Jean Genet
Jean Genet (born illegitimately on December 19, 1910 in Paris, died April 15, 1986 in Paris) was a novelist, playwright, and poet. His novels and plays, full of sexual situations, usually deal with pimps, thieves, gay men and other social outcasts, reflecting his own experiences as a gay prison inmate.
Having been accused of stealing at age ten, Genet decided to become an actual thief and spent his teenage years in youth prison. Later he lived as a male prostitute. In 1943, he was convicted to serve a life-long sentence and decided to take up writing.
His first novel, widely regarded as his best, Our Lady of the Flowers (1944), describes a journey through the Parisian underworld. In The Miracle of the Rose (1946), he focuses on his life in prison, where he meets men again who had been his lovers in youth prison. Jean-Paul Sartre, Jean Cocteau, and Pablo Picasso found his work so brilliant, that eventually he was pardoned in 1948.
Later works by him include The Thief's Journal (1949) and Querelle (1947), the movie version of which was the last film directed by Rainer Fassbinder. Todd Haynes' 1991 movie Poison was also based on the writings of Genet.
Famous plays authored by him are The Maids (1949) and The Balcony (1956). Genet also directed a movie in 1950, Un Chant d'Amour.
Genet was also involved in radical politics, including supporting the Black Panthers, and the Palestine Liberation Organization.
He is remembered today (or relatively recently) in David Bowie's classic song Jean Genie.
In the News
Autism And X-fragile Syndrome
According to the World Health Organisation, the definition of autism is based on a specific pattern of behaviour characteristics, as neither its aetiology nor pathology is defined. This is why a search for autism markers is proposed at three levels: morphological, cytogenetic and molecular. Radiation Exposure During Virtual Colonoscopy Doesn't Significantly Ra
The risk of developing cancer as a result of being exposed to X-rays during computed tomography colonography (also known as "virtual colonoscopy"or CT colonography) is considerably less than 1 percent, according to an article published today in the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) journal Gastroenterology. Researchers say the radiation risk can be further reduced by creating optimized protocols for performing this screening test. ET, Phone Steve Jobs
Jobs' performance at Macworld Tuesday may be his crowning moment. Apple's new iPhone, introduced by Jobs to an adoring crowd, not only represents another watershed moment for the company, but it forever changes the nature of the personal handheld device. Commentary by Leander Kahney. Comprehensive Cardiac CT Scan May Give Clearer Picture Of Significant
Researchers have developed a computed-tomography-based protocol that identifies both narrowing of coronary arteries and areas of myocardial ischemia -- restricted blood flow to heart muscle tissue -- giving a better indication of clinically significant coronary artery disease. [Funny] A referee has sent himself off in an English amateur league ma
Andy Wain had to abandon the Sunday league match between Peterborough North End and a Royal Mail side in the 63rd minute after throwing down his whistle and marching up to confront North End's keeper. Bird Brains Show How Trial And Error May Contribute To Learning
Neurobiologists studying the finch now say the improvisation arises from a component of a crucial learning circuit in a section of the forebrain that seems to generate the trial and error necessary to master sophisticated motor skills, such as singing in birds or speech and sports in humans. Pressure On Football Referees Is Greater If There's No Running Track
A tartan track separating the soccer pitch from the spectators' stands reduces the home advantage to a spectacular extent. This is the result of a study by the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) and the University of Bonn, in which economists analysed more than 3,500 soccer matches. Urban Agriculture Notes by City Farmer
Reports on worm composting, waterwise gardening, sprouting, community gardens, and more. Topics include regions around the world, community gardens, gardening with children, hydroponics, insects, livestock, and water. This site is lengthy and disorganized, but searchable. Some information is specific to the Vancouver and larger British Columbia regions of Canada. City Farmer, "Canada's Office of Urban Agriculture,"is a nonprofit organization. It’s not easy being green
News just in from Imperial College London suggests that climate change in Europe is worsening the impact of a deadly disease which is wiping out vast numbers of amphibians. IC’s Matthew Fisher and colleagues working with colleagues in Madrid have found a correlation between significant warming of the local climate in Spain between 1976 and [...] [Ironic] Professional beggars prowling about the streets of Moroccan c
The government plans to crack down on the scam used by faux beggars in growing numbers for a kind of "emotional blackmail", a cabinet minister was quoted as saying...
MP3 Music Downloads
Preview songs, Download Free Music,Burn CDs at ITunes.com
 
|
