French
Chapter 2: Sorbonne
Enrolled in Russian literature at the Sorbonne late 1920then in comparative literature at the end of 1922 Irène Némirovsky befriends René Avot, son of an industrialist from Pas-de-Calais, and especially with his sister Madeleine, whom she floods with malicious letters, witnesses of her life as a bamboo. “I am unforgivable for not writing to you for so long. My excuse, if I have one, is very boring, it’s called the Sorbonne. Without kidding, I could sing “My only joy, my only happiness is the Sorbonne” on the air of “Mon homme”. We work hard, we don’t get bored too much – we are a friendly gang, young men and girls, all Russian. Flirtations are hatched in the shadow of dictionaries if I dare to say so. You can see it from here!”.
Lettre Madeleine Avot [1922]. © Fonds Irène Némirovsky / IMEC
