Viviane Forrester (1925–2013)
Author of Economic Horror
About the Author
Works by Viviane Forrester
Associated Works
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Forrester, Viviane
- Legal name
- Dreyfus, Viviane
- Birthdate
- 1925-09-25
- Date of death
- 2013-04-30
- Gender
- female
- Occupations
- essayist
novelist
literary critic
biographer
economic theorist - Organizations
- Le Monde
Le Nouvel Observateur - Short biography
- Viviane Forrester, née Dreyfus, was born to a wealthy French Jewish family in Paris. She came of age at a time when the world she knew was collapsing: France was defeated and occupied by Nazi Germany at the start of World War II. In 1942, when she was 16, the round-up of French Jews began, and she and her parents fled the city and escaped to Spain. Viviane felt she always carried the burden of her experiences during this period -- memories that found their way into her fiction and her moral outlook. She made her debut as a novelist in 1970 with Ainsi des exilés. Until the publication of her internationally popular, bestselling economics book, L'horreur économique (1996), which won the Prix Medicis, she was known mainly for her novels and as an essayist and literary critic for Le Monde, Le Nouvel Observateur, and Quinzaine littéraire. She also was an acclaimed biographer, and won the Prix Goncourt in 2009 for her biography of Virginia Woolf. She served as a member of the jury for the Prix Femina. She was married twice: firstly to Simon Stoloff, with whom she had two sons; after they divorced, she married John Forrester, a painter.
- Nationality
- France
- Birthplace
- Paris, France
- Places of residence
- Paris, France
- Place of death
- Paris, France
- Map Location
- France
- Associated Place (for map)
- Paris, France
Members
Reviews
Libro profetico che risente della redazione del 1995, e che tuttavia - pur essendo a volte fastidiosamente manicheo - delinea con tragico nitore la situazione attuale. Forse molto - troppo - intellettuale, è pero' tagliente e affilato, e scoperchia qualche verità evidente, ma taciuta.
Quando eravamo ragazzini ci spaventava il futuro ipotizzato da '1984'; adesso 'The road' di McCarthy sembra l'ipotesi più prevedibile. Non per deflagrazioni nucleari o catastrofi naturali: basta che ne parta show more uno solo: gli altri seguiranno a ruota. show less
Quando eravamo ragazzini ci spaventava il futuro ipotizzato da '1984'; adesso 'The road' di McCarthy sembra l'ipotesi più prevedibile. Non per deflagrazioni nucleari o catastrofi naturali: basta che ne parta show more uno solo: gli altri seguiranno a ruota. show less
The author, Viviane Forrester (1925-2013) has translated some of Virginia Woolf’s work into French and has done tremendous research in her book, Virginia Woolf - A Portrait. This research, based on additional letters and journals, has revealed another side and conflicting characterization of Virginia Woolf than what is portrayed by the common perspective offered by her nephew and biographer, Quentin Bell. It is refreshing to see a perspective that may be a more accurate point of view from show more research outside of the family alliances. This book was originally written in French and translated into English by Jody Gladding.
I have To The Lighthouse (1927) by Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) on my TBR pile and it is part of my personal challenge to read more of the great literary works. To The Lighthouse tops lists of literary classic fiction and was inspired on the remembrances of family trips from Virginia's own life. I wanted to find out more about Virginia Woolf by reading a literary biography.
Viviane Forrester is a French Jew and points out the complexity of the anti-semitism of the time period and of the particular conflicts that Virginia holds in her own views. She married Leonard Woolf, of Jewish ancestry and loves him dearly, yet has feelings of disgust and animosity toward the Jews in general. Virginia is devoted to Leonard and even plans a suicide pact that they would chose to die together if England were to be invaded by Germany and fall under Hitler’s torture. Thankfully, this did not materialize, but her devotion to a Jewish man is clearly demonstrated.
The book has extensive references and includes discussions of the facts and correspondence that was occurring during the time periods of the writing of some of her major works, including:
Along with James Joyce and William Faulkner, Virginia Woolf is known for writing in the Modernist style of ‘stream of consciousness’ in some of her works.
Virginia struggled with mental illness during a time period where there was not much treatment other than being committed to an asylum. Sadly, throughout her life, she had a few suicide attempts and ended her life at age 59.
