Writer 1879: Solitary Journey in France

Chapter 59 The Storm That Came Thirty Years Early
Flaubert's apartment in Paris was located at 240 Rue Saint-Honoré in the 1st arrondissement, a prime location near the Royal Palace and the Saint-Royal Church.

Apart from his villa in Croisette, Rouen, this was his only property; and for nearly 10 years, this salon became the de facto heart of French literature.

Lionel has received numerous salon invitations in recent weeks—in addition to those from Stefan Mallarmé, teachers from the Sorbonne, and Albert.

The late 19th century was the heyday of Parisian "salon culture," with writers, artists, publishers, wealthy merchants who were keen to sponsor them, and aristocrats who were fond of refined tastes... ensuring that no night in Paris was ever boring.

Therefore, choosing which salons to attend became something Lionel needed to handle carefully.

Some salon owners might be mortal enemies; some salon owners are petty; some salons are simply some kind of unspeakable party...

The salons hosted by the Sorbonne professors are usually quite academic, and Lionel really didn't want to have to continue teaching after just finishing his get out of class here, only to go to the salon.

Albert's salon was either a place for the young aristocracy to indulge in various games, or a place to beg for sponsorship from some noblewoman.

None of these fit Lionel's vision—the only one that should have been was "Tuesdays at Mallarmé," but the participants in that gathering were mainly Symbolist poets, Impressionist painters, and rebellious musicians, and Lionel could easily imagine what that scene would be like.

To some extent, in 19th-century Paris, being a writer or artist meant "choosing a salon meant choosing your allegiance."

So when Maupassant, with his dark circles under his eyes, suddenly appeared before him and said, "Mr. Flaubert hopes to see you at the salon on Sunday afternoon," all other options disappeared.

This is "Flaubert's Sunday," a text I've read in middle school Chinese textbooks.

Later, Chinese students first encountered those names that shone brightly in literary history almost always through this article: Gustave Flaubert, Ivan Turgenev, Alphonse Daudet, Émile Zola…

However, due to the tradition of middle school textbook editors favoring abridgment, Lionel only discovered that there were other people present when he arrived at the scene:
Edmond de Goncourt, one of the Goncourt brothers who established the "Prix Goncourt," the major publisher Charpentier, the naturalist Puschet who was as young as a cavalry officer, and several young writers under the age of 30 were staunch followers of Zola...

There was even a professor from the Sorbonne who indirectly caused Professor Hippolyte Taine to attend the salon with Lionel.

Lionel was absolutely horrified...

After Maupassant introduced Lionel, all these people were observing this newcomer who had "intruded" into the salon, each with their own inner thoughts.

"This is 'Poor Lionel'? The elbows of his coat aren't worn smooth?"

"Why doesn't he smell like District 11? Did Guy take a bath before bringing him here?"

"Why does Professor Tainer look so calm? Could the rumors be true—that he's going to marry his daughter to Lionel?"

……

Lionel, of course, couldn't hear these thoughts. He only felt that the gazes of these seniors and peers were somewhat...strange, but he still smiled back and gave Maupassant a grateful look: "Thank you!"

Maupassant, feeling guilty, dared not respond and secretly hid himself at the back of the crowd.

Flaubert, though somewhat puzzled by his usually eloquent disciple's unusual shyness, still extended a welcome to Lionel as the host of the salon.

The conversation naturally turned to his novel, "The Old Guard".

Everyone present had read the novel, some in the Sorbonne Academy Bulletin from the previous two weeks, and others in yesterday's Little Parisian. Everyone was curious that a second-year student at the Sorbonne could write such a masterpiece.

So Lionel first explained the origin of the "Old Guard" image and his initial inspiration.

After listening, Flaubert fell into deep thought. A moment later, his deep voice broke the silence: "Léon—please allow me to call you that—actually, when I read this novel, I was more driven by a theoretical curiosity."

"Right here in this room—" He looked around, a smile on his face.

"Emile (Zola) advocated 'experimental novels,' placing literature within the laws of physiology and genetics; Edmond (Goncourt) preferred meticulous 'documentary' recording; and I, I am a stubborn recorder of reality..."

But you, Léon, your *The Old Guard* seems different from all of us. What creed gave birth to it? Especially the narrator, 'I,' 'the young man'—I read your record of being questioned at the Sorbonne, yet I still have doubts.”

"How perceptive..." Lionel thought to himself.

Flaubert, as one of the most outstanding writers of his time, possessed an unparalleled sensitivity to the art of the novel.

Although "The Old Guard" is not significantly different in form from most 19th-century short stories—"weak first-person perspective" ('I' am merely the narrator, not the protagonist), "single-line narrative," "typical characters and typical settings"...

However, its original work was created in the 20th century by a first-rate short story master, which naturally transcends the current era.

However, only a master like Flaubert could perceive this.

Lionel felt the pressure of the gazes focused on him, and after thinking for a while, he slowly spoke: "Indeed, when I was creating 'The Old Guard,' I was inevitably influenced by people like you, Mr. Zola, Mr. Daudet, and Mr. Goncourt."

Your works are all exemplary of French novels, serving as indispensable pathways and bridges for any French person aspiring to a writing career.

Lionel was telling the truth, and Flaubert and others found it quite pleasing—only Maupassant looked sullen in the back of the crowd.

"But once I got into the writing state, I didn't have the extra thought to think about whether this sentence was 'naturalism' or that sentence was 'realism'—so the birth of 'The Old Guard' did not stem from a conversion to some established 'creed'."

I chose the young man as the narrator not merely to 'record' the environment and its products. My real intention was to reveal how the environment shapes the act of 'watching' itself.

This young man, 'I,' is himself one of the most 'successful' products of this environment!

He shaped his perception with the rules of the tavern—a sensitivity to prices, a wariness of the possibility of 'mixing in', and an implicit acceptance of the distinction between woolen coats and short coats.

His 'observations' of the old guard also carried the specific colors bestowed upon him by his environment—an almost instinctive numbness, a compassion dulled by the pressures of survival, and even a sense of participation seeking temporary relief amidst the laughter of the crowd.

Lionel's words, though easy to understand, struck the audience like a thunderbolt—"The environment not only shapes behavior, but also shapes how we perceive?"

None of those present, including Lionel, realized that a literary storm sweeping across Europe and the world was about to begin, thirty years earlier than planned, on "Flaubert's Sunday," on this otherwise ordinary afternoon in 1879.

　This chapter was fucking so hard to write… The last 500 words took me an hour. The biggest challenge was that I had to write an analysis that was as consistent as possible with the style of the time as possible, without repeating the content of the Sorbonne's questions and answers, and without using a boastful tone. I had to make it acceptable to the Flauberts and other figures I imagined. I knew it would be difficult before I started writing, but I didn't expect it to be this difficult.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)