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André Gide's Novels and Narratives: A Theoretical Approach

publication · 2026-04-23

A publication examines André Gide's literary theory, citing his 1889 journal entry where he envisioned novels as theoretical constructs, reducing facts and characters to a single case study akin to a Salpêtrière patient. The work references his first book, "André Walter, Cahiers et poésies," which defines a novel as a "theorem." The PDF is available for download.

Key facts

  • André Gide defined a novel as a 'theorem' in his first book 'André Walter, Cahiers et poésies'.
  • On March 28, 1889, Gide wrote in his journal about novels becoming theoretical.
  • Gide proposed eliminating facts and characters, leaving only one character like a patient at La Salpêtrière.
  • The publication is a PDF file available for download.
  • The source is artpress.com, dated May 1, 2009.
  • The title of the publication is 'André Gide : romans et récits'.

Entities

Artists

  • André Gide

Institutions

  • artpress

Sources