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Les Vivants et les Morts
Lui, c'est Rudi. Il n'a pas trente ans. Elle, c'est Dallas. Bien malin qui pourrait dire pourquoi tout IL le monde l'appelle comme ça. Même elle a oublié son nom de baptême... Rudi et Dallas travaillent à la Kos, une usine de fibre plastique. Le jour où l'usine ferme, c'est leur vie qui vole en éclats, alors que tout s'embrase autour d'eux. A travers l'épopée d'une cinquantaine de personnages, Les Vivants et les Morts est le roman d'amour d'un jeune couple emporté dans le torrent de l'histoire contemporaine. Entre passion et insurrection, les tourments, la révolte, les secrets de Rudi et Dallas sont aussi ceux d'une ville où la lutte pour la survie dresse les uns contre les autres, ravage les familles, brise les règles intimes, sociales, politiques. Dans ce monde où la raison financière l'emporte sur le souci des hommes, qui doit mourir ? Qui peut vivre ?
- GenresFiction
660 pages, Hardcover
First published January 12, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 15, 2018
N'est pas Zola qui veut, I thought after a hundred pages or so. It's clearly intended as a massive social novel in the tradition of Germinal, but Mordillat is not Zola. It reads like a script for a TV series (which it effectively is -- Mordillat made a series from it later, and I'm sure it was always his intention). A lot of dialogue, short scenes with single-word titles mostly indicating the location. Sketchily drawn characters, a pedestrian writing style.
It's clear that the novel is intended as a critique of modern global capitalism -- just as Au Bonheur des dames is a critique of consumerism -- and Mordillat positions himself clearly on the side of the workers; he supported Mélenchon's La France Insoumise at the last election. He uses one particular character, Lorquin, to represent what I suspect are his own views. However, he is not Zola.
After a couple of hundred pages I was quite bored with it. But what was really making me spit feathers was his portrayal of the female characters. No way would this novel pass the Bechdel test. With very few exceptions, all of their conversations are about sex or babies. Meanwhile the men are the ones who talk about politics and stand up for workers' rights. And it's so blatant that it can't just be Mordillat's way of depicting a society in which traditional roles are enforced. The women think and talk about sex All. The. Time (when they're not dandling babies or discussing pregnancy). With rare exceptions all interactions between men and women boil down to sex. There's even one character, Mickie, whose only role is to provide clandestine sex to other characters.
The only female character who breaks this mould is the journalist Florence, who has a career but neither man nor babies. But hey, it turns out she's gay, because what other possible reason could there be for her refusing to sleep with a married man twice her age? Mickie can think of nothing better to recommend to a friend whose husband has committed suicide but to go out and find a man to have sex with. Oh, and the wages of childless Mickie's no-strings sexual activities? Terminal ovarian cancer. Of course. Even when the women do engage in political activity it's to defend their men.
So, pretty exasperating for a book published in 2005 by someone clearly on the left. But I've given it two stars because it did improve in the last third (despite a pretty terrible ending revolving around, um, sex), and while you can't countenance the actions of some characters, Mordillat does make you think about what is justified in this situation, and what can be excused. He does a good, albeit long-winded, job of developing the views of the various unions with their different political stances. It's a clever move to make the owners of the factory remote holding companies passing the company between them, whose owners never appear. The workers are literally fighting a void.
It's clear that the novel is intended as a critique of modern global capitalism -- just as Au Bonheur des dames is a critique of consumerism -- and Mordillat positions himself clearly on the side of the workers; he supported Mélenchon's La France Insoumise at the last election. He uses one particular character, Lorquin, to represent what I suspect are his own views. However, he is not Zola.
After a couple of hundred pages I was quite bored with it. But what was really making me spit feathers was his portrayal of the female characters. No way would this novel pass the Bechdel test. With very few exceptions, all of their conversations are about sex or babies. Meanwhile the men are the ones who talk about politics and stand up for workers' rights. And it's so blatant that it can't just be Mordillat's way of depicting a society in which traditional roles are enforced. The women think and talk about sex All. The. Time (when they're not dandling babies or discussing pregnancy). With rare exceptions all interactions between men and women boil down to sex. There's even one character, Mickie, whose only role is to provide clandestine sex to other characters.
