History of Violence
2017 French edition (publ. Points)
AuthorÉdouard Louis
CountryFrance
Publication date
2016
Preceded byEn finir avec Eddy Bellegueule 
Followed byWho Killed My Father 

History of Violence (French: Histoire de la violence) is the second novel by French writer Édouard Louis. It was first published in French by Seuil in January, 2016. In 2020, it was shortlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award.[1]

Background

The novel is based on a real incident that occurred on Christmas Eve, 2012.[2][3]

Synopsis

Told in first-person narration, the novel presents its events in a nonlinear format. The narrator, Édouard, recounts a sexual encounter in Paris on Christmas Eve. The encounter culminates in a violent rape and robbery. Édouard subsequently reports the crime to the police, which causes him more trauma. On a visit home, he overhears his sister and her husband discussing the details of the assault in detail.

Translations

History of Violence has been translated into English by Lorin Stein. This translation was published in hardcover by Macmillan in June, 2018,[4] and in the United Kingdom in 2019 by Harvill Secker.[5][6]

Reception

In his review for The Guardian, Edmund White wrote, "Thanks to translator Lorin Stein it has retained its complexity, its startling physicality and its moral subtlety in English."[7]

Johanna Thomas-Corr of The Times called it "a slim but densely layered novel that begins with raw urgency, but then slows and circles the attack, hovering over it with an unnerving luxury."[8]

Adaptations

Stage

A stage adaptation of History of Violence premiered in November, 2019, at St. Ann's Warehouse.[9] The German-language production was directed by Thomas Ostermeier; Louis, who was already a big fan of Ostermeier, co-wrote the adaptation with the director and Florian Borchmeyer and was closely involved in the staging of the play. The production starred Laurenz Laufenberg as Édouard, Renato Schuch as Reda, Alina Stiegler as Édouard's sister Clara, and Christoph Gawenda as Clara's husband.[10][11]

Film

In February 2023, Deadline Hollywood reported that Christopher Zwickler and Dario Suter optioned the book rights for a German-language film adaptation. The project is collaboration between the German distributor-producer DCM and the Berlin-based producer Flute Film. Dan Kitrosser has adapted the screenplay and Igor Plischke is set to direct.[12]

References

  1. ↑ "Dublin City Council Announces the 2020 International DUBLIN Literary Award Shortlist". Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  2. ↑ History of Violence | Édouard Louis | Macmillan. Accessed 5 May 2021.
  3. ↑ Chrisafis, Angelique. Édouard Louis: 'I want to be a writer of violence. The more you talk about it, the more you can undo it'. The Guardian. 9 June 2018. Accessed 8 May 2021.
  4. ↑ History of Violence | Édouard Louis | Macmillan. Accessed 5 May 2021.
  5. ↑ History of Violence (Penguin.co.uk). Accessed 5 May 2021.
  6. ↑ Chrisafis, Angelique. Édouard Louis: 'I want to be a writer of violence. The more you talk about it, the more you can undo it'. The Guardian. 9 June 2018. Accessed 8 May 2021.
  7. ↑ White, Edmund White (20 June 2018). "History of Violence by Édouard Louis review – complex, subtle and shocking". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  8. ↑ Thomas-Corr, Johanna (16 June 2018). "Review: History of Violence by Édouard Louis — there's no end of Eddy's troubles". The Times. Archived from the original on 18 December 2022. Retrieved 2 April 2023.
  9. ↑ Shaw, Helen. What Makes the Man: Édouard Louis's History of Violence and The End of Eddy. Vulture. 19 November 2019. Accessed 8 May 2021.
  10. ↑ Alessandro, Brian. Édouard Louis on "History of Violence" and "The End of Eddy". Interview Magazine. 13 November 2019. Accessed 8 May 2021.
  11. ↑ Krasinski, Jennifer. Jennifer Krasinski on the theatrical adaptation of Édouard Louis's History of Violence. Artforum. February, 2020. Accessed 8 May 2021.
  12. ↑ Wiseman, Andreas (7 February 2023). "Germany's DCM & Flute Film To Adapt Acclaimed Novel 'History Of Violence' By French Prodigy Édouard Louis — EFM". Deadline. Retrieved April 2, 2023.
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