LA PRESSE , AN ANNOTATED INDEX OF ARTICLES ON LITERATURE, ART, AND MUSIC (1836-1841) BY EUGENA POULIN A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 1 986 Copyright 1986 by Eugena Poulin This work is gratefully dedicated to Dr. Albert B. Smith for his scholarly guidance, sensitive concern, and unfailing assistance. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT INTRODUCTION 1 Notes 17 ANNOTATED INDEX 22 BIOGRAPHIES OF CONTRIBUTORS TO LA PRESSE 388 APPENDICES A INDEX OF AUTHORS 435 B INDEX OF NAMES CITED 44? C INDEX OF WORKS 493 BIBLIOGRAPHY 547 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 553 . Abstract of Dissertation Presented to the Graduate School of the University of Florida in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy LA PRESSE , AN ANNOTATED INDEX OF ARTICLES ON LITERATURE, ART, AND MUSIC ( 1 836-1 8^11) BY EUGENA POULIN December , 1986 Chairman: Dr. Albert B, Smith Major Department: Romance Languages This work is an annotated index of the articles on literature, art, and music published in the daily newspaper. La Presse , from its beginning in July, I 836 through December, 1841. La Presse was the first successful inexpensive daily newspaper in France. Its editor, Emile de Girardin, sought not only to make this journalistic venture a financial success but also to educate his subscribers by offering articles on a variety of subjects. The paper thus contains a wealth of information. The index was undertaken to provide a research tool for scholars interested in nineteenth-century France. The introduction gives an overview of the newspaper and describes the various types of articles to be annotated V Immediately following the introduction is a guide to the use of the index. The index itself, listing over 2000 items, carries dates and numbers to simplify consultation. The biographical section provides information on authors of the articles. The biographical sketches focus on the authors' journalistic activities, especially their contributions to La Presse . At the end of the dissertation are three appendices: one indexing the authors of the articles; another all of the important persons given specific mention in the articles; and finally an index listing the literary, artistic, and musical works mentioned. Vi INTRODUCTION La Presse , the nineteenth-century Parisian newspaper, created a revolutionary type of French journalism. It established, for all newspapers, a new economic structure; it discovered a whole new readership among the less affluent; it provided a generally nonpartisan coverage of the news; and it introduced the popular r oman- f eui 1 1 e ton . Thus, La Presse was financially, politically, socially, and artistically involved in nineteenth-century French life. Emile de Girardin, a young, enterprising businessman, founded La Presse in July 1836. His aims in establishing this newspaper were three-fold; financial, political, and educational. Realizing that newspapers, because of their cost,^ were not available to the average person, he initiated newspaper advertising. "C'est aux annonces de payer le journal,"^ he wrote in his first edition of the paper . He was the first in France to use the method successfully. By reducing the cost of publication, he lowered the cost of a subscription to forty francs a year, making the paper accessible to a much broader segment of O society. Innovation was not restricted merely to the financial aspects of La Presse . Girardin set out to be a 1 2 journalistic pioneer in other areas and clearly stated his goal: "Nous ne pr^tendons pas refaire ce qu'a fait I’ancienne presse, mais faire autrement et autre chose. Girardin expressed the general philosophy of his paper concerning politics when he selected its name. He chose La Presse , the generic term for the medium, "nom qui ne portera d'ombrage h personne et cher k tous."^ This impartiality, rather than drawing accolades, brought condemnation from many quarters. That the newspaper subscribed to no one political party or faction was viewed by some as immoral; nevertheless. La Presse flourished. Finally, most important to our study was Girardin's dedica- tion to his readers’ education: "Un journal ainsi compris r^alisera l'unit4 d ' enseignement , enseignement complet."^ In order to achieve this goal, the articles in La Presse contained, in addition to news items, varied topics of cultural interest. At its inception La Presse consisted of four pages. The upper two-thirds of page one were usually devoted to news items, international and national. The f eui lleton always began on the bottom third of the first page. On a few occasions the front page opened the way to lyricism, in I8il0 for example, when poems by Victor Hugo and Auguste-Marseille Barth^lemy were prominently printed on the front page in honor of the transferral of Napoleon's ashes from Saint-Helena to Paris. ^ Pages two and three 3 contained news items, the continuation of the feuilleton , and a rubric called "Vari^t^s." Generally speaking, the last page was reserved for brief announcements such as stock market results, lists of theater presentations, and advertisements. The latter included advertisements for books, medicines, and assorted objects and services. Q La Presse was a daily paper, although occasionally only six issues appeared in a week, in which case two dates would be printed on one issue. At certain times of increased political activity, a supplement was inserted.