Detail from front cover of Ubu Roi, 1896
"Alfred Jarry (1873–1907) is best known for creating Père Ubu, the monstrous anti-hero of his plays Ubu Roi, Ubu Cocu and Ubu Enchaîné, but, as Alastair Brotchie reveals in this immensely enjoyable journey through Jarry’s life and work, the origins of Ubu are far from straightforward. It all began with the “classroom martyrdom” of one Félix-Frédéric Hébert (1832–1917), a physics teacher at the lycée in Rennes. Possessed of a large stomach, short legs and an air of bluff pomposity, Hébert was ragged mercilessly by his pupils. ... Two brothers, Charles and Henri Morin, began writing and illustrating a series of satirical sketches recounting the exploits of the ridiculous Père Hébert, and these stories were added to by other boys. The 'Hébert cycle' consists of long poems, plays, mock newspapers and fantasy adventures, many exhibiting a protosurreal wit. ..."
The Times Literary Supplement
How a 19th-Century Absurdist Playwright Accidentally Predicted Trump
Poster for Ubu Roi in France, 1896.
2011 April: The Insolent Eye: Jarry in Art, 2013 August: The Banquet Years of Apollinaire, Alfred Jarry, Henri Rousseau, and Erik Satie - Roger Shattuck, 2015 September: An Inglorious Slop-pail of a Play
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