Book – Mémoires D'Hadrien

Book – Mémoires D'Hadrien 
Author : Marguerite Yourcenar

Score:  8/10

Year:  1958, 1974, (this edition 2017)

Publisher: Gallimard

ISBN 978-2-07-036921-8

Pages 364*(+11 unnumbered)*

Language: French (see bottom for the English translation)

Friends offered me this book, which is the 12th am reading in 2018 as part of my goodreads challenge. It represents a historic fiction, in the form of Emperor Hadrien's memoirs, in a realistic yet fictional fashion.



The first chapter is a letter he sends to Marc (Marcus Aurelius)  telling him how he saw his doctor Hermogène (Hermogenes). Hadrien is 60, his health is failing, and so are all his interests. Yourcenar's text flows naturally and logically from topic to topic, as Hadrien covers his ill-health, accepting his death that shall be rather sooner than later ; losing interests he used to have in his prime and vigor, from food to sexuality to sleep.

I enjoyed the poetic prose style of this historic fiction, with the few exceptions of hunting, food, and sacrifice scenes, which albeit realities of their period, were unpleasant to me. 

The book has 2 main portions : 

1. Hadrien's imagined letters to Marcus Aurelius, for the historical fiction, which is divided into 6 chapters (each with a Latin name) ; 
2. Yourcenar's notes, telling her writing process and constitutes the non-fictional portion. 

These are unequal portions, as the first starts at page 11 ending 317, the second part is subdivided into carnets de notes (p. 319-347) for the process, and note (349-364) for the sources and literary liberties she took to complete the unknown portions of Hadrien's life.

The book follows Hadrien's life from his early teens, through his career in the army, hopes and accession to the Emperor's seat, including military experiences, political reforms, interests in the arts, poetry and Greek culture, as well as his marriage and love interests. The author lets Hadrien lie and embellish his life circumstances, exacerbating his position or victories, or discussing the impact of sadder events in his life, much like any person would forget the full nature of their experiences, and follow the historical truth that everyone embellishes and lies, overtly and knowingly, or realistically forgetting elements of their lives. Also, we know history is written by victorious and losers in different fashion, don't we ? 

Even Yourcenar's notes are written with eloquence and are very interesting to see the process, how she had started the project as early as 1924, going through years of research and pauses in this endeavor for the book to come to fruition, and explains her few but logical literary liberties, all the whilst rooting the entire book in historic truths.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, its prose, style and form ; its natural flow and historic truths as well as Yourcenar honest descriptions of her process and liberties really touched home for me.  I skimmed through the few graphic hunting and food scenes, and must warn my readers that there are mentions of suicide, which was practices as a form of personal sacrifice to loved ones during this period, and not only due to personal struggles. 

Her research had included many books that she read, sometimes in obscure libraries ; she studied about archaeological findings of period texts, sculptures and other historical references ; she even consulted doctors about illnesses and used period-specific location, illness, deities and cultural references for this book, where Latin phrases appear here and there, and not only as titles to each of her 6 chapters. 

My edition from 2017 reprises the original 1958 release, adding the notes from 1974. The back cover announces this essay (ISBN 9782070384976) by Henriette Levillain, commenting this book, and which I add to my to be read list and which I'll get at the library :

Of note, it was translated at least once to English under the logical term Memoirs of Hadrien, such as IBSN 9780140087642 seen below, although Amazon UK has marked its date 1702, which is impossible for a book originally published in 1958...