Research Catalog

Title

Maria Jolas : woman of action : a memoir and other writings / edited by Mary Ann Caws.

Author

Jolas, M.

Publication

Columbia : University of South Carolina Press, ©2004.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Additional Authors

Caws, Mary Ann.

Description

xii, 149 pages : illustrations; 24 cm

Summary

"Maria McDonald Jolas, a member of a distinguished Kentucky family and co-founder with Eugene Jolas of the international literary journal transition, has been called a survivor of the heroic generation and, somewhat to her discomfort, "the leading lady of Paris literati of the Thirties." Her memoir and other writings, edited and introduced by Mary Ann Caws, reveal the truth in those accolades as well as the measure of her contribution to our understanding of modernism. Completing the portrait of her family's life begun in her husband's autobiography, Man from Babel, this volume sheds light on the remarkable achievements of the other half of a celebrated partnership." "As one of the primary forces behind transition, Maria Jolas helped introduce the world to the twentieth century's literary avant-garde, among them Gertrude Stein, Archibald MacLeish, Allan Tate, Ernest Hemingway, Samuel Beckett, William Carlos Williams, and James Joyce. A skillful translator, Jolas is renowned for her renderings of Gaston Bachelard's philosophical texts, Nathalie Sarraute's novels and plays, and works by Joyce. In addition, Jolas founded an influential school, the Ecole Bilingue in France, and the celebrated Cantine La Marseillaise in New York." "Jolas's memoir traces her childhood in Louisville, her studies to be a professional singer, and her introduction to Eugene through the pianist Jacques Jolas. Describing a busy family life that centered on two daughters - Betsy, who became a famous composer, and Tina, an accomplished anthropologist and translator - Jolas recalls the difficulties of living in France during the German occupation, the family's relocation to the United States, and her postwar activism." "Caws supplements Jolas's memoir with the memoirist's radio addresses, lectures to French and American audiences, journal entries from Paris and New York, and letters to her husband. The memoir Jolas completed at age eighty, coupled with these documents, gives voice to a woman whose legacy has too often been effaced by that of her colorful husband and their famous friends."--BOOK JACKET.

Subject

• Jolas, M
• Translators > France > Biography
• Translators
• France

Genre/Form

• Biography
• Biographies.

Note

• Includes index.

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references and index.

Contents

Dateline by Maria Jolas -- Preface to the autobiography by Maria Jolas -- The autobiography -- Journal draft about the events of 1932 and I'Ecole bilingue (December 8, 1982) -- The revolution of the word proclamation, 1929 -- War diary, 1940 (excerpts) -- Letter to her friends in France, April 28, 1941 (excerpts) -- Radio address, May 3, 1941 -- Radio address, Memorial day 1941 -- Radio address, July 4, 1941 -- Address to the women's international exhibition, November 1943 -- Paris letters from Maria Jolas to Eugene Jolas, September 15-October 1, 1946 (excerpts) -- Lecture on the songs and tales of American folklore, March 5, 1947 (excerpt) -- Sketch of the years 1952-1970 -- End-dream, August 1975.

ISBN

• 1570035504
• 9781570035500

LCCN

2004007736

OCLC

• ocm54881932
• 54881932
• SCSB-8810173

Owning Institutions

Princeton University Library