BELGIAN LITERATURE

the body of written works produced by Belgians and written in Flemish, in French, or in Walloon dialects. Flemish-language literature is often considered to form a part of Dutch literature and French-language literature in Belgium a part of French literature. The literature of Belgium falls into two main divisions by language: Flemish (the Netherlandic language as spoken in Belgium, and equivalent to Dutch in The Netherlands) and French. To this may be added a third, Walloon, a literature written in local dialects of French and Latin origin that are spoken in the provinces of Hainaut, Lige, Namur, Luxembourg, and the south of Brabant. (These provinces together were known as Wallonia.) This article provides a brief historical account of the development of each of these three literary traditions. Additional reading Among works useful to the general reader are Suzanne Lilar, The Belgian Theater Since 1890, 3rd ed. (1962; originally published in French, 1952); Vernon Mallinson, Modern Belgian Literature, 1830-1960 (1966); Marc Quaghebeur, Lettres belges entre absence et magie (1990); Jean Weisgerber (ed.), Les Avant-Gardes Littraires en Belgique: au confluent des arts et des langues, 1880-1950 (1991); and David Willinger (ed.), An Anthology of Contemporary Belgian Plays, 1970-1982 (1984).Studies of Flemish literature include R.F. Lissens, De Vlaamse letterkunde van 1780 tot heden, 4th rev. ed. (1967, reissued 1974); Jean Weisgerber, Formes et domaines du roman flamandi, 1927-1960 (1963), also available in a Dutch version, Aspecten van de Vlaamse roman, 1927-1960, 3rd, supplemented ed. (1973); Reinder P. Meijer, Literature of the Low Countries, new ed. (1978); M. Rutten and Jean Weisgerber (eds.), Van arm Vlaanderen tot de voorstad groeit: de opbloei van de Vlaamse literatuur van Teirlinck-Stijns tot L.P. Boon (1888-1946) (1988); Ada Deprez and Walter Gobbers (eds.), Vlaamse literatuur van de negentiende eeuw: dertien verkenningen (1990); Jaap Goedegebuure and Anne Marie Musschoot, Contemporary Fiction of the Low Countries (1991); and M.A. Schenkeveld-Van der Dussen (ed.), Nederlandse literatuur, een geschiedenis (1993). Anthologies include Jethro Bithell (compiler and trans.), Contemporary Flemish Poetry (1917); Manuel Van Loggem (compiler and ed.), New Worlds from the Lowlands: Fantasy and Science Fiction of Dutch and Flemish Writers (1982), a collection of post-World War II works; James S. Holmes and William Jay Smith (eds.), Dutch Interior: Postwar Poetry of The Netherlands and Flanders (1984); Hugo Brems and Ad Zuiderent (eds.), Contemporary Poetry of the Low Countries (1992); Lucie Th. Vermij (ed.), Women Writers from The Netherlands and Flanders (1992); and vol. 14, no. 2 (Summer 1994), special issue of The Review of Contemporary Fiction on new Flemish fiction.Texts dealing with Belgian literature written in French are Camille Hanlet, Les crivains belges contemporains de langue franaise, 1800-1946, 2 vol. (1946); Andrew J. Mathews, La Wallonie, 1886-1892: The Symbolist Movement in Belgium (1947); Gustave Charlier and Joseph Hanse (eds.), Histoire illustre des lettres franaises de Belgique (1958); Adrien Jans (ed.), Lettres vivantes: deux gnrations d'crivains franais en Belgique, 1945-1975 (1975); Robert Burniaux and Robert Frickx, La Littrature belge d'expression franaise, 2nd ed. (1980); Robert Frickx and Jean-Marie Klinkenberg, La Littrature franaise de Belgique (1980); Alberte Spinette (ed.), Alphabet des lettres belges de langue franaise (1982); Ren Andrianne, Ecrire en Belgique: essai sur les conditions de l'criture en Belgique francophone (1983); and Ren Andrianne (ed.), Ecriture franaise et identifications culturelles en Belgique (1984).Coverage of Walloon literature, also written in French, includes Maurice Wilmotte, Le Wallon: histoire et littrature ds origines la fin du XVIIIe sicle (1893); Rita Lejeune, Histoire sommaire de la littrature wallonne, 2nd ed. (1942); Maurice Piron, Les Lettres wallonnes contemporaines, 2nd ed. (1944); and Rita Lejeune and Jacques Stiennon, La Wallonie: le pays et les hommes: lettres, arts, culture, 3 vol. (1977-79). Collections include Lucien Marchal and Paul Marchal (compilers), Anthologie des potes wallons namurois (1930); Maurice Piron (ed. and trans.), Potes wallons d'aujourd'hui (1961); and Yann