Champavert

Champavert
AuthorPétrus Borel
LanguageFrench
PublisherEugène Renduel
Publication date
February 1833
Publication placeFrance
Published in English
1959
Pages438

Champavert: Immoral Tales (French: Champavert. Contes immoraux) is a short story collection by the French writer Pétrus Borel, published in February 1833 by Eugène Renduel.[1][2] It consists of seven stories set in Havana, Jamaica, Lyon, Madrid and Paris, each concerning the dismembering of human bodies, calculated cruelty and sexual violence against women.[3]

Champavert was a common surname in Borel's home city of Lyon and the subtitle is an ironic nod to the "moral tales" (French: contes moreax) of Jean-François Marmontel, which were popular at the time.[3]

The book was published in an English translation by Tom Moran in 1959 as Champavert: Seven Bitter Tales.[3] A new translation by Brian Stableford was published in 2013 as Champavert: Immoral Tales.[4]

Contents

  • "A Biographical Sketch of Champavert" (Notice sur Champavert)
  • "Monsieur de l'Argentière, the Prosecutor" (Monsieur de l'Argentière, l'accusateur)
  • "Jaquez Barraou, the Carpenter" (Jaquez Barraou, le charpentier)
  • "Don Andrea Vesalius, the Anatomist" (Don Andréa Vésalius, l'anatomiste)
  • "Three-fingered Jack, the Obi" (Three Fingered Jack, l'obi)
  • "Dinah, the Beautiful Jewess" (Dina, la belle juive)
  • "Passereau, the Student" (Passereau, l'écolier)
  • "Champavert, the Lycanthrope" (Champavert, le lycanthrope)

See also

References

  1. ^ Cousin, Guillaume (2021). "Le romantisme noir et la moralisation par l'horrible : à propos de la réception de Champavert de Pétrus Borel". Otrante (in French) (50): 89–104. doi:10.3917/otra1.050.0090.
  2. ^ Czyba, Lucette (1990). "'Champavert' (1833) ou l'immoralité des contes de Petrus Borel". Merveilles & Contes (in French). 4 (2): 254–270. JSTOR 41380778.
  3. ^ a b c Tilby, Michael (2013). "Borel, Pétrus (Joseph-Pétrus Borel d'Hauerive) 1809–1859". Encyclopedia of the Romantic Era, 1760–1850. Routledge. p. 106. ISBN 9781135455781.
  4. ^ "Champavert: Immoral Tales". amazon.com. Retrieved 1 February 2026.