^ Later an additional supplement, devoted entirely to politics, became a separate publication and required a special subscription.^*^ Finally, in describing the physical appearance of the newspaper, mention must be made of nineteenth-century spelling. For example, the omission of _t's on nouns ending in ants and ents may be noted. It must also be stated that there are sometimes spelling errors, especially of authors' names or of titles. The two special feature articles, "Le Feuilleton" and "Vari^t^s," concentrated on cultural topics and only infre- quently on news items or politics. Generally only Mme de Girardin and Alphonse Karr, authors of "Courrier de Paris" and "Courrier de province," respectively, wrote political articles and news stories for "Le Feuilleton." "Vari4t4s" made its debut in the first issue of La Presse with a book review by Samuel-Henry Berthoud. Most often book reviews were listed under the heading of "Variates," although these were not its sole province. "Vari^t^s" also contained biographies; articles on music, art, literature, travel; and works of fiction. The subjects found in "Vari^t^s" and "Le Feuilleton" were nearly interchangeable; in fact, at times an article began as a feature of "Le Feuilleton" and continued in subsequent issues under the heading of "Vari4t6s." However, "Vari4t4s" seldom included theater reviews; fashions; or social, literary, or theatrical news. The first author of "Le Feuilleton de La Presse " was Frederic Souli4. He explained that "Le Feuilleton" would concern itself with literary criticism and theater reviews. "Le Feuilleton" would also describe ceremonies, print race results, give news about the salons, and report on the deliberations of the French Academy. in the second issue Alexandre Dumas specified literary topics and authors to be considered in future issues, asserting that judgments would always be independent and conscien- tious, if not error-free. Actually, La Presse exceeded the ambitious aims expressed by Souli^ and Dumas, especially in the realm of fiction and fictionalized history. "Le Feuilleton" covered a broad cultural spectrum. Several specific types of articles in "Le Feuilleton" and "Vari4t4s" are particularly significant: the "Courrier de Paris," "A Madame***," ladies' fashions, theater reviews, literary criticism, art criticism, travel journals. 5 fictionalized history, and fiction. Their importance is due not only to their consistent or frequent appearance but to their inherent value. Charles, vicomte de Launay, introduced the "Courrier de Paris" to the readers of La Presse in September 1836. The author was Delphine de Girardin, the talented wife of the editor. Her feature appeared weekly in "Le Feuilleton" with but a few interruptions.^^ "Le Courrier de Paris" under the by-line of Launay disappeared only in 1848, when censorship made this type of journalism extremely diffi- cult. Henri Malo, writing about Mme de Girardin’s articles, says that she deserves the title of "La Muse de la patrie." He describes her style as truly French and elegant, and he claims that she exhibited good taste and clear logic. For subject matter she selected the events of the week. Sometimes she described a ball, the latest fashions, a reception, or she quoted from a new popular song. Frequently, she summarized the week's social, literary, or theatrical news. At times her topics were more personal, for example, the championing of Victor Hugo's candidacy to the French Academy^ ^ or her criticism of Franpois Guizot's choice of words in a speech he had given. Although she maintained politics was not in her realm, she nonetheless entered political frays; for example, in July 1940, she criticized the foreign minister, Adolphe Thiers, for the manner in which he had received a 6 group of ambassadors. 1 s Her subjects are varied and some- times controversial. Even in the weeks when she complains that there is nothing happening, her flowing, chatty prose makes her articles always interesting. Often her comments are witty, and at times, she devotes a paragraph or more to the humorous treatment of a subject. Because she con- sistently described what was h la mode in literature, art, music, and fashion, her comments are valuable for their insights into early nineteenth-century society. Sophie Gay, Delphine's mother, was also a contributor to La Presse . Her articles bore the title "A Madame***." They were in a certain sense an imitation of her daughter's "Courrier de Paris." However, Mme Gay, writing from Versailles, generally limited herself to descriptions of buildings in the Versailles area, reminiscences of her younger days, social activities in Versailles, and general literary news.