French
Chapter 2: Sorbonne
Enrolled in Russian literature at the Sorbonne In late 1920,then in comparative literature at the end of 1922, Irène Némirovsky makes friends with René Avot, son of an industrialist from the Pas-de-Calais, and especially with his sister Madeleine, whom she floods with mischievous letters, witnesses to her life as a bamboche. «I am unforgivable for not having written to you for so long. My excuse, if I have one, is very boring; it’s called the Sorbonne. No kidding, I could sing. “My only joy, my only happiness is the Sorbonne,” to the tune of ‘Mon homme’. We work a lot, we don’t get too bored there – we are a friendly group, young people and girls, all Russians. Flirtations take shape in the shadow of dictionaries, if I dare to put it that way. You can see that from here!"
Letter, Madeleine Avot [1922]. © Fonds Irène Némirovsky / IMEC
