Gilles (novel)

Gilles is a 1939 novel by French author Pierre Drieu La Rochelle. The novel is considered a significant work of interwar French literature, exploring themes of disillusionment, political extremism, and the search for meaning in a fragmented world.

The protagonist, Gilles Gambier, is a war veteran struggling to adjust to civilian life after World War I. He drifts through various social circles and political ideologies, initially attracted to pacifism, then increasingly drawn to right-wing nationalism and fascism. Gilles's journey is marked by a series of failed relationships and a growing sense of alienation. He is portrayed as a deeply flawed and contradictory character, reflecting the moral and intellectual confusion of the era.

Drieu La Rochelle, himself a controversial figure who collaborated with the Nazis during World War II, uses Gilles to examine the appeal of extremist ideologies and the anxieties that fueled them. The novel does not necessarily endorse Gilles's choices, but rather presents them as a consequence of the perceived failures of liberal democracy and the search for a more authentic and meaningful existence.

Gilles is known for its pessimistic and nihilistic tone, reflecting the author's own disillusionment with the post-war world. It offers a stark portrayal of the political and intellectual landscape of pre-World War II France and remains a controversial but important work for understanding the period's complex dynamics.