Details
GIDE, André (1869-1951). Typescript signed (with initials 'A.G.'), including autograph corrections, of Le Retour de l'Enfant Prodigue [1907], 28 pages, 4to, with seven lines of dialogue in autograph on a fragment of paper (pinned to first leaf).
Le Retour de l'Enfant Prodigue, a parable which begins where the Gospel story ends, was the product of Gide's inner turmoil following an attempt by Paul Claudel, on leave from China, to persuade him to convert to Catholicism. He began to write on February 1st, 1907, completed the first draft in two weeks, spent a third week in revision, and corrected the proofs in time for publication in the spring issue of the quarterly Vers et Prose. The work, which takes the form of conversations between the prodigal son and the members of his family, has a deeply personal significance, and Gide's admirers considered it one of his most perfect works. The typescript includes autograph corrections, additions or cancellations (some referring only to punctuation) on almost every page. The autograph fragment of dialogue is for insertion at the end (Dialogue avec le frère puîné) and there are a few minor variants of the published text.
Le Retour de l'Enfant Prodigue, a parable which begins where the Gospel story ends, was the product of Gide's inner turmoil following an attempt by Paul Claudel, on leave from China, to persuade him to convert to Catholicism. He began to write on February 1st, 1907, completed the first draft in two weeks, spent a third week in revision, and corrected the proofs in time for publication in the spring issue of the quarterly Vers et Prose. The work, which takes the form of conversations between the prodigal son and the members of his family, has a deeply personal significance, and Gide's admirers considered it one of his most perfect works. The typescript includes autograph corrections, additions or cancellations (some referring only to punctuation) on almost every page. The autograph fragment of dialogue is for insertion at the end (Dialogue avec le frère puîné) and there are a few minor variants of the published text.