J.-H. Rosny aîné

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J.-H. Rosny aîné in 1896

J.-H. Rosny aîné (actually Joseph Henri Honoré Boex ; born February 17, 1856 in Brussels , † February 11, 1940 in Paris ) was a Belgian-French writer who is considered one of the founders of modern science fiction . Boex initially wrote together with his younger brother Séraphin Justin François Boex under the pseudonym J.-H. Rosny. After their collaboration ended, Joseph Boex used the pseudonym "Rosny aîné" (Rosny the Elder), while his brother appeared as "Rosny jeune" (Rosny the Younger).

Life

From 1896 Boex lived in Paris, where he befriended the Goncourt family and Alphonse Daudet . He and his brother were members of the first jury to award the Prix ​​Goncourt in 1903 . Rosny Aîné became president of the Académie Goncourt in 1926 . He died in Paris in 1940.

Services

J.-H. Rosny aîné is one of the founders of modern science fiction and is occasionally referred to as its first representative , since he was active before HG Wells . He coined the word l'astronaute , a term for space travelers that has established itself in the USA and Western Europe.

Of particular importance is his story Les Xipéhuz (1887), in which primitive people encounter extraterrestrial beings with whom no communication is possible. The humans finally defeat the intruders in battle, but the chronicler regrets the murder of another's life. Noteworthy is the turning away from anthropomorphism in the representation of extraterrestrial life, the description of phenomena outside the human comprehension, which is also characteristic of many other works by Rosny.

Another example is the story La Mort de la Terre (1910). Here the last people live on an almost completely dry earth, on which a new form of life is beginning to develop, the iron-based ferromagnétaux that will populate the earth after the extinction of mankind.

Rosny aîné also deals with phenomena that surround us and yet exceed human perception and knowledge, for example in Un autre monde (1895) in works whose scene is the earth as we know it . This story describes the life of a person endowed with extraordinary abilities, who can perceive beings that share the living space with people unnoticed.

His novel La Guerre du Feu (1909) formed the basis for the film In the Beginning Was Fire (1981).

The Prix ​​Rosny aîné science fiction literary prize, which has been awarded annually since 1980, is named after him.

bibliography

Novels
  • Eyrimah (1893)
  • Tabubu: Conte Egyptia (1893)
  • Le jardin de May (1895)
  • La guerre du feu (1909)
    • English: The fight for fire. Translated by Anna Affolter. Benziger, Zurich & Cologne 1963. Also called: In the beginning there was fire. Ueberreuter, Heidelberg & Vienna 1983, ISBN 3-8000-2231-1 . New edition: Fantasy Productions, Erkrath 2005, ISBN 3-89064-525-9 .
  • La force mystérieuse (1913)
  • L'énigme de Givreuse (1917)
  • Le félin géant (1918)
  • L'étonnant voyage de Hareton Ironcastle (1922)
  • Helgvor du Fleuve Bleu (1931)
Short stories and novellas
  • L'immolation (1887)
  • La sorcière (1887)
  • Les Xipéhuz (1887)
    • English: The Xipehuz. In: William Matheson (ed.): The best classic science fiction stories. Diogenes (detebe # 21049), 1983, ISBN 3-257-21049-3 .
  • Le cataclysme (1888)
  • Le hanneton (1888)
    • German: The cockchafer. In: Gerhard Lindenstruth, Robert N. Bloch (Eds.): Arcana, 20. Lindenstruth, 2015.
  • La légende skeptique (1889)
  • Vamireh (1892)
  • Nymphée (1893)
  • La mangeuse d'hommes (1894)
  • Le jardin de Mary (1895)
  • Un autre monde (1895)
  • La contrée prodigieuse des cavernes (1896)
  • Les profondeurs de Kyamo (1896)
  • Nomai (1897)
  • Le voyage (1900)
    • German: The expedition. In: Olaf R. Spittel , Erik Simon (eds.): The dream manufacturer: Stories of amazing inventions and fantastic adventures. Das Neue Berlin (Classic Science Fiction Stories), 1985.
  • L'épave (1903)
  • La mort de la Terre (1910)
    • German: The death of the earth. In: Erik Simon, Olaf R. Spittel (eds.): Duel in the 25th century: stories of happy worlds and times to come. Das Neue Berlin (Classic Science Fiction Stories), 1987, ISBN 3-360-00083-8 .
  • La grande énigme (1920)
  • La jeune vampire (1920)
  • Le trésor dans la neige (1922)
  • L'assassin surnaturel (1924)
  • La jeune sorcière (1924)
  • Les navigateurs de l'infini (1925)
    • German: ride through infinity. In: Erik Simon, Olaf R. Spittel (ed.): Drive through infinity: stories of unusual journeys and strange planets. Das Neue Berlin (Classic Science Fiction Stories), 1988, ISBN 3-360-00184-2 .
  • Les hommes sangliers (1929)
  • Les compagnons de l'univers (1934)
  • La sauvage aventure (1935)
  • Dans le monde des variants (1939)
  • Les astronautes (1960)
  • La force mystérieuse (1961)
    • German: The mysterious force. Translated by Alfons von Czibulka. With 20 drawings by Fritz Wittlinger. Drei Masken Verlag, Munich 1922.

literature

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Rosny aîné, J.-H.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Boex, Joseph Henri Honoré (real name); Rosny., J.-H. (Pseudonym)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Belgian-French writer
DATE OF BIRTH February 17, 1856
PLACE OF BIRTH Brussels
DATE OF DEATH February 11, 1940
Place of death Paris