The only female character who breaks this mould is the journalist Florence, who has a career but neither man nor babies. But hey, it turns out she's gay, because what other possible reason could there be for her refusing to sleep with a married man twice her age? Mickie can think of nothing better to recommend to a friend whose husband has committed suicide but to go out and find a man to have sex with. Oh, and the wages of childless Mickie's no-strings sexual activities? Terminal ovarian cancer. Of course. Even when the women do engage in political activity it's to defend their men.
So, pretty exasperating for a book published in 2005 by someone clearly on the left. But I've given it two stars because it did improve in the last third (despite a pretty terrible ending revolving around, um, sex), and while you can't countenance the actions of some characters, Mordillat does make you think about what is justified in this situation, and what can be excused. He does a good, albeit long-winded, job of developing the views of the various unions with their different political stances. It's a clever move to make the owners of the factory remote holding companies passing the company between them, whose owners never appear. The workers are literally fighting a void.
January 25, 2021
Excellent. On ne peut plus vrai.
April 12, 2022
Un livre incroaybel pour comprendre la classe ouvrière, pour comprendre ce que c'est que d'être ouvrier dans une usine, être ouvriers dans un village, de tous se connaître et de voir son usine fermée. Tout est parfait, les relations entre les personnages, les problèmes, la grève, la mort, les pleurs, la joie aussi. Toutes les émotions de la vie y sont écrites et c'est en ça que c'est un livre merveilleux : on peut rire puis pleurer tout en étant en colère contre un personnage. C'setu n méli-mélo d'émotions parfaitement décrites et qui nous permettent de comprendre un peu plus ce qui peut se passer dans la tête des personnes.
August 25, 2022
Livre écrit il y a 20 ans je pense.
Une usine est vouée à l’arrêt. Ce livre est l’histoire entrecroisée de plusieurs personnages mais surtout d’un jeune couple, Dallas et Rudi.
C’est la lutte pour que l’usine ne ferme pas, pour que chacun conserve sa dignité, la lutte poussée à l’extrême. Des syndicalistes véreux et d’autres formidables. Des femmes qui revendiquent et se battent. Des hommes politiques retors et d’autres bien. Des bavures policières et des hommes en prison.
C’est Zola au XXI eme siècle.
Superbe et dur.
Une usine est vouée à l’arrêt. Ce livre est l’histoire entrecroisée de plusieurs personnages mais surtout d’un jeune couple, Dallas et Rudi.
C’est la lutte pour que l’usine ne ferme pas, pour que chacun conserve sa dignité, la lutte poussée à l’extrême. Des syndicalistes véreux et d’autres formidables. Des femmes qui revendiquent et se battent. Des hommes politiques retors et d’autres bien. Des bavures policières et des hommes en prison.
C’est Zola au XXI eme siècle.
Superbe et dur.
August 26, 2020
J’ai lu 600 pages il m’en reste encore 200, mais je cale sérieusement. Je ne sais pas si j’irai jusqu’au bout. Les personnages n’ont aucune profondeur, aucune histoire, ils sont à peu près tous des caricatures. De fait, l’histoire est assez soporifique : soit les personnages sont à l’usine (ou s’ils n’y sont pas ils en parlent) soit, ils s’envoient en l’air (ou alors ils en parlent). Donc, si on caricature, leur vie, c’est bosser, faire la grève, ou s’envoyer en l’air... mouais...
February 20, 2023
"Les Misérables" in modern and more human; heartbreaking
October 9, 2020
J'avais oublié l'avoir déjà lu en 2012 ! Un livre passionnant avec des personnages attachants ; un histoire sociale toujours d'actualité qui raconte le combat d'ouvriers pour maintenir leur usine.
Comme dans son dernier roman "ces femmes là", le rôle des femmes est important mais arrive assez tardivement dans cette histoire.
Une petite observation sur les scènes de sexe qui m'ont semblées déplacées dans ce contexte, voire dérangeante par leur brutalité masculine.
Comme dans son dernier roman "ces femmes là", le rôle des femmes est important mais arrive assez tardivement dans cette histoire.
Une petite observation sur les scènes de sexe qui m'ont semblées déplacées dans ce contexte, voire dérangeante par leur brutalité masculine.
September 5, 2010
Appâtée par Rue des rigoles, j'ai emprunté celui-là du même auteur. Je n'ai pas dépassé le premier tiers, c'était trop cliché et déprimant.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews