''Querelle of Brest'' () is a novel by the French writer

Jean Genet Jean Genet (; ; – ) was a French novelist, playwright, poet, essayist, and political activist. In his early life he was a vagabond and petty criminal, but he later became a writer and playwright. His major works include the novels '' The Th ...

. It was written mostly in 1945 and first published anonymously in 1947, limited to 460 numbered copies, with illustrations by

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau ( , ; ; 5 July 1889 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, film director, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost avant-garde artists of the 20th-c ...

. It is set in the midst of the port town of Brest, where sailors and the sea are associated with murder. Georges Querelle, its protagonist and

antihero An antihero (sometimes spelled as anti-hero or two words anti hero) or anti-heroine is a character in a narrative (in literature, film, TV, etc.) who may lack some conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism and morality. Al ...

, is a

bisexual Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, or the attraction t ...

thief, prostitute and

serial killer A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone: * * * * * (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...

who manipulates and kills his lovers for thrills and profit. The novel formed the basis for ''

Querelle ''Querelle'' is a 1982 English-language erotic art film directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder. The film stars Brad Davis and was adapted from French author Jean Genet's 1947 novel '' Querelle of Brest''. The plot centers on the Belgian sailor G ...

'' (1982),

Rainer Werner Fassbinder Rainer Werner Fassbinder (; 31 May 1945 – 10 June 1982), sometimes credited as R. W. Fassbinder, was a German filmmaker, dramatist and actor. He is widely regarded as one of the major figures and catalysts of the New German Cinema moveme ...

's last film.

Story

Georges "Jo" Querelle is a sailor on the cargo ship ''Le Vengeur''. Querelle is also a thief, prostitute,

opium Opium (also known as poppy tears, or Lachryma papaveris) is the dried latex obtained from the seed Capsule (fruit), capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid mor ...

smuggler Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. More broadly, soc ...

, and

. While he ostensibly kills for money, his primary motive for murder is the sheer, liberating pleasure he experiences from it; he kills to feel alive. He runs his smuggling racket out of ''Le Vengeur'', enlisting Vic, one of his shipmates, as his accomplice. One night, when the ship is docked in the French port town of Brest, Querelle slits Vic's throat. The ship is delayed at the port as the police investigate, led by Mario, a predatory police captain who extorts sexual favors from the men he investigates before putting them in jail. Desperate for a scapegoat, Querelle befriends Gilbert "Gil" Turko, a young man fleeing arrest for the murder of a man who propositioned him, with the intention of framing him for Vic's murder. Much to his surprise, however, he finds in Gil a kindred spirit whom he wants to "teach," both in sex and in the "art" of murder. He enlists Gil to help in mugging Seblon, confident that the lieutenant's infatuation with him will prevent him from going to the police. Querelle sleeps with Mario in an attempt to get him to back away from arresting him or Gil, but the captain is unmoved from turning him into yet another of his jailed conquests. Seeing no alternative, Querelle betrays Gil to Mario, adding to Gil's already dire situation the blame for a murder he didn't commit. At the end of the novel, Querelle seduces Seblon, only to turn him over to the police the next day. He leaves Brest the same day when ''Le Vengeur'' sets sail.

Sexuality

While most of Querelle's sexual partners are men, he is more aroused by power than by people. Genet writes that Querelle views sex as an act of either domination or submission, and so treats his partners as objects that exist for the sole purpose of enacting his

sadomasochistic Sadism () and masochism (), known collectively as sadomasochism ( ) or S&M, is the derivation of pleasure from acts of respectively inflicting or receiving pain or humiliation. The term is named after the Marquis de Sade, a French author known ...

fantasies of power and punishment. He has at least a passing interest in women; in one of the novel's main conflicts, he competes with his brother Robert for Madame Lysiane, Robert's mistress and the proprietess of a brothel they both visit. Even then, however, Querelle's pursuit of her is completely self-serving, a ploy to get the best of his brother. His mysterious, brooding persona and sexual ambiguity make him an object of fascination and attraction to everyone in his orbit, especially Madame Lysiane and Lieutenant Seblon, his closeted superior officer. While not completely understanding who or what he is, the people in his life find themselves inescapably drawn to him, often at their own peril.

Legacy

Canadian writer

Kevin Lambert Kev Lambert (born 1992) is a Canadian writer from Quebec.Christopher DiRaddo"A thrilling debut novel takes revenge on smalltown homophobia" ''Xtra!'', September 28, 2020. He is most noted for his novel ''Querelle de Roberval'', which won the Prix ...

's 2018 novel ''Querelle of Roberval'' was partially based on ''Querelle of Brest''.Dominic Tardif
"Les nouveaux mâles de la littérature québécoise"
. ''

Le Devoir (, ) is a French-language newspaper published in Montreal and distributed in Quebec and throughout Canada. It was founded by journalist and politician Henri Bourassa in 1910. is one of few independent large-circulation newspapers in Quebec ...

'', September 29, 2018. Querelle was portrayed by Brad Davis in

's 1982

film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...

of the novel.White, Edmund. ''Genet: A Biography''. Alfred A. Knopf 1993, p. 340 Genet, in discussion with Schidor, said that he had not seen the film, commenting "You can't smoke at the movies."White, Edmund. ''Genet: A Biography''. Alfred A. Knopf 1993, pp. 615-616

References

{{Authority control 1947 French novels 1940s LGBTQ novels Novels by Jean Genet Brest, France Novels set in Brittany Novels about serial killers French LGBTQ novels French novels adapted into films Novels about French prostitution Novels about bisexual topics