Juliette Victor Hugo,
mon Fol Amour by Patrick Tudoret is a wonderful book, plenty of pathos and beauty published by Editions Tallandier. I have always admired Victor Hugo's brain, and intellect. One of the finest minds of our world's literature. I didn't know a lot about his private life and I was absolutely at the obscure that a long long liaison, 60 years! of love marked his existence: the one with Juliette Drouet.
Born on 1806 Juliette as you will read in the book, remained orphan pretty soon. She stayed at the house of an uncle for some while but later she was admitted in a convent in Paris, where she studied, she was very intelligent, and where she was starting to become a nun, but obviously this one was not what she would have done in her life.
Once she didn't live anymore in the convent, she became the lover of James Pradier with which she had after a year a baby, Claire, disappeared tragically because of consumption when a teenager. Then it was the turn of an italian man, Peruzzi.
Very beauty, Juliette started to working at theater being a good actress. Her meeting with Victor Hugo the first time in 1832 during the show of Lucrèce Borgia, but it's in 1833 when she was 26 that the two will start officially their relationship. Hugo at that time was depressed; his wife had a lover, he was betrayed under many ways and he didn't see any escapism. His escapism for the rest of his existence, he survived other 10 years after Juliette's death, will be this girl and later, woman.
In the book Juliette will tell: "Comme femme n’a jamais aimé homme, comme un être n’a
jamais aimé un autre être," As a woman I haven't never loved a man, but as a being I haven't never loved another being."
She would have followed him during the time of the exile, and Juliette was there for him in every occasion as also did Hugo.
At a certain point in the book, old Juliette writes: "Je suis trop âgée aujourd’hui pour ignorer que l’amour évolue, ou plutôt qu’il change" I am too old today for ignoring that love is in constant evolution, or maybe, just this, it changes."
Many sacrifices were made by Juliette. During a romantic trip, in 17-18 november 1839 the couple celebrated their mariage d'amour, marriage of love without of course any priest close to them. It was a marriage of the heart. At the same time that night Juliette renounced at her career while Hugo promised of loving her all his life. A date this one celebrated by the couple every year, for the rest of their existence.
This book is plenty of pathos, it seems like to read a confession, a memoir of the same Juliette.
In this part of the book Juliette will confess:
"Avec lui, j’ai exulté de joie, de plaisir, mais j’ai souffert aussi... J’ai envié, j’ai prié, mais surtout j’ai aimé. Je le jure devant tous, j’ai aimé ! Je l’ai aimé, ce Victor, comme une folle, malgré moi, malgré lui, malgré le monde entier, grâce à Dieu et
malgré le diable qui, parfois, s’en mêla aussi…" With him I exulted for joy, pleasure but at the same time I suffer a lot...I envied, I prayed but most of all I loved. I swear it to the entire world, I loved! I loved Victor as a fool, despite me, despite him, despite the entire world, thank to Lord e despite the devil who, sometimes put his hands in our existence."
Hugo sent a letter to her lover on April 11 1883 plenty of pathos where he remarked his hope of dying with her, at the same time of her because terribly in love with her.
There is an anedoct to tell: although these two people stayed together for 60 years, when Juliette died, for a story of reputation, Victor Hugo did not attend her funeral. It sounds the only weird act of this man.
In her grave there is written:
Quand je ne serai plus qu’une cendre glacée,
Quand mes yeux fatigués seront fermés au jour,
Dis-toi, si dans ton cœur ma mémoire est fixée :
Le monde a sa pensée. Moi, j’avais son amour !
Beautiful, romantic, I remain always enchanted by the beauty of french words, and their power. Read it!
I thank Editions Tallandier for the copy of this book.
Anna Maria Polidori
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