstbezorgers terecht in hun inleiding opmerken, een beeld geeft van het werk van Duras in embryonale fase. Veel van wat haar oeuvre kenmerkt, is hier al in de kern aanwezig: het biografische vermengd met het fictieve, de hechte, bijna incestueuze maar ook gewelddadige relatie met haar broers, machtswellust en een seksueel verlangen dat gepaard gaat met dood en verval. Een must voor de fan!
Review : Zelfportret van een wild meisje is de titel van een verzameling nagelaten geschriften van Marguerite Duras. Jarenlang lagen de schriften met schetsen van de jonge Marguerite Duras vergeten in een kast. Met ander jeugdwerk van Duras zijn ze nu in het Nederlands te lezen in Zelfportret van een wild meisje. Duras verwijst in haar oeuvre verschillende keren naar deze schriften, die ze tussen 1943 en 1949 schreef, helemaal aan het begin van haar schrijverschap. De vier schriften zaten bij elkaar in een bruine enveloppe met daarop in Duras' handschrift: 4 cahiers de la guerre, en, daaronder + 1 cahier. Deze enveloppe lag opgeborgen in de 'blauwe kasten' in Duras' buitenhuis. Lange tijd was de schrijfster het bestaan ervan vergeten. Pas in 1976 dacht ze er weer aan, toen een literair tijdschrift haar vroeg om een jeugdverhaal. Toen ook las ze met verbazing en ontroering de teksten terug die later het eerste deel van de roman La douleur (1985) zouden vormen.
In deze uitgave, vertaald door Marianne Kaas onder de titel Zelfportret van een wild meisje, zijn de vier 'oorlogsschriften' bijna integraal opgenomen, gevolgd door tien korte verhalen die in dezelfde periode door Duras zijn geschreven en waarvan er negen nog niet eerder werden gepubliceerd. Aan elk schrift en ook aan de verhalen gaat een korte toelichting van de tekstbezorgers vooraf. Duras noemde ze: Les cahiers de la Guerre. Sommige teksten zijn zuiver autobiografisch. Zo staat er in het oudste schrift een tekst -veruit de interessantste in het boek- over haar jeugdjaren in Indochina, die de lezer toont waar Duras haar inspiratie voor l'Amant vandaan haalde. Ze laat hem er kennismaken met Léo, de rijke vriend uit haar tienerjaren, de tijd dat ze een wild meisje was, die model stond voor de Chinees in de beroemde roman. Andere schriften tonen een bijna voltooide roman, Theodora, en ruwe schetsen voor wat later Un barrage contre le Pacifique werd. Ze schrijft over haar eerste kus en over het overlijden van haar kind, en ze weidt uit over de terugkeer van haar man uit het kamp na de oorlog, het thema van haar aangrijpende roman De pijn.
Interessante teksten voor wie tot een beter begrip van Duras' werk wil komen. De schrijfster zelf koesterde haar schriften, die ze ‘een van de belangrijkste dingen van mijn leven' noemde. Liever nog hield ze ze verborgen, waarschijnlijk omwille van de hier en daar confronterende teksten, die je als lezer soms bij de keel grijpen. Deze teksten vormen de sleutel tot haar gepassioneerde oeuvre, tot het werk dat haar in de jaren daarna wereldberoemd zal maken. Een must voor de fan! Het 'zelfportret' is bovendien interessant omdat het, zoals de tekstbezorgers terecht in hun inleiding opmerken, een beeld geeft van het werk van Duras in embryonale fase. Veel van wat haar oeuvre kenmerkt, is hier al in de kern aanwezig: het biografische vermengd met het fictieve, de hechte, bijna incestueuze maar ook gewelddadige relatie met haar broers, machtswellust en een seksueel verlangen dat gepaard gaat met dood en verval. Een must voor de fan!
November 18, 2023
"Тетрадки от войната и други текстове" Маргарит Дюрас, отразяват живота и творчеството ѝ, места и моменти, поднесени силно фрагментарно, те се допълват и в същото време звучат коренно различно. Сякаш момичето от Южен Индокитай, няма как да е жената от войната или жената от улица "Сен Бьоноа". По-късно тези фрагменти от четирите тетрадки ще приемат самостоятелен вид в различни произведения.
