作者: 西蒙·波娃 Simone de Beauvoir
本書是西蒙娜·德·波伏娃繼《第二性》之一部描寫知識分子命運的輝煌巨著，作者以遒勁有力的筆觸，深刻展現二次大戰法國知識界彷徨歧路、求索奮進的衆生相。這裏有經磨難而堅守生活信念的作，有鄙視功名而始終不甘寂寞的精神分析專，有銳意進取而終於落拓的哲學家……
作者以其敏銳的觀察力和洞察力，深刻動人地描寫他們的追求與幻滅、希望與失望、沉淪與奮起，使本書成為觀照那一時代知識分子心態與命運的一面鏡子。
The Mandarins (French: Les Mandarins) is a 1954 roman-à-clef by Simone de Beauvoir. Beauvoir was awarded the Prix Goncourt prize in 1954 for The Mandarins. It was first published in English in 1957.
The book follows the personal lives of a close-knit group of French intellectuals from the end of WWII to the mid fifties. The title refers to the scholar-bureaucrats of imperial China. The characters at times see themselves as ineffectual "mandarins" as they attempt to discern what role, if any, intellectuals will have in influencing the political landscape of the world after WWII. As in Beauvoir's other works, themes of Feminism, Existentialism, and personal morality are explored as the characters navigate not only the intellectual and political landscape but also their shifting relationships with each other.
The British novelist and philosopher Iris Murdoch described the book as "endearing because of its persistent seriousness"
Characters
Henri Perron (considered to be Albert Camus) is the editor of the leftist newspaper L'Espoir. He is unhappily married to Paula. Henri primarily sees himself as a writer and struggles with his increasing involvement in the political arena.
Robert Dubreuilh (considered to be Jean-Paul Sartre) is the founder and leader of the SRL, a liberal, non-Communist political group. He is partly responsible for Henri's literary success, and the two are close personal friends.
Anne Dubreuilh (considered to be Beauvoir herself) is the wife of Robert. She is a practicing psychoanalyst. She has an affair with the American writer Lewis Brogan. Her reflections on the lives of the other characters comprises a large portion of the text.
Paula Perron is Henri's wife. She is unrelentingly committed to her relationship with Henri, despite his indifference. She develops severe delusions and paranoia regarding this relationship and is forced to seek medical treatment.
Nadine Dubreuilh is Robert and Anne's daughter. Nadine is haunted by the death of her boyfriend Diego during the French Resistance. She has an affair with Henri early in the course of the novel and later marries Henri and has a child by him.
Lewis Brogan (considered to be Nelson Algren, to whom the book is dedicated) is an American writer with whom Anne has an extended affair.
Scriassine David Cesarani in his biography Arthur Koestler, The Homeless Mind, suggests that Scriassine's character is drawn on Arthur Koestler. |