J.-H. Rosny aîné
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J.-H. Rosny aîné | |
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Born | Joseph Henri Honoré Boex 17 February 1856 Brussels, Belgium |
Died | 11 February 1940 Paris, France | (aged 83)
Nationality | Belgian |
Occupation | author |
Known for | science fiction |
J.-H. Rosny aîné was the pen name of Joseph Henri Honoré Boex (17 February 1856 – 11 February 1940), Belgian author considered one of the founding figures of modern science fiction[citation needed].
Born in
Overview
Rosny aîné was very much like H. G. Wells or Olaf Stapledon in his concepts and his way of dealing with them in his novels. He was the second most important figure after Jules Verne in the history of modern Belgian science fiction.
Because his writing was not translated into English before his death, and his readers did not always understand his science fiction novels, his impact on the early evolution of the genre was limited.[1]
Rosny's first science fiction tale was the
The story "Un Autre Monde" ["Another World"] (1895) establishes that humans share the Earth with the land-bound Moedigen (Dutch for 'brave ones') and the air-borne Vuren ('fires'), two infinitely flat and
Rosny's short novel, La Mort de la Terre [The Death of the Earth] (1910), takes place in the distant future, when the Earth has all but dried out. The last descendants of mankind become aware of the emergence of a new species, the metal-based "Ferromagnetals", fated to replace them.
Another novel, La Force Mystérieuse [The Mysterious Force] (1913), tells of the destruction of a portion of the
L'Énigme de Givreuse [The Enigma of Givreuse] (1917) is another novel about a
The novella La Jeune Vampire [The Young Vampire] (1920) was the first time that
L'Étonnant Voyage d'Hareton Ironcastle [The Amazing Journey of Hareton Ironcastle] (1922) is a more traditional
Rosny's masterpiece is Les Navigateurs de l'Infini [The Navigators of Infinity] (1925) in which the word astronaut, "astronautique", was coined for the first time [citation needed]. In the story, Rosny's heroes travel to Mars in the "Stellarium", a spaceship powered by artificial gravity and made of "argine", an indestructible, transparent material. On Mars, the human explorers come in contact with the gentle, peaceful, six-eyed, three-legged "Tripèdes", a dying race who is slowly being replaced by the "Zoomorphs", alien entities who bear some resemblance to the "Ferromagnetals" of La Mort de la Terre. Later, a young Martian female, capable of bearing children parthenogenetically by merely wishing it, gives birth to a child after falling in love with one of the human explorers. This heralds the rebirth of the Martian race and, with Man's help, the eventual reconquering of their planet.
Rosny also penned five
In 1897, Joseph Boex was awarded the French
Personal life
Boex married Gertrude Emma Holmes, when she was 16 and he was 24 in London on 22 November 1880. They had 4 children together.
Selected bibliography
- ISBN 978-1-935558-35-4
- La Sorcière (1887) translated by Brian Stableford included in The Young Vampire, 2010, ISBN 978-1-935558-40-8
- La Légende Sceptique (1889) translated as The Skeptical; Legend included in The Navigators of Space, 2010, q.v.
- Vamireh (1892) translated by Brian Stableford included in Vamireh, 2010, ISBN 978-1-935558-38-5
- Eyrimah (1893) translated by Brian Stableford included in Vamireh, q.v.
- Nymphée (1893) translated by Brian Stableford included in The World of the Variants, 2010, ISBN 978-1-935558-36-1
- L'Indomptee (1894)
- Le Jardin de Mary (1895) translated by Brian Stableford included in The Givreuse Enigma, 2010, ISBN 978-1-935558-39-2
- Un autre monde ["Another World"] (1895) translated as Another World included in The Navigators of Space, 2010, q.v.[3]
- Les Profondeurs de Kyamo [The Depths of Kyamo] (1896) translated by Brian Stableford included in The World of the Variants, 2010, q.v.
- La Contrée Prodigieuse des Cavernes (1896) translated by Brian Stableford included in The World of the Variants, 2010, q.v.
- Le Cataclysme (1896) translated by Brian Stableford included in The Mysterious Force, q.v.