Първата част ми беше най-интересна, там е разгърнато детството ѝ, звученето е доста по-различно от "Любовникът", с доста повече детайли и сякаш го допълва, постепенно историята прелива в сюжета на "Бент срещу Пасифика" (който ме заинтригува, но не съм чела, на български "Бараж срещу Пасифика" Летера). Получава се много плътна картина на детството, отношенията с майка ѝ, съдбата на баща ѝ, взаимоотношения с братята ѝ, суровата земя, заобиколена от море, което бавно и методично, година след година, ще затвърди окаяното им положение и ще отнесе мечтите за забогатяване и утвърждаване в обществото.
Оттук нататък останалите тетрадки ще се фокусират върху живота ѝ във Франция и ще съдържат фрагменти от "Болката" - нейното изживяване по време на войната, когато чака съпруга си Робърт Антелм да се завърне, фрагменти от незавършения роман "Теодора", чиято героиня се появява и в други произведения, фрагменти от "Госпожа Доден". Тук тази фрагментарност силно ми натежа, сякаш изгубих представа за общата картина и се оказах в несвързани откъслеци от няколко различни живота.
Някъде между тези истории от детството и войната се включва "Морякът от Гибралтар", съвсем за малко и някак в нищото, може би този фрагмент ми беше най-непознат и най-неясен, от другите все пак получих малко по-добра представа.
Харесва ми донякъде, че Дюрас звучи различно и използва разнообразни мотиви, а не се фокусира само върху детството си. Така сякаш я опознах и видях много от живота ѝ от близо, но някак си преходът между тези отделни части от живота ѝ, между тези произведения, които я отразяват, би трябвало да е малко по-плавен, да има някаква свързваща нишка. Остава ми усещане за прекалено много неказано.
Първата част ми беше най-интересна, там е разгърнато детството ѝ, звученето е доста по-различно от "Любовникът", с доста повече детайли и сякаш го допълва, постепенно историята прелива в сюжета на "Бент срещу Пасифика" (който ме заинтригува, но не съм чела, на български "Бараж срещу Пасифика" Летера). Получава се много плътна картина на детството, отношенията с майка ѝ, съдбата на баща ѝ, взаимоотношения с братята ѝ, суровата земя, заобиколена от море, което бавно и методично, година след година, ще затвърди окаяното им положение и ще отнесе мечтите за забогатяване и утвърждаване в обществото.
Оттук нататък останалите тетрадки ще се фокусират върху живота ѝ във Франция и ще съдържат фрагменти от "Болката" - нейното изживяване по време на войната, когато чака съпруга си Робърт Антелм да се завърне, фрагменти от незавършения роман "Теодора", чиято героиня се появява и в други произведения, фрагменти от "Госпожа Доден". Тук тази фрагментарност силно ми натежа, сякаш изгубих представа за общата картина и се оказах в несвързани откъслеци от няколко различни живота.
Някъде между тези истории от детството и войната се включва "Морякът от Гибралтар", съвсем за малко и някак в нищото, може би този фрагмент ми беше най-непознат и най-неясен, от другите все пак получих малко по-добра представа.
Харесва ми донякъде, че Дюрас звучи различно и използва разнообразни мотиви, а не се фокусира само върху детството си. Така сякаш я опознах и видях много от живота ѝ от близо, но някак си преходът между тези отделни части от живота ѝ, между тези произведения, които я отразяват, би трябвало да е малко по-плавен, да има някаква свързваща нишка. Остава ми усещане за прекалено много неказано.
June 4, 2017
I had to read Duras for High School French. I remember thinking what a cool chick she must have been, long before such a phrase even made sense. Born to French parents in Vietnam, she left her She survived alcohol but the smokes got here in the end. She died of throat cancer in 1996, aged 81.
I never went back to her writing after High School. I guess she was the “it” girl in French literature by the time our French teacher made us read her. I missed the point of the hype then. I could gladly have finished my days without ever hearing her name again. But the other week I went to the local (reportedly abusive) family after a never fully explained affair with a Chinese man at the age of 17 to study in Paris. She joined the Communist Party and worked for the Vichy government as well as the French Resistance during the war. Her first husband was interned in Buchenwald. He survived the war but they divorced soon after. Marguerite Donnadieu chose the pen name Duras for her first publication towards the end of the war and stuck with it for life. She didn’t have to invent much. Her own life already was a novel, full of contradictions, affairs of the heart and substance abuse. flea market and there she was on the cover of a secondhand book, posing in front of a typewriter, a few pages of a manuscript and a packet of Gauloises cigarettes next to it .
