Guy de Maupassant

Early Life
Henry-Rene-Albert-Guy de Maupassant was born August 5, 1850 near
Dieppe, France. He was the elder of the two children of Gustave and
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families, with his father being minor aristocracy. However, their marriage
was a failure and the couple separated permanently when Guy was 11
years old. Even though the Maupassants were a free-thinking family, Guy
received his first education from the church and at age 13 was sent to a
small seminary at Y . Guy did not like this life and deliberately
engineered his own expulsion for a trivial offense in 1868. He moved to Le
Havre and passed his baccalaureate the following year. In the autumn of 1869, Guy began
law studies in Paris. These were interrupted by the outbreak of the Franco-German War.
Maupassant volunteered for the war and served first as a private in the field. He was
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firsthand experience of war provided him with material for some of his finest stories. In
July of 1781 Maupassant was demobilized and resumed his law studies in Paris. His father
came to his assistance again and obtained a post for Guy in the Ministry of Marine. This
was intended to support him until he qualified as a lawyer. Guy did not care for the
bureaucracy, but was successful and was promoted several times. His father managed
to have him transferred, at his own wish, to the Ministry of Public Instruction in 1879.
Flaubert
Ma a a , La , a A L Poittevin, who had been a close
friend of Gustave Flaubert, a well- . La a Fa b
acquaintance at Croisset in 1867. When he returned to Paris after the war, she asked
Flaubert to keep an eye on him. This was the start of the apprenticeship that made
Maupassant a writer. Whenever Flaubert was staying in Paris, he would invite Maupassant
to lunch on Sundays, lecture him on prose style, and correct his youthful literary
exercises. Flaubert introduced Maupassant to some of the leading writers of the times.
Fa b a Ma a a , H c a I a . T a a
twofold relationship because Flaubert inspired Maupassant as a writer, but also provided
c ab a a a a . Fa b a c
death in 1880 was a grievous blow to Maupassant.
Love of Water
Maupassant loved the sea and rivers, which accounts for the setting of much of his fiction
and his use of nautical imagery in his writing. Even though he did not love the bureaucracy,
his years as a civil servant were the happiest of his life. Maupassant devoted much of his
spare time to swimming and to boating expeditions on the Seine River.

Disease
When Maupassant was in his early 20s, he discovered he was suffering from syphilis, one
of the most frightening and widespread maladies of the age. His brother died at an early
age of the same disease, so it might have been congenital, or from birth. Maupassant was
adamant in his refusal to undergo treatment. This resulted in a deepening shadow over his
mature years and was accentuated by neurasthenia, which had also afflicted his brother.

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Writing
Maupassant published one or two stories under a pseudonym in obscure magazines during
his apprenticeship with Flaubert. The turning point came in April of 1880, the month before
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the Franco-German War to a volume called Les Soirees de Medan. Ma a a ,
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story was published, Maupassant found himself in demand by newspapers. He left the
ministry and spent the next two years writing articles for Le Gaulois and the Gil Blas. The
a 1880 1890 a ab Ma a a c .H b
some 300 short stories, six novels, three travel books, and his only volume of verse.
Maupassant wrote collections of short stories and novels in quick succession until illness
struck him. His stories can be divided into groups: those dealing with the Franco-German
War, the Norman peasantry, the bureaucracy, life on the banks of the Seine River, the
emotional problems of the different social classes, and somewhat ominously in his late
stories- hallucination. Together his stories present a comprehensive picture of French life
from 1870 to 1890.

Wealth
Maupassant prospered from his best-sellers and maintained an
apartment in Paris, a house at Etretat, a couple of residences on the
Riviera, and several yachts. Maupassant began traveling in 1881, visiting
French Africa and Italy, and in 1889 he paid his only visit to England. Even
though Maupassant appeared outwardly a sturdy, healthy, athletic man,
his letters are full of lamentations about his health, specifically eye
trouble and migraine headaches. With the passing of the years, he
became more and more somber. He continued to travel, but what had
once been carefree and enjoyable holidays, gradually changed into
compulsive wanderings until he felt the need to constantly be on the
move.

