French author, anarchist, & publisher.
Born in Paris, December 5, 1896; died 30 March 1980.
Director of éditions Grasset, where he published proletarian authors, & the journal "Le nouvel âge littéraire" which promoted worker literature & gained him the enmity of the Communist Party. Founded "Le musée du soir," for reading, meeting & debating. Jailed for signing Louis Lecoin's anti-war leaflet, "Paix immédiat".
Lecoin was a French antimilitarist, pacifist, & anarchist. Many anarchists were involved with him over the years — including Poulaille, Germaine Berton, Robert Proix, Nicolas Faucier, Pierre Le Meillour, Roger Paon, Rirette Maitrejean, Marc Pierrot, & Pierre Martin.
"If it were proved to me that in making war, my ideal had a chance of being realized, I would still say "No" to war. For one does not create human society on mounds of corpses."
— Louis Lecoin
Poulaille was a signatory to the 1925 Manifesto, "Rififi sur le rif," which included the Surrealists, le groupe Philosophies & workers & intellectual groups. The petition was written by Henri Barbusse & appeared le 2 juillet 1925 in «l'Humanité», signed by Victor Serge, Louis Aragon, Antonin Artaud, André Breton, B. Péret, P. Soupault, Henri Lefebvre, G. Politzer, G. Duhamel, Romain Rolland, Jean Rostand, Jacques Sadoul, Paul Signac, & others.
Henry Poulaille founded the proletarian review "Maintenant," was instrumental in cultivating & encouraging new libertarian authors (novelist Ludovic Masse; Michel Ragon, poet, novelist, member of the Cobra group, & anarchtect critic; Jacques Cordier Histoire de ma Mère et de mon oncle Fernand; for example) & also wrote numerous novels of his own, often autobiographical, such as Le pain quotidien (1931); Les damnés de la terre (1935); Pain de soldat (1937); Seul dans la vie à 14 ans (1980).
"Il s'était mis à l'écart dans ses livres, alors qu'il inclinait naturellement vers la rébellion. Or, la vie était la revendication de vivre... Qu'était sa position à lui? Les cris des femmes dans les marchés, que faisait garder par les flics le préfet Lepine, le ramenaient à une conception plus juste de la situation. Ses lectures l'avaient prédisposé à la révolte. C'est chez les révoltés qu'il chercherait les contacts avec la vie."
(in "Seul dans la vie à 14 ans".)
The changes in cultural politics in the period 1928-1935 ultimately marginalise the proletarian writers. Yet Poulaille's achievements are considerable.
A founder of a number of reviews, & literary editor of Le Peuple, the CGT daily newspaper.
Nouvel Age Littérature (1930) expounds the basis of a future proletarian literature & presents an alternative French literary history.
Poulaille's Magneux novel cycle, provides a distinctive perspective on the French working class, with formal & stylistic features which offer a model for a form of political writing which avoids didacticism.
|
References:
|
"Un oubli: Hector Malot," par Henry Poulaille, "Le ROCAMBOLE" éditée par l'Association des Amis du Roman Populaire. Voici un Extrait du sommaire du no 7 (ou du no 6): (see page 100)