Kirill A. Chekalov, DSc in Philology, Chief Researcher, A.M. Gorky Institute of World Literature of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Povarskaya Street, 25 a, building 1, 121069, Moscow, Russia; Leading Researcher, The Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration under the President of the Russian Federation, Vernadskogo Avenue, 82, 119571, Moscow, Russia. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9050-0636
The concept of “merveilleux scientifique” (the scientific marvelous) emerged in France in the second half of the 19 th century, referring to mysterious scientific (and also parascientific) phenomena, and almost simultaneously, to a type of narrative that reflected these phenomena. This concept gained significant popularity during the “belle époque”, becoming part of the genre definition of the “novel of scientific wonders” (“roman merveilleux scientifique”). The article examines the reflection of this theme in periodicals, scientific works, and popular prose from the 1870 s to the 1910 s. It is noted that the realm of the “scientific marvelous” was ambiguous, encompassing not only mysterious phenomena of the human psyche (primarily those) but also the latest technological achievements and scientific discoveries, as well as examples of masterful illusions (influenced by the high popularity of circus spectacles). Jules Verne was most often considered the founder of the “novel of scientific wonders”, competing with J.-H. Rosny the Elder, and later Herbert Wells, whose work in France was seen as an intellectual alternative to “popular” science fiction. Some authors used this concept as a critical term (Victor Segalen, for example, who criticized Émile Zola for pseudoscience), while others, on the contrary, sought to elevate it to an independent aesthetic category that was replacing traditional types of the fantastic (Marcel Réjà, Maurice Renard). This topic was most thoroughly and, at the same time, with a polemical angle, articulated in Maurice Renard’s article “On the Novel of Scientific Wonders and Its Influence on the Understanding of Progress” (Maurice Renard, “Du Roman merveilleux-scientifique et de son action sur l’intelligence du progress”), published in “Le Spectateur” on October 6, 1909. Later, Renard has lost interest in this term, which, however, remained in use in France until it was replaced by the English term “science fiction” in the late 1940 s. The construct of “merveilleux-scientifique” has been revived by some contemporary French scholars studying the origins of national science fiction and emphasizing its distinctiveness compared to English-language models.
scientific marvelous; novel; newspaper; magazine; science fiction; “belle époque”; reader; genre.
20.10.2024
15.11.2024
Chekalov, K.A. “‘The Novel of Scientific Wonders’: A View from within the ‘belle époque’”. Literaturovedcheskii zhurnal, no. 1(67), 2025, pp. 197–217. (In Russ.)
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