When I began to read the English translation of her wartime notebooks it came back why I remembered her from the French lessons from forty years ago: Duras is easy to read, even in a foreign language. I don’t pretend to like all her stories and I could never stand her films but I love her simple and straightforward style of writing. This becomes even more poignant in the telegram style of her rough drafts. I’m glad I found Duras again. I won’t be going back to her novels but I urge every aspiring writer to get a copy of “Wartime Notebooks” as a reminder that it doesn’t take big words to tell a story – just the right ones.
January 6, 2020
É difícil escrever sobre uma obra incompleta - pois esse livro é feito de fragmentos - mas quanto mais leio Marguerite Duras mais me convenço que todas as obras dela se completam. Existe uma obsessão em tudo o que ela escreve, como se estivesse exorcizando um não sei o quê indescritível. Por isso, meio que não faz diferença que seja uma obra incompleta, porque é uma obra dela. Muito do livro eu reli, principalmente as partes que terminaram compondo os romances A Dor e O Amante, mas aqui existe uma espontaneidade maior, e talvez uma desorganicidade e angústia maiores justamente por isso, por serem rascunhos. O que mais vou levar da leitura é a dinâmica do processo criativo de Duras, e isso já valeu muito a pena. Quanto as histórias: o mais preciosos textos são os que tratam de temas que não apareceram tanto em outras obras da escritoras; como a morte do pai, a morte do primeiro filho, os posicionamentos políticos da autora, e as manhãs em seu apartamento em Paris.
February 10, 2018
My first foray with Duras. Quite remarkable in her unflinching exploration of human imperfection, including her own in these semi-autobiographical vignettes drawn from her time in Southeast Asia with her mother and brothers and in France during and in the immediate aftermath of WWII. We learn of her as a rootless young woman, an outsider and rebelliously uningratiating in her refusal to accede to any role others might want for her. Found her use of language striking and original along with her uncompromising strength and ability to brutally take on her own occasionally deplorable behavior. Includes tales of other characters staging their own quiet resistance to expectations. She gets at the turmoil beneath the surface of scenes of seemingly little action but a great deal of subterranean tension.
March 5, 2018
Marguerite Duras has been a big part of my literary landscape since first picking up "The Malady of Death" from a bargain bin at a book store in a mall way back in early high school (89 or 90 maybe...can't remember if it was B. Dalton or Waldenbooks, and yes, I really am from another century). This is said in warning that this particular volume ismostly for long time fans. She is only just finding her voice here. Really fascinating to read rough drafts of some of her more autobiographical works (early versions of parts of "The War", "The Sea Wall" and "The Lover" all show up), especially since many of them would not appear for another 30 or so years after this set of four notebooks ends.
January 2, 2020
This was my very first time reading Duras. And it’s hard for me to explain her. Wartime Writings feels like a sort of memoir In which it is. They are part of her diaries that later became novels and literature.
My deepest concern is the later process. As a major French Literary figure, where does such things come from? Ex. While reading I was wondering if these raw and uncut examples that she wrote. Because you can read them like they are an experience and later find they are maybe fiction. So the editing department is in full swing.
But Duras written ability is perfect. It is smooth enough to read. And enjoy. This was the perfect introduction.
My deepest concern is the later process. As a major French Literary figure, where does such things come from? Ex. While reading I was wondering if these raw and uncut examples that she wrote. Because you can read them like they are an experience and later find they are maybe fiction. So the editing department is in full swing.
But Duras written ability is perfect. It is smooth enough to read. And enjoy. This was the perfect introduction.
January 30, 2020
My favorite part was the first notebook where she offers a detailed picture of how a woman feels about the absence of her lover and what she goes through. Doubts, fears, hopes and momentary emotions are described nicely. The one where she is watching a former Nazi being tortured is such an interesting depiction of Arendt’s banality of evil. She has suffered so much and while rejecting violence, when put in a similar context can’t and won’t stop violence against another human being. This context is shown beautifully.
January 3, 2018
Μπερδεμένη γραφή.. κουραστικό πολύ.
στην ουσία είναι διάφορα αποσπάσματα της συγγραφέως που τις περισσότερες φορές δεν υπάρχει συνοχή με τα προηγούμενα κεφάλαια..
πριν αποφασίσετε να διαβάσετε το συγκεκριμένο βιβλίο καλό θα ήταν να διαβάσετε τα προηγούμενα της καθώς οι σημειώσεις (γιατί στην ουσία σημειώσεις είναι κ όχι λογοτεχνικό βιβλίο ) της αφορούν τα προηγούμενα της βιβλία.
