French Literature Reviews - 2026
Y. Dagan, La NRF entre guerre et paix (1914-1925)
History, Politics and Society
Review published in the critical dossier of Acta Fabula, "Le Centenaire de la NRf" (December 2009, Vol. 10, no. 10): "La NRf face à la guerre" by Françoise Simonet-Tenant.
Yaël Dagan, La NRF entre guerre et paix (1914-1925), Paris, Tallandier, Oct 2, 2008
ISBN: 978-284734-524-7
22 €
Publisher's overview:
The Nouvelle Revue française, founded a century ago by André Gide and a circle of friends, is now part of France's national heritage. By exploring a little-known chapter of its history (1914–1925), this book fills a significant gap while making a valuable contribution to the cultural history of the First World War. Through an analysis of the journal's political, literary, and critical discourse, an examination of previously unpublished sources, and a study of individual trajectories and networks, the book sheds light on how André Gide, Jacques Rivière, Jean Schlumberger, and many of France's leading writers of the era—such as Proust, Claudel, Valéry, and countless others—underwent a dual transformation. In 1914, turning away from peace, they were captivated by the war. Beginning in 1919 (or earlier for some, later for others), they retraced their steps, moving from war back to peace. Beyond the specific context of the NRF and the Great War, Yaël Dagan raises the enduring and pressing question of the relationship between intellectuals and politics in times of war, as well as the scope and relevance of their commitments—or their silences.
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An article on this book can be read on the nonfiction.fr website:
The Nouvelle Revue française remains a central pillar of twentieth-century French letters, established by André Gide and his associates to foster a distinct literary sensibility. During the early twentieth century, the journal became a primary site for debating the intersection of aesthetic values and national identity. By focusing on the decade surrounding the First World War, this study situates the publication within the broader cultural history of the period, tracing how the journal's contributors shifted their perspectives from the pre-war literary climate to the mobilization of intellectual life during the conflict and the subsequent transition toward peace.
The work considers the trajectories of figures such as Jacques Rivière, Jean Schlumberger, Marcel Proust, Paul Claudel, and Paul Valéry as they responded to the pressures of a changing political landscape. By examining unpublished archival sources alongside the journal's critical discourse, the book explores the tension between literary commitment and the silence of intellectuals during national crises. These investigations into the relationship between writers and the state reflect long-standing inquiries into the role of the public intellectual in France. Readers interested in the history of French literary institutions may find this study relevant.