''Malpertuis'' (1943) is a

gothic horror Gothic fiction, sometimes referred to as Gothic horror (primarily in the 20th century), is a literary aesthetic of fear and haunting. The name of the genre is derived from the Renaissance era use of the word "gothic", as a pejorative to mean m ...

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

by the Belgian author Jean Ray (1887–1964).

Premise

Malpertuis is a crumbling, ancient house where a dying

warlock A warlock is a male practitioner of witchcraft. Etymology and terminology The most commonly accepted etymology derives '' warlock'' from the Old English '' wǣrloga'', which meant "breaker of oaths" or "deceiver". The term came to apply special ...

has trapped the aging

Olympian gods upright=1.8, Fragment of a relief (1st century BC1st century AD) depicting the twelve Olympians carrying their attributes in procession; from left to right: Hestia (scepter), Hermes (winged cap and staff), Aphrodite (veiled), Ares (helmet and s ...

inside the "skins" of ordinary

Flemish Flemish may refer to: * Flemish, adjective for Flanders, Belgium * Flemish region, one of the three regions of Belgium *Flemish Community, one of the three constitutionally defined language communities of Belgium * Flemish dialects, a Dutch dialec ...

citizens.

Structure

The novel is divided into four narratives: #The modern-day narrator (who remains unnamed) explains in a prologue that he stole the manuscripts that comprise the rest of the novel from the Convent of the White Penitents. In the epilogue, he locates Malpertuis, sees Eisengott and Old Mother Groulle in a tavern, enters the house, has a brief encounter with Euryale then flees. #The diary of Jean-Jacques Grandsire (also broken into two parts) that ends when he and Bets leave Malpertuis. #Doucedame the Elder's story of the capture of the Olympians; it has presumably been assembled by Doucedame the Younger. #Father Euchere (aka Dom Misseron) of the Convent of the White Penitents, and reveals the final fates of both Jean-Jacques Grandsire and Doucedame the Younger.

Film adaptation

In 1971 the Belgian director

Harry Kümel Harry Kümel (born 27 January 1940) is a Belgian film director. His 1971 vampire feature ''Daughters of Darkness'' (''Les lèvres rouges''; French language, Fr, "The Red Lips"), starring Delphine Seyrig became a cult hit in Europe and the Unite ...

made a film adaptation of the novel, starring

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

Susan Hampshire Susan Hampshire, Lady Kulukundis (born 12 May 1937), is an English actress. She is a three-time Emmy Award winner, winning for the television dramas, '' The Forsyte Saga'' in 1970, '' The First Churchills'' in 1971, and for '' Vanity Fair'' i ...

and

Mathieu Carrière Mathieu Carrière (; born 2 August 1950) is a German stage and screen actor with strong French connections. He has appeared in around 250 films worldwide and in 4000 hours of television. Carrière is also a director and a writer and is known as a ...

In popular culture

''Malpertuis'' is quoted in

Ross J. Anderson Ross John Anderson (15 September 1956 – 28 March 2024) was a British researcher, author, and industry consultant in security engineering. He was Professor of Security Engineering at the Department of Computer Science and Technology, Universi ...

's paper "Do you believe in Tinker Bell? The social

externalities In economics, an externality is an indirect cost (external cost) or indirect benefit (external benefit) to an uninvolved third party that arises as an effect of another party's (or parties') activity. Externalities can be considered as unpriced ...

of trust", quoting (translated): "Men are not born of the whim or will of the gods, on the contrary, gods owe their existence to the belief of men. Should this belief wither, the gods will die." A copy of the novel is prominently displayed on the coffee table of Haydée ( Haydée Politoff) in

Eric Rohmer The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, Eirik, or Eiríkur is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Nor ...

's 1967 film ''

La Collectionneuse ''La Collectionneuse'' (''The Collector'') is a 1967 French comedy-drama film directed by Éric Rohmer. The fourth entry in his ''Six Moral Tales'' series, it is his first film in colour. Set on the south coast of France in August, it portrays the ...

''.

References

External links

A study of the novel

On the Dutch version
1943 Belgian novels 1940s horror novels 1940s Gothic novels Belgian speculative fiction novels Belgian Gothic novels Belgian horror fiction Novels based on classical mythology Greek and Roman deities in fiction category:Belgian novels adapted into films Horror novels adapted into films Novels by Jean Ray {{1940s-gothic-novel-stub