The Revolt of the Angels
The Revolt of the Angels is a novel by Anatole France, published in 1924. The story follows the character of Jacques Desvarennes, a wealthy and successful businessman who becomes disillusioned with the materialism and superficiality of society. He becomes obsessed with the idea of a rebellion of the angels against God, and begins to see parallels between their struggle and his own feelings of discontent with the world around him. As Jacques' obsession grows, he becomes increasingly isolated from those around him, including his wife and children. He sees himself as a leader in this rebellion, and becomes convinced that he is destined to play a key role in it. The novel explores themes of disillusionment, rebellion, and the search for meaning and purpose in life. It is a classic work of French literature, and is known for its philosophical and introspective nature.
By Anatole France · First published 1924 · Genre: Fantasy, Satire, Philosophical Fiction · 35 chapters · 84,847 words
First lines
Beneath the shadow of St. Sulpice the ancient mansion of the d'Esparvieu family rears its austere three stories between a moss-grown fore-court and a garden hemmed in, as the years have elapsed, by ever loftier and more intrusive buildings, wherein, nevertheless, two tall chestnut trees still lift their withered heads.
Here from 1825 to 1857 dwelt the great man of the family, Alexandre Bussart d'Esparvieu, Vice-President of the Council of State under the Government of July, Member of the Academy of Moral and Political Sciences, and author of an _Essay on the Civil and Religious Institutions of Nations_, in three octavo volumes, a work unfortunately left incomplete.
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The Revolt of the Angels is listed on Textopian as a novel by Anatole France, dated 1924 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Novel
- Author: Anatole France
- Date: 1924 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Fantasy, Satire, Philosophical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Adventure
- Length: 84,847 words
- Structure: 35 chapters, 1,240 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Difficult (10th-12th Grade)
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- Work identity for The Revolt of the Angels by Anatole France
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
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Discussion starters
- What should a reader notice first when entering The Revolt of the Angels?
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Similar titles
- The White Stone by Anatole France
- Domnei by James Branch Cabell
- The Assignation by Lord Dunsany
- Satan Mekatrig by Israel Zangwill
- The Mandarin And The Butterfly by L. Frank Baum
- The Gods Are Athirst by Anatole France
Genres
- Fantasy — The novel tells the story of a guardian angel who rebels against heaven to join the world of humans. Characters such as angels and the use of heaven and earth as settings make it a fantasy story.
- Satire — The novel satirizes religion and the church, offering a heaven filled with bureaucratic inefficiencies and incompetence, and resulted in France's nomination for excommunication by the Vatican.
- Philosophical Fiction — The book engages in deep ideological debates, particularly about religion, promoting humanism and atheism.
- Literary Fiction — As a work of Anatole France, a Nobel laureate in literature, the book exhibits exceptional and detailed narrative style and vocabulary, making it a high-quality literary work.
Tags
French Literature · Symbolism · Fantasy · Allegory · Religion · Philosophy · Politics · Social Commentary · Romance · Gothic · Supernatural · Mythology
Contents
- CONTAINING IN A FEW LINES THE HISTORY OF A FRENCH FAMILY FROM 1789 TO THE PRESENT DAY
- WHEREIN USEFUL INFORMATION WILL BE FOUND CONCERNING A LIBRARY WHERE STRANGE THINGS WILL SHORTLY COME TO PASS
- WHEREIN THE MYSTERY BEGINS
- WHICH IN ITS FORCEFUL BREVITY PROJECTS US TO THE LIMITS OF THE ACTUAL WORLD
- WHEREIN EVERYTHING SEEMS STRANGE BECAUSE EVERYTHING IS LOGICAL
- WHEREIN PERE SARIETTE DISCOVERS HIS MISSING TREASURES
