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Document Details : Title: Divine Mission and Human Destiny Subtitle: Maurice Druon's Alexander Romance Fifty Years Later Author(s): HAUBEN, Hans Journal: Ancient Society Volume: 39 Date: 2009 Pages: 261-281 DOI: 10.2143/AS.39.0.2042614 Abstract : Written on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the publication of Maurice Druon’s historical novel on Alexander the Great (1958), the present article aims at putting this literary product in its historical context: the personal and familial background and literary career of the famous French novelist (1918-2009), the social and ideological shifts of the late 1950s, other contemporary Alexander novels like those of Roger Peyrefitte and Julien Tondriau. Having stated the value and impact of high-quality historical novels in general, the article analyzes the proper qualities and basic ideas of Druon’s narrative, which presents itself as the diary of Alexander’s main seer Aristandros. Inspired in part by certain ‘egyptosophic’ currents, the author tries to detect a global, basically religious, sense in history. Interpreted as one of the great ‘divine bastards’ of humankind, the Macedonian king is credited with a providential rôle. The study concludes with a rudimentary attempt to confront some aspects of Drion’s seductive views with Alexander’s own ideas and historical reality. |
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