La Villemarque's Barzaz-Breiz (1839-1845-1867): A Romantic Fiction to Reinvent Oneself

Abstract

In 1839, Viscount Théodore Hersart de La Villemarqué published the Barzaz-Breiz (The Popular Ballads of Brittany) at his own expense. He was only 24 years old at the time. This book would bring him fame, give him a name and was to influence all of his future work. The Barzaz-Breiz was then further developed and modified twice afterwards, in 1845 and 1867. To this day it remains one of the best known books in Breton language literature. There are several reasons why the Barzaz-Breiz should not be reduced to just a collection of popular ballads as its title and research on the subject suggest. First of all, the authenticity of the songs of the Barzaz-Breiz and their possible modification, manipulation — or even their total invention by de la Villemarqué — have been the object of so much scholarly debate since the beginning of what came to be called the Barzaz-Breiz dispute, that attention has almost exclusively been focused on the ballads, leaving the rest of the text in the shadows. Secondly, there is a yawning chasm separating La Villemarqué’s work from that of his contemporaries who also collected popular songs. The book forms a space which is made up of de la Villemarqué’s words and serves as the locus for his reallocation of meanings to words. What we are given to read here is no less than a dissertation about the author himself. This paper therefore posits that the Barzaz-Breiz is not a mere collection of popular songs but rather a text — de la Villemarqué is not a mere collector but an author.