- OF A SOMEWHAT LIVELY INTEREST, WHEREOF THE MORAL WILL, I HOPE, APPEAL GREATLY TO MY READERS, SINCE IT CAN BE EXPRESSED BY THIS SORROWFUL QUERY: "THOUGHT, WHITHER DOST THOU LEAD ME?" FOR IT IS A UNIVERSALLY ADMITTED TRUTH THAT IT IS UNHEALTHY TO THINK AND THAT TRUE WISDOM LIES IN NOT THINKING AT ALL
- WHICH SPEAKS OF LOVE, A SUBJECT WHICH ALWAYS GIVES PLEASURE, FOR A TALE WITHOUT LOVE IS LIKE BEEF WITHOUT MUSTARD: AN INSIPID DISH
- WHEREIN IT IS SHOWN THAT, AS AN ANCIENT GREEK POET SAID, "NOTHING IS SWEETER THAN APHRODITE THE GOLDEN"
- WHICH FAR SURPASSES IN AUDACITY THE IMAGINATIVE FLIGHTS OF DANTE AND MILTON
- RECOUNTS IN WHAT MANNER THE ANGEL, ATTIRED IN THE CAST-OFF GARMENTS OF A SUICIDE, LEAVES THE YOUTHFUL MAURICE WITHOUT A HEAVENLY GUARDIAN
- WHEREIN IT IS SET FORTH HOW THE ANGEL MIRAR, WHEN BEARING GRACE AND CONSOLATION TO THOSE DWELLING IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF THE CHAMPS ELYSEES IN PARIS, BEHELD A MUSIC-HALL SINGER NAMED BOUCHOTTE AND FELL IN LOVE WITH HER
- WHEREIN WE HEAR THE BEAUTIFUL ARCHANGEL ZITA UNFOLD HER LOFTY DESIGNS AND ARE SHOWN THE WINGS OF MIRAR, ALL MOTH-EATEN, IN A CUPBOARD
- WHICH REVEALS THE CHERUB TOILING FOR THE WELFARE OF HUMANITY AND CONCLUDES IN AN ENTIRELY NOVEL MANNER WITH THE MIRACLE OF THE FLUTE
- WHEREIN WE SEE YOUNG MAURICE BEWAILING THE LOSS OF HIS GUARDIAN ANGEL, EVEN IN HIS MISTRESS'S ARMS, AND WHEREIN WE HEAR THE ABBE PATOUILLE REJECT AS VAIN AND ILLUSORY ALL NOTIONS OF A NEW REBELLION OF THE ANGELS
- WHEREIN MIRA THE SEERESS, ZEPHYRINE, AND THE FATAL AMEDEE ARE SUCCESSIVELY BROUGHT UPON THE SCENE, AND WHEREIN THE NOTION OF EURIPIDES THAT THOSE WHOM ZEUS WISHES TO CRUSH HE FIRST MAKES MAD, IS ILLUSTRATED BY THE TERRIBLE EXAMPLE OF MONSIEUR SARIETTE
- WHEREIN WE LEARN THAT SOPHAR, NO LESS EAGER FOR GOLD THAN MAMMON, LOOKED UPON HIS HEAVENLY HOME LESS FAVOURABLY THAN UPON FRANCE, A COUNTRY BLESSED WITH A SAVINGS BANK AND LOAN DEPARTMENTS, AND WHEREIN WE SEE, YET ONCE AGAIN, THAT WHOSO IS POSSESSED OF THIS WORLD'S GOODS FEARS THE EVIL EFFECTS OF ANY CHANGE
- WHEREIN IS BEGUN THE GARDENER'S STORY, IN THE COURSE OF WHICH WE SHALL SEE THE DESTINY OF THE WORLD UNFOLDED IN A DISCOURSE AS BROAD AND MAGNIFICENT IN ITS VIEWS AS BOSSUET'S DISCOURSE ON THE HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSE IS NARROW AND DISMAL
- THE GARDENER'S STORY, CONTINUED
- THE GARDENER'S STORY, CONTINUED
- THE GARDENER'S STORY, CONCLUDED
- WHEREIN WE ARE SHOWN THE INTERIOR OF A BRIC-A-BRAC SHOP, AND SEE HOW PERE GUINARDON'S GUILTY HAPPINESS IS MARRED BY THE JEALOUSY OF A LOVE-LORN DAME
- WHEREIN WE ARE PERMITTED TO OBSERVE THE ADMIRABLE CHARACTER OF BOUCHOTTE, WHO RESISTS VIOLENCE BUT YIELDS TO LOVE. AFTER THAT LET NO ONE CALL THE AUTHOR A MISOGYNIST
- CONTAINING AN ACCOUNT OF THE VICISSITUDES THAT BEFEL THE "LUCRETIUS" OF THE PRIOR DE VENDOME
- WHEREIN MAURICE FINDS HIS ANGEL AGAIN
- THE CONCLAVE
- WHEREIN WE SHALL SEE REVEALED A DARK AND SECRET MYSTERY AND LEARN HOW IT COMES ABOUT THAT EMPIRES ARE OFTEN HURLED AGAINST EMPIRES, AND RUIN FALLS ALIKE UPON THE VICTORS AND THE VANQUISHED; AND THE WISE READER (IF SUCH THERE BE - WHICH I DOUBT) WILL MEDITATE UPON THIS IMPORTANT UTTERANCE: "A WAR IS A MATTER OF BUSINESS"
- WHICH TREATS OF A PAINFUL DOMESTIC SCENE
- WHEREIN WE SEE HOW THE ANGEL, HAVING BECOME A MAN, BEHAVES LIKE A MAN, COVETING ANOTHER'S WIFE AND BETRAYING HIS FRIEND. IN THIS CHAPTER THE CORRECTNESS OF YOUNG D'ESPARVIEU'S CONDUCT WILL BE MADE MANIFEST
- WHICH TREATS OF AN AFFAIR OF HONOUR, AND WHICH WILL AFFORD THE READER AN OPPORTUNITY OF JUDGING WHETHER, AS ARCADE AFFIRMS, THE EXPERIENCE OF OUR FAULTS MAKES BETTER MEN AND WOMEN OF US
- WHEREIN WE ARE LED TO MARVEL AT THE READINESS WITH WHICH AN HONEST MAN OF TIMID AND GENTLE NATURE CAN COMMIT A HORRIBLE CRIME
- WHICH DESCRIBES HOW NECTAIRE'S FLUTE WAS HEARD IN THE TAVERN OF CLODOMIR
- HOW A DREADFUL CRIME PLUNGES PARIS INTO A STATE OF TERROR
- WHICH CONTAINS AN ACCOUNT OF THE ARREST OF BOUCHOTTE AND MAURICE, OF THE DISASTER WHICH BEFELL THE D'ESPARVIEU LIBRARY, AND OF THE DEPARTURE OF THE ANGELS
- AND LAST, WHEREIN THE SUBLIME DREAM OF SATAN IS UNFOLDED