Alfred Jarry Man with the Axe

by Nigey Lennon

Book Overview

Alfred Jarry (1873-1907) lived fast, died young, and refused to accept objective reality. He was a major influence on later artistic movements such as Dada and Surrealism, and his nihilistic 1896 play, Ubu Roj, is acknowledged as the turning point in modern drama. In this first English-language biography illustrated by Bill Griffith--Nigey Lennon presents a vivid, stylish, and empathetic portrait of the man behind Jarry's mythoabsurdist persona, as...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0867193824
• ISBN13: 9780867193824
• Release Date: January 1990
• Publisher: Last Gasp
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A great illumination of an obscure artistic figure...

A fantastic source of info on Alfred Jarry, a genuinely seminal if somewhat forgotten artistic figure. Jarry was the deviser of 'pataphysics' - a sort of science of surrealism, and lead a rather anarchic existance in fin-de-seacle Paris - in many ways a creative forefather to the varied likes of William Burroughs and Hunter S. Thompson. Jarry was best known for the riot-provoking play "Ubu Roi," which, some 80 years down the road, inspired the name (and some of the stage presence) of the band Pere Ubu. Lennon's biography is accessible and well-researched, with a number of line drawings as illustrations, in the spirit of Jarry himself. A fascinating read. -David Alston

Excellent for research or fun.

An exceptional and comprehensive overview of the life of Pa Ubu himself! This book is very well researched and written (and illustrated!) with a sense of humor that Jarry would have appreciated. "Man With An Axe" is by far the best source of biographical info on Jarry in English. Jarry fanatics (especially those that cannot read French) should look no further.