- Nomai (1897) translated by Brian Stableford included in Vamireh, 2010, q.v.
- Le Voyage (1900) translated by Brian Stableford included in The World of the Variants, 2010, q.v.
- La Guerre du Feu (The Quest for Fire) (1909) transl. as The Quest for Fire, 1967
- Le Trésor dans la Neige [The Treasure in the Snow] (1910) translated by Brian Stableford included in The World of the Variants, 2010, q.v.
- La Mort de la Terre [The Death of the Earth] (1910) translated as The Death of the Earth included in The Navigators of Space, 2010, q.v.
- La Force Mystérieuse [The Mysterious Force] (1913) translated by Brian Stableford included in The Mysterious Force, 2010, ISBN 978-1-935558-37-8
- L'Aube du Futur [The Dawn of the Future] (1917)
- L'Énigme de Givreuse [The Enigma of Givreuse] (1917) translated by Brian Stableford included in The Givreuse Enigma, 2010, q.v.
- Le Félin Géant (1918) transl. as The Giant Cat, 1924; a.k.a. Quest of the Dawn Man, 1964, translated by The Honorable Lady Whitehead included in Helgvor of the Blue River (2010), ISBN 978-1-935558-46-0
- La Grande Énigme [The Great Enigma] (1920) translated by Brian Stableford included in The World of the Variants, 2010, q.v.
- La Jeune Vampire (1920) (a.k.a. Le Vampire de Bethnal Green) translated by Brian Stableford included in The Young Vampire, 2010, q.v.
- L'Étonnant Voyage d'Hareton Ironcastle [The Amazing Journey of Hareton Ironcastle] (1922) adapted & retold by Philip Jose Farmer as Ironcastle, 1976; translated by Brian Stableford included in The Mysterious Force, q.v.
- L'Assassin Surnaturel [The Supernatural Assassin] (1923) translated by Brian Stableford included in The Young Vampire, 2010, q.v.
- Les Navigateurs de l'Infini [The Navigators of Infinity] (1925) translated as The Navigators of Space included in The Navigators of Space, 2010, q.v.
- La Terre Noire [The Black Earth] (1925)
- Le Trésor Lointain [The Far-Away Treasure] (1926)
- La Femme Disparue [The Vanished Woman] (1926)
- Les Conquérants du Feu [The Conquerors of Fire] (1929)
- Les Hommes-Sangliers [The Boar-Men] (1929) translated by Brian Stableford included in The World of the Variants, 2010, q.v.
- Helgvor du Fleuve Bleu [Helgvor of the Blue River] (1929), translated by Georges Surdez included in Helgvor of the Blue River (2010), q.v.
- Au Château des Loups Rouges [At the Castle of the Red Wolves] (1929)
- L'Initiation de Diane [Diana's Initiation] (1930)
- Tabubu (1932)
- Les Compagnons de l'Univers [The Companions of the Universe] (1934) translated by Brian Stableford included in The Young Vampire, 2010, q.v.
- La Sauvage Aventure [The Savage Adventure] (1935) translated by Brian Stableford included in The Givreuse Enigma, 2010, q.v.
- Dans le Monde des Variants (1939) translated by Brian Stableford included in The World of the Variants, 2010, q.v.
- Les Astronautes (pub. 1960) translated as The Astronauts included in The Navigators of Space, 2010, q.v.
- ′'L'Amour D'Abord'′ (pub.1924) Copyright by J.Flammarion avec des Bois originaux de Arsene Brivot
- Le Livre Moderne Illustre J. Ferenczi & Fils, Editeurs
See also
- Prix Rosny-Aîné
- Scientific Marvelous
References
External links
- Works by J.-H. Rosny at Project Gutenberg
- Works by J.-H. Rosny at Faded Page (Canada)
- English translation of "Les Xipéhuz"
- Les Navigateurs de l'Infini
- J.-H. Rosny aîné at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
- J.-H. Rosny aîné at IMDb
- J.-H. Rosny, aîné at Library of Congress, with 65 library catalogue records
- J.-H. Rosny at Library of Congress, with 36 library catalogue records