“A writer, novelist, playwright, poet, designer and engraver.” That’s how one could describe Alfred Jarry. Here on Allée Alfred Jarry we delve into the world of this fascinating man. This path honors Alfred Jarry the writer. He lived from 1873 to 1907.
Alfred Jarry attended the Lycée Chateaubriand in Rennes in 1888. In 1888, his mother moved to Rennes with her two children. Jarry entered rhetoric at the Lycée de Rennes now the Lycée Émile Zola de Rennes in October 1888. There, Mr. Hébert a physics teacher embodied in the eyes of his students “all the grotesque that is in the world”.
The teacher became the hero of abundant school literature. One text was entitled Les Polonais. Jarry put it in the form of a comedy in the first grade. It became the oldest version of Ubu Roi. As a poet, novelist, playwright and French designer, he is famous for this cycle about King Ubu.
Alfred Jarry was quite the character. He was born in Laval, France. He died in Paris at only 34 years old. His full name was Alfred Henri Jarry. He sometimes used the pseudonym Alain Jans. Jarry is known for works like Ubu Roi which he wrote around 1888. It was published in 1896. He also wrote Gestes et opinions du docteur Faustroll pataphysicien. Jarry finished it in 1898 but it was published in 1911. Other works include L’Amour absolu, Ubu enchaîné and Le Surmâle.
Jarry’s father Anselme Jarry was a businessman. His mother was Caroline Quernest. He was baptized in the cathedral of Laval on June 8, 1874. Jarry was a student at the Lycée Ambroise-Paré in 1878. The following year, his mother moved to Saint-Brieuc with him and his sister Charlotte. He studied at the Lycée de Saint-Brieuc until 1888. From 1885, he composed comedies in verse and prose. Examples include Les Brigands de la Calabre, le Parapluie-Seringue du Docteur Thanaton, le Procès and les Antliaclastes.
In 1891-1892, Jarry was a student of Henri Bergson. His classmate was Léon-Paul Fargue. He failed the entrance exam to the École Normale Supérieure several times. In 1893, he became seriously ill. His mother cared for him but she died soon after.
During May-June 1894, he went to Pont Aven. He stayed in the Gloanec guesthouse. There he met Paul Gauguin and his Tahitian partner Anna. He also met Armand Seguin, his wife, Eric Forbes-Robertson, Charles Filiger, and Roderic O’Conor. Gauguin later praised Ubu Roi in his journal Le Sourire.
His publications allowed him to meet Marcel Schwob. He also met Alfred Vallette director of the Mercure de France and his wife Rachilde. In their house, he presented Ubu Roi in 1894. He frequented Mallarmé’s Tuesdays. He collaborated with the Revue Blanche and the Mercure de France. Two years later, he joined Lugné-Poe. He entrusted him with the program for the next season of the Théâtre de l’Œuvre. The premiere of Ubu Roi took place there. It caused a controversy like the Battle of Hernani. Jarry’s plays followed in the cycles of Ubu.
From 1894 to 1895, he directed L’Ymagier with Remy de Gourmont. This collection of old and new engravings artistic and philological studies appeared in quarterly installments. His father died in 1895.
In 1896, he bought a “Clément Luxe 96” racing bicycle. He never paid the merchant Trochon for it. After falling out with Fargue and Gourmont, he founded a print journal Perhindérion. It only had two issues. Jarry became friends with Lord Douglas Oscar Wilde’s lover.
In 1897, he spent his inheritance. He bought a mahogany skiff named L’As. It entered literature through the adventures of Faustroll. He restored it with Vallette in Corbeil’s garden. The customs officer Rousseau briefly housed him.
Alfred Jarry certainly left his mark on French literature. Allée Alfred Jarry serves as a reminder of his unique contributions and his enduring influence on the arts.