Tragedy
I 1888, a a a c cc Ma a a b b ca
psychotic and died in an asylum in 1889. Maupassant was reduced to despair by his
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advanced case of syphilis. On January 2, 1892, Maupassant tried to commit suicide.
Doctors were summoned and his mother agreed reluctantly to commit him to an
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there one month before his 43rd birthday.
Legacy
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desires and sensual appetites in which lust, greed, and ambition are the driving forces.
Many of his later stories deal with madness, likely mirroring his own mental illness. These
stories were still well balanced and are characterized by a clarity of style that betrayed
a . Ma a a a a a -story writer declined by
the second half of the 20th century. He became more widely read in English-speaking
countries than in France. However, this does not detract from his genuine achievement-
the invention of a new, high-quality, commercial short story, which has something to
offer to all classes of readers.
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 Name_________________________________________

Guy de Maupassant
Matching: Match each term with its description.
1. ____
C D . Ba c H A. Ma a a a
2. ____
G seminary B. Writing mentor to Maupassant
3. ____
J Franco-German C. Where Maupassant died before turning 43
I water
4. ____ D. Ma a a
H France
5. ____ E. Disease Maupassant had
6. ____
E syphilis F. Maupassant experienced this late in life
7. ____
B Flaubert G. Maupassant did not like it here; was expelled
8. ____
A Gustave H. Country in which Maupassant was born
9. ____
F hallucinations I. Maupassant loved this
D Laure
10. ____ J. War in which Maupassant fought

True or False?: Match each term with its description.

Statement T F
11. O G Ma a a b a ab a . x
12. G Ma a a a a a . x
13. Guy de Maupassant was a successful writer. x
14. Guy de Maupassant had two younger siblings x
15. Gustave Flaubert served as a mentor to Guy de Maupassant. x
16. Guy de Maupassant suffered from mental illness later in life. x
17. Guy de Maupassant was self-educated. x
18. Guy de Maupassant committed suicide. x
19. Guy de Maupassant fought in the French and Indian War. x
20. M c G Ma a a a a . x

Multiple Choice: Choose the best answer.

21. W a a a c ?
A. To persuade the reader that Maupassant was a wonderful writer.
B. To explain how Maupassant had a troubled life.
C. To inform the reader of facts about writer, Guy de Maupassant.
D. To entertain the reader with a story about a French man.
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22. W c cc Ma a a ?
A. He joined the French military.
B. He became an apprentice of Flaubert.
C. H B suif.
D. He attended seminary at Y .

23. With which statement would the author mostly agree?

A. Guy de Maupassant was the greatest French writer.
B. Guy de Maupassant led a troubled life.
C. Guy de Maupassant was a great writer who had a difficult end.
D. Guy de Maupassant should not be honored as a writer.

24. Which statement LEAST contributes to the central idea of the selection?
A. Guy did not care for the bureaucracy, but was successful and was promoted
several times.
B. Maupassant loved the sea and rivers, which accounts for the setting of much
of his fiction and his use of nautical imagery in his writing.
C. Maupassant wrote collections of short stories and novels in quick succession
until illness struck him.
D. Ma a a a ca c a ac ab a
material desires and sensual appetites in which lust, greed, and ambition are
the driving forces.

25. T ac c F c 1870
1890. W a b a c c ?
A. A secondary school catering to children of all abilities
B. Incomplete; only a partial viewpoint on something
C. Complete; including nearly all the aspects of something
D. An interesting viewpoint explaining something

26. Ma a a b -sellers and maintained an apartment in

Paris, a house at Etretat, a couple of residences on the Riviera, and several
ac . W a c ca ab Ma a a ?
A. He was wealthy. B. He was poor.
C. He was grounded. D. He enjoyed living in Paris.

27. W c Ma a a ?
A. His writing became unpopular. B. His writing became popular.
C. The syphilis affected his brain. D. H b a .

28. T a a a b ca Fa b Ma a a a a
,b a c ab a a a a .
What is the best meaning of twofold in the preceding quote?
A. Having two parts or aspects. B. Being twice as great or as many
C. A relationship with two people D. A relationship that was healthy

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