Raymond Maufrais
Raymond Maufrais (1 October 1926, Toulon – 1950) was a French journalist and explorer. He disappeared in the jungle of French Guiana; his body was never found.[1]
Biography
Youth
Raymond Maufrais was born in Toulon, an only child. His parents were forced frequently to send the boy away from a young age, starting when he was nine. With two comrades he climbed the wall of the children's home they lived in in the Var department; the police spent three days looking for them. He attended Rouvière school in Toulon in October 1939, where he showed promise in French and classical literature. By 1940 his father was a prisoner in Germany.[2]
In 1942, having listened to the BBC broadcasts, he decided to flee to England but an accident in
Expedition in Brazil
In July 1946 Maufrais left for Brazil. While in
Expedition in French Guiana
In 1947 Maufrais returned to France to edit the manuscript he had been working on, for a book to be called Aventures au Matto-Grosso, which was not published until after his death, and gave public lectures in Toulon and elsewhere. He also announced a new project: to travel from French Guiana to Brazil by way of the (remote and inaccessible)
He debarked in Cayenne and wrote articles on such subjects as the leper colony of Acarouany, the former workers of the bagnes, the coastal Kalina people, and the gold seekers. In September he joined a geological expedition and went inland, up the Mana River. During that journey Maufrais jumped in the water after a wounded caiman and killed it with a knife. He reached Maripasoula on 25 October, where he was held up for three weeks by the rains.[2]
In Grigel he was given an abandoned canoe which turned out to be unusable. Having no money, he bought no supplies, thinking he would be able to live on what he hunted. He began walking accompanied by his dog Bobby, with a backpack so heavy he divided his load in half and would walk a kilometer with one half, then drop that and return for the other half. He wrote a daily journal, which tells of his troubles—he frequently lost the way, found practically nothing to eat, suffered from dysentery, and constantly fought a hostile forest. He was forced to eat lizards, snails, birds, and seeds. On 1 January 1950, completely exhausted and unable to even fire his gun, he reached the Tamouri and the little settlement Claude where he found only abandoned buildings. He was delirious, and finally killed Bobby and ate him.[2]
He was forced to accept that he could not stick to his original travel plan and set off downriver for the closest village, the creole village of Bienvenue, at 70 kilometers.[4] An attempt to build a raft failed (it fell apart, waterlogged),[5] so instead he intended to wade downstream and then, after being rested and re-equipped, to return upstream and continue his journey. On 13 January, he left all his notes and photo equipment in a bag in a hut, keeping only a little bag with necessities and his machete. He got into the water and disappeared in the rapids, never to be seen again.[2] Evidence found later suggested he managed to travel another thirty-five miles.[5]
At the end of February or the beginning of March, a man from the
The father's search
Maufrais' father, Edgar, began looking for his son in 1952; he left his wife behind in Toulon. He traveled twelve thousand kilometers in twelve years.
Legacy
Dozens of books have been written on Maufrais, and he was the subject of four French films, most recently a 2015 production by Jérémy Banster starring Stany Coppet,[7] who also co-wrote the film.[8] His Aventures en Guyane is still in print.[5]
See also
Books
- Bonaccorsi, Robert (2006). À propos de Raymond Maufrais. Toulon: Bleu outre-mers. ISBN 2-9523571-9-6.
- Cavalier, Jacques (1996). Aventures au cœur de la Guyane: Un hommage à Raymond Maufrais. Scripta. ISBN 978-2910870058.
- Chapelle, Richard (1969). J'ai vécu l'enfer de Raymond Maufrais. Paris: Flammarion.
- Crunelle, Geoffroi (1989). Raymond Maufrais: L'Appel de l'Aventure. Paris: éditions Caribéennes.
- Crunelle, Geoffroi (2015). Raymond Maufrais: La véritable histoire du héros du film La vie pure. Jouaville: Scripta.
- Crunelle, Geoffroi (2006). Raymond Maufrais: Aventures au Brésil et en Guyane. Lanrodec: Scripta.
- Joffroy, Pierre (1956). Dévorante Amazonie: la grande aventure des Maufrais. Paris: A. Fayard.[9]
- Maufrais, Edgar (1956). À la recherche de mon fils. Paris: R. Julliard.
- Renoux, Jean-André; Ricatte, René. La Vérité sur la mort de Raymond Maufrais. Paris: Éditions France-Empire.
- Thomas, Paul (2012). À la poursuite de l'impossible (2 ed.). Scripta. ISBN 9782910870270.
- Thouvenot, Daniel (2010). Amazonie, l'enfer en partage: il y a soixante ans, la tragédie des Maufrais. Toulon: les Presses du Midi. ISBN 978-2-8127-0170-2.
Films
- Voyage au bout de la vie, dir. Philippe Jamain; Les Films de la vallée, 1994, 26 min
- Raymond l’intrépide. Le destin tragique des Maufrais, dir. Christian Philibert; VBC Production, 2000, 52 min
- Au nom du fils, dir. Philippe Jamain; Aber images, Les Films de la vallée, 2003, 52 min
- La vie pure, dir. Jérémy Banster, 2015.
References
Notes
- ^ Raymond the intrepid. The tragic destiny of the Maufrais , historical documentary by Christian Philibert , VBC Production, 2000, 52 min;
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Raymond Maufrais". Retrieved 31 October 2015.
- JSTOR 1528307.
- ^ "Raymond Maufrais". Radio Télévision Suisse (in French). Retrieved 20 March 2021.
- ^ a b c d Gimlette 339.
- ^ Réseau Outre-Mer 1re. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
- ^ "La vie pure: inspiré d'une histoire vraie". France-Antilles. 26 October 2015. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
- ^ DeFore, John (3 September 2015). "The Pure Life (La Vie Pure): Montreal Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
- JSTOR 25702157.
Bibliography
- ISBN 9780307596659.
External links
- Official website of the Association des amis d'Edgar et Raymond Maufrais (AAERM) (in French)
- Buffet, Charlie (12 August 2015). "Maufrais et son livre de la jungle". Le Monde (in French).
(in French)