Boule De Suif and Two Friends - Guy De Maupassant

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The life of an Author often reflects through his works. Guy de Maupassant was a great French author and is considered the ‘father of modern short story’ who as a young man, fought in the Franco-Prussian war and drew heavily on his war time experiences and tries to depicts in his works the hardships and sufferings that the innocent civilians have to face because of the war. ’Boule de suif’ and ‘two friends’ are two of his stories which are similar in the themes discussed, characters portrayed and the epilogue.

The theme discussed in both the stories are French resistance to the German invasion and the patriotism that common men have towards their country. Also, an underlying message can be found in both these works that it’s the poor citizens that suffer the most during a war and not the ones in power. In ‘Boule de Suif’, ten central characters are portrayed of which all but Boule de Suif hails from well to do and powerful families. It’s boule de Suif who has to surrender her dignity in front of the German officer for the sake of her coach companions or the so called ruling class as Guy de Maupassant portrays them. In the story ‘Two Friends’, Morrisot and Sauvage, both hail from the working class who has lost their job because of the war and are left hungry and desperate on the streets. Also, in the end, its these two normal citizens, fighting for their food that gives up their life for the safety of their country.

Guy de Maupassant manages his style of stereotyping German soldiers in both the stories. In the story ‘Boule de Suif’,  the troops holding Rouen are hinted at as dull and slow-witted. The German officer at the inn is portrayed as being arrogant, morally dubious, and unfeeling (Maupassant). In the story ‘Two Friends’, the officer is portrayed as a cold-hearted, unfeeling automaton. He feels no compassion for the two men he has executed, and seems unable to empathise with them. The fact that he orders the fish to be fried alive, and that he returns calmly to smoking his pipe after the execution, enhances the image of a cold, inhuman barbarian (Maupassant).Another dominant feature of the stories is the level of detail Guy de Maupassant puts into his characters. ‘Maupassant, a long student, friend, and admirer of Gustave Flaubert, has developed all the characters in the stories independently giving them an all round stable disposition, which represents something different from the other. Even though the plot of the stories is simple and set in France, the language is dynamic, and conjures a deeper imagery in the mind of the reader’(Boule de Suif and other stories). In ’Boule de Suif’, the first section of the story is entirely dedicated to establish clearly in the minds of the readers the setting and the characters mind set towards war and their country. Also, there’s an effort to project Guy de Maupassants view on war and its affect on his country. Similarly, in ‘two friends’, Guy de Maupassant uses the characters to establish how war has affected Paris and its people and also, he tries to convey his own view the war and the politics through his characters.’ In seven pages Maupassant is able to accomplish an extraordinary feat.  He makes us believe in the characters, care about them, see the world through their eyes, and taste the destruction of war.  We watch as the characters, Sauvage and Morrisot, are bent under the pressures of war and see whether or not they will snap’.( Tim Lepczyk)