Lovelock (compiler and trans.), The Colour of the Weather: An Introduction to Belgian Dialect Poetry (1980). mile Lempereur, Essai de catalogue d'une bibliothque de littrature et de folklore wallons, 1890-1947 (1949), a bibliography, is also of interest. Ren Felix Lissens Joseph-Edouard-Marie-Ghislain Delmelle Theo Jozef Hermans Victor Nachtergaele J. Philip Mosley The Editors of the Encyclopdia Britannica Flemish Early literature Relationship with Dutch literature When considering the literature of Flemish-speaking (Dutch-speaking) Belgium it must be remembered that the Belgian territories were united with the Netherlands politically, economically, and culturally until 1579, when, as a result of the Reformation, the northern (Reformed) provinces seceded from the Roman Catholic south. Thus until the early 17th century the literature of Flanders and Holland must be considered as a whole (see Dutch literature). It was in Flanders that the literature of the medieval Low Countries flowered most profusely. It was, moreover, in Flanders and Brabant that learning showed new vigour under the influence of the Renaissance and the Reformation. In literature inspired by the Reformation the tone was set by the glowing satiric verse of the Catholic Anna Bijns and the polemical satire on the Catholic Church, Biencorf der H. Roomsche Kercke (1569; "The Beehive of the Roman Catholic Church"), of the Calvinist Philips van Marnix van Sint Aldegonde. The Renaissance in the Netherlands began with Lucas de Heere, Karel van Mander, and Jan Baptista van der Noot, all of whom, significantly, had fled from the south for religious reasons. Decline Many left the south as a result of the religious and political troubles before 1579, and the literary revival in Flanders and Brabant was interrupted. Whereas Holland was approaching its golden age, in the south a decline set in. But Justus de Harduwijn, a lyrical poet in the Classical style of the French Pliade; Richard Verstegen, a polemicist and writer of prose characters; Adriaen Poirters, a popular moralist; the dramatists Willem Ogier and Cornelis de Bie, and, especially, Michiel de Swaen, the last important Baroque poet and playwright, who was deeply inspired by his religion, compare favourably with most writers of their time. The decline was most noticeable in the early 18th century, when the aristocracy and intellectual elite came increasingly under French influence. French Beginnings In the history of French literature, that by Belgian writers in French forms an important chapter. Even before Belgium achieved independence in 1830, many outstanding works were written in French by writers of Flemish origin. They were responsible for some of the medieval chansons de geste. In the Middle Ages too, didactic, religious, and lyrical poetry, plays, and chronicles began to be written. The names of Jean Le Bel, Jean Froissart, Georges Chastellain, and Philippe de Commynes indicate the wealth of early historiography by Flemish writers, while Jean Lemaire de Belges was one of the great late medieval poets and rhetoricians (rhtoriqueurs). The death of Margaret of Austria (1530) was followed by a period of literary sterility, which was prolonged until the end of the ancien rgime by unstable economic conditions, the indifference to native culture of successive foreign governments, and the strong influence of 17th- and 18th-century French literature. Only a few writers are remembered, and notable among them is Charles Joseph, prince de Ligne. Between the end of the 18th century and 1880 attempts were made to create an original, native literature. The poet Andr van Hasselt is still remembered. More important were the novelist Charles de Coster, whose Lgende . . . d'Ulenspiegel (1867; The Glorious Adventures of Tyl Ulenspiegel ) has attained the status of an epic of Flanders, and the influential essayist Octave Pirmez. The "jeune Belgique" movement Impetus for the long-awaited literary renaissance came from Max Waller, founder in 1881 of an influential review, La Jeune Belgique ("Young Belgium"), which indicated a possible national literary consciousness; essentially, however, the review was the vehicle of expression of individual writers dedicated to the idea of art for art's sake. Of novelists early associated with the movement, Camille Lemonnier, Eugne