At times, this book was difficult to follow since it seems to jump around between references and time periods in the discussions. It may be because it is translated but also because I had not previously been aware of the major details of Virginia Woolf’s life. Perhaps others with more knowledge of the people, places and events of her life would have an easier time following along in this book. show less
I have To The Lighthouse (1927) by Virginia Woolf (1882-1941) on my TBR pile and it is part of my personal challenge to read more of the great literary works. To The Lighthouse tops lists of literary classic fiction and was inspired on the remembrances of family trips from Virginia's own life. I wanted to find out more about Virginia Woolf by reading a literary biography.
Viviane Forrester is a French Jew and points out the complexity of the anti-semitism of the time period and of the particular conflicts that Virginia holds in her own views. She married Leonard Woolf, of Jewish ancestry and loves him dearly, yet has feelings of disgust and animosity toward the Jews in general. Virginia is devoted to Leonard and even plans a suicide pact that they would chose to die together if England were to be invaded by Germany and fall under Hitler’s torture. Thankfully, this did not materialize, but her devotion to a Jewish man is clearly demonstrated.
The book has extensive references and includes discussions of the facts and correspondence that was occurring during the time periods of the writing of some of her major works, including:
The Voyage Out (1915)
Mrs Dalloway (1925)
To The Lighthouse (1927)
Orlanda (1928)
A Room of One's Own (1929)
The Waves (1931)
Along with James Joyce and William Faulkner, Virginia Woolf is known for writing in the Modernist style of ‘stream of consciousness’ in some of her works.
Virginia struggled with mental illness during a time period where there was not much treatment other than being committed to an asylum. Sadly, throughout her life, she had a few suicide attempts and ended her life at age 59.
At times, this book was difficult to follow since it seems to jump around between references and time periods in the discussions. It may be because it is translated but also because I had not previously been aware of the major details of Virginia Woolf’s life. Perhaps others with more knowledge of the people, places and events of her life would have an easier time following along in this book. show less
Viviane Forrester, passionnée de littérature, férue de philosophie et de psychanalyse, a rencontré avec cet ouvrage un succès sans précédent. Dénonçant le culte de la rentabilité et la tyrannie du profit, l'auteur prend l'exact contre-pied de l'idéologie libérale qui prétend subordonner toute décision politique aux seuls impératifs de l'économie.
Ce livre révolté n'est cependant pas révolutionnaire. S'inspirant largement des analyses de Hannah Arendt qui annonçait déjà show more les dangers liés au dépérissement du politique, devenu l'instrument privilégié de l'ordre économique existant, l'auteur appelle de ses voeux un renouveau du débat démocratique. L'intérêt essentiel de ce best-seller, écrit avec talent et conviction, est de révéler l'ampleur du désastre humain induit par la démission des élites et l'apathie du citoyen.
Déploration vaine ou coup de colère salutaire, cet ouvrage s'inscrit résolument dans la tradition humaniste, stigmatisant la paresse et la lâcheté qui pérennisent l'injustice. Toute la question est de savoir si Viviane Forrester, après avoir été entendue, a des chances d'être écoutée show less
Ce livre révolté n'est cependant pas révolutionnaire. S'inspirant largement des analyses de Hannah Arendt qui annonçait déjà show more les dangers liés au dépérissement du politique, devenu l'instrument privilégié de l'ordre économique existant, l'auteur appelle de ses voeux un renouveau du débat démocratique. L'intérêt essentiel de ce best-seller, écrit avec talent et conviction, est de révéler l'ampleur du désastre humain induit par la démission des élites et l'apathie du citoyen.
Déploration vaine ou coup de colère salutaire, cet ouvrage s'inscrit résolument dans la tradition humaniste, stigmatisant la paresse et la lâcheté qui pérennisent l'injustice. Toute la question est de savoir si Viviane Forrester, après avoir été entendue, a des chances d'être écoutée show less
Trods en smule irritation over, at påstandene gentages lidt for ofte efter min smag (kunne have været skrevet kortere), så er det en bog, som jeg kan anbefale alle, der har mod til at tænke over den aktuelle stigning mellem rig og fattig. Det er en åbenlys pointe, at arbejdet i dag ofte bruges som en middel til at få fordelt ressourcer - i stedet for at fordele ressourcerne meningsfuldt og derefter undersøge hvordan vi kan leve meningsfuldt med langt mindre nødvendigt arbejde.
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Statistics
- Works
- 17
- Also by
- 1
- Members
- 389
- Popularity
- #62,203
- Rating
- 3.7
- Reviews
- 8
- ISBNs
- 74
- Languages
- 10