IDENTITY
La Rouille
Literature
Work Summary
La Rouille by Guy de Maupassant is a short story about an ageing bachelor whose complacent life is disrupted by a late romantic attachment. The story treats desire, vanity and the discomfort of emotional vulnerability with Maupassant's characteristic irony.
Evidence Summary
He humorously compares his own physical state with the story's hunter.
Direct application of a remembered literary episode to his own situation.
CONTEXT
Author / Source
Guy de Maupassant
Work
La Rouille
Years / Period
9–10 Jul 1888
Van Gogh Relation
Compared / Connected, Discussed / Commented On
EVIDENCE
Key Quotation
CONNECTIONS
Evidence Trail
9–10 Jul 1888 — Letter 638, note 14
Discussed / Applied · Recalled in detail / applied comparison
Van Gogh asks Theo whether he remembers Maupassant's gentleman who hunted for ten years and later found himself impotent; the editors identify the story as La Rouille.
Response: He humorously compares his own physical state with the story's hunter.
Connection: Direct application of a remembered literary episode to his own situation.
Related Research Nodes
Study Subject
Themes
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