Demolder, and Georges Eekhoud were the most influential. A later Jeune Belgique novelist was Georges Rodenbach, celebrator of silence and spirituality, whose Bruges-la-morte (1892; "Bruges the Dead City") was the epitome of decadent fiction. Stimulated by the Jeune Belgique movement was a group of poets much concerned with style and language. Among them were Grgoire Le Roy, a gifted lyrical Symbolist poet; Charles van Lerberghe, who explored the potential of Symbolist verse; and Albert Mockel, founder of an influential Symbolist review, La Wallonie. They were overshadowed, however, by three poets of international stature: mile Verhaeren, Maurice Maeterlinck, and Max Elskamp. Verhaeren extolled humanity's struggle toward social justice; Maeterlinck, creator of the Symbolist poetic drama, attempted to illuminate life's inner meaning; and Elskamp treated themes from folklore and legend. Outstanding dramatists were Maeterlinck (L'Oiseau bleu, performed 1908; The Blue Bird ) and Verhaeren. Edmond Picard, a playwright, novelist, and critic, propounded Socialism, Symbolism, and Impressionism. The period also saw a beginning, in the work of Godefroid Kurth, of modern historiography and criticism. An outstanding historian was Henri Pirenne. Art and literary criticism flourished, and an atmosphere for a flowering of scholarship culminated in the foundation (1920) of the Belgian Acadmie Royale de Langue et de Littrature Franaises. Walloon Early writings The origins of dialect literature in Wallonia are obscure. From the 9th to the 11th century Latin held sway in the abbeys, the only intellectual centres of the period. With the exception of the Cantilne de Sainte Eulalie (c. 900), the first vernacular writings date only from the middle of the 12th century. They are chiefly anonymous tracts, among which the Pome moral, consisting of nearly 4,000 alexandrines, stands out. During the next three centuries Walloon literature is marked by the importance of its local chronicles and certain aspects of its religious drama. At the beginning of the 17th century, Wallonia-particularly the district of Lige-became conscious of the literary possibilities of dialect, and from then on the number of writings increased. An "Ode" in the Lige dialect appeared in 1620, and pasquyes (paskeyes, paskeilles), poems describing local life and history, enjoyed a vogue. The 18th and 19th centuries Use of the patois broadened in the 18th century. The success of comic opera at Lige resulted in several noteworthy librettos. Li Voyadjue di Tchaudfontaine (1757; "The Journey to Chaudfontaine"), Li Ldjws egag ("The Enlisted Ligeois"), and Les Hypocondres ("The Hypochondriacs") resulted in the formation of the Thtre Ligeois. In lyric poetry the cramignon (a type of song for dancing) and the Nols (Christmas carols and dialogue) adopted a genuine realism. The number of Walloon poets and other dialect writers increased during the 19th century. Charles-Nicolas Simonon wrote the moving stanzas of "Li Cpareye" (the name of the clock of the cathedral of Saint-Lambert), Franois Bailleux his charming "Mareye," and the first great Walloon lyric poet, Nicolas Defrcheux, his famous "Leyiz-m'plorer" (1854; "Let Me Weep"). The establishment at Lige, in 1856, of the Socit Ligeoise de Littrature Wallonne had considerable influence on both language and literature. The number of poems, songs, plays, and even translations into Walloon of such authors as La Fontaine, Ovid, and Horace increased. Other parts of Belgium, apart from prolific Lige, still remained active centres of dialect writing. In the 19th century, Namur could boast especially of Charles Wrotte and Nicolas Bosret, poet of the touching song "Bia Bouquet." The works of Jean-Baptiste Descamps and others originated in Hainaut. Walloon Brabant was the home of a truculent Abb Michel Renard. By the end of the 19th century many writers working in Walloon dialects chose a rather doctrinaire Realism to depict workaday existence and remained somewhat hidebound by social conventions. Poets included Joseph Vrindts and, above all, Henri Simon, who sang of working peasantry. Successful playwrights included Andr Delchef and douard Remouchamps, whose vaudeville comedy in verse, Tt l'priqu (performed 1885; "Tati the Hairdresser"), married close observation and technical dexterity.