Memory and Politics : Representations of War in the Work of Louis Aragon

The popular reputation of Louise Aragon (1897-1982) is to a large extent built upon his activities during the Second World War when his poetry embodied the spirit of the French Resistance.

While many books have been published on Aragon, none go beyond the figure of the Resistance poet to explore the significance of the subject of war throughout his career.

This book will be unique in that it will seek to do just that, by tracing the two strands to Aragon's critique of war: an ideological strand which voices the policies of the Communist Party, and a personal strand which voices memory and loss.

These two voices will be analysed largely through Aragon's fiction, but will also refer to his writings as a political journalist.

The approach will be chronological, moving from political and personal perspectives on World War One to his fictional and ideological representations of World War Two.

The book will also address ways in which memories of past conflicts inform Aragon's later fiction written during the Cold War period, when the threat of global war had by no means receded.