στην ουσία είναι διάφορα αποσπάσματα της συγγραφέως που τις περισσότερες φορές δεν υπάρχει συνοχή με τα προηγούμενα κεφάλαια..
πριν αποφασίσετε να διαβάσετε το συγκεκριμένο βιβλίο καλό θα ήταν να διαβάσετε τα προηγούμενα της καθώς οι σημειώσεις (γιατί στην ουσία σημειώσεις είναι κ όχι λογοτεχνικό βιβλίο ) της αφορούν τα προηγούμενα της βιβλία.
November 27, 2017
A pretty fascinating look at life during and after WWII in France. Perhaps an even more fascinating look at how a writer churns over ideas for years, reworking images and themes, eventually folding them into her fictional work.
April 25, 2021
Duras'ı çok sevmeme rağmen bu kitabı bitirmekte çok zorlandım. İlk yarısı yine bildiğimiz Duras, son bölümdeki hikayeler eh işte... Ancak anladım ki tamamlanmamış, yarım metinleri sevgi saygı namına dahi okumak bana göre değil. Sevemedim, dolayısıyla bu derlemeyi de anlamlı bulamadım...
January 29, 2019
Bellísimo y brutal. Imprescindible para conocer el tono de la escritura de Duras.
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December 2, 2024La bible
Les pigeons volés
Les pigeons volés
February 21, 2011
A rare glimpse inside the writing process, I would recommend this for readers and writers already familiar with Duras's work. By that I mean you need to have read more than just The Lover. If the craft of writing does not interest you, then you'll be happier sticking to her novels.
Reading from these notebooks gives the feeling of going through an attic of another person's papers. You wonder if you really should. I kept reminding myself that Duras herself wrote without much regard for her own personal boundaries. Still, it is a privilege to be allowed access to her private thoughts on her early life and her first drafts of later published works such as The Lover and The War.
When I choose to re-read her work, I know that her voice will resonate more deeply and richly for me as a result of having read these Wartime Writings.
Reading from these notebooks gives the feeling of going through an attic of another person's papers. You wonder if you really should. I kept reminding myself that Duras herself wrote without much regard for her own personal boundaries. Still, it is a privilege to be allowed access to her private thoughts on her early life and her first drafts of later published works such as The Lover and The War.
When I choose to re-read her work, I know that her voice will resonate more deeply and richly for me as a result of having read these Wartime Writings.
February 6, 2017
Ah... another book I picked up to fit a reading challenge task (FYI, I do this a LOT). I'm not actually familiar with Marguerite Duras or any of her works though I know of her reputation as a writer, of course. This book took extracts from her diaries that were found in the cupboard after her death. Her diaries had more of short drafts of her stories though there were some personal anecdotes. In fact, the first chapter was of her childhood in Indochina and it was rather sad and painful to read! And if I were familiar with her works, I'd probably enjoy the rest of the book better. As it was, maybe, I'd look into adding some of her books to my tbr. Please let me know which book I best start with :)
March 25, 2021
I read the English edition published by Maclehose under the title “Wartime Notebooks” translated by Coverdale. It is a compilation of drafts, of snippets often, from the years immediately after the War that later Duras formed into completed works. Essentially all are autobiographical and relate most movingly to Duras’s family during her childhood in CochinChina and to life in France during and after the Occupation when she was nominally a Vichy functionary but a member of the Resistance with her husband, Robert —and Francois Mitterrand later the President. The anguish of Robert’s repatriation from concentration camps after his capture by the Gestapo and Duras’s nursing of him is as poignant as it is shockingly graphic.
December 11, 2011
This is an edited and translated edition of 4 notebooks that Marguerite Duras wrote in during the war, or slightly afterwards. Some of it is studies for or drafts of novels published later, some of it memoir that was never published as such later, but adapted into novels. And some of it was never published--just the bits and pieces that one sometimes writes in a notebook when you need to write something down. As such, this is probably only actually interesting the whole way through for scholars of Duras. Not being one myself, I mostly skipped the novel drafts and just read the parts that were written in the moment for their raw emotional quality that was later edited.
September 20, 2014
There is one piece of writing in this collection worth reading - "Did Not Die Deported" - and what an impressive piece of writing it is. Duras' description of nursing her husband, Robert Antelme, back to health after his return from a concentration camp, is very moving. Apparently the piece iwas included in "La Douleur" which is hard to find in English. The other writings in this collection - early drafts, alternative plot lines, etc. of novels - are pretty tedious. Duras' writing about her husband's return, however, led me to his own memoir, "The Human Race" which was published in 1947 - a superior read.
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