Bruges-la-Morte by Georges Rodenbach (Book Analysis)

This practical and insightful reading guide offers a complete summary and analysis of Bruges-la-Morte by Georges Rodenbach. It provides a thorough exploration of the novel’s plot, characters and main themes, including resemblance, grief and the city of Bruges. The clear and concise style makes for easy understanding, providing the perfect opportunity to improve your literary knowledge in no time.

This clear and detailed 64-page reading guide is structured as follows:

• Biography of Georges Rodenbach
• Presentation of Bruges-la-Morte
• Summary of Bruges-la-Morte
• Character study
  • Hugues Viane
  • Viane’s wife
  • Jane Scott
  • Barbe
• Analysis of Bruges-la-Morte
  • Context
  • A hybrid novel
  • Innovative illustrations
  • Bruges: a main character
  • Hugues Viane: between sameness and difference
  • The triumph of the sacred over the profane

About Bruges-la-Morte

Bruges-la-Morte is the best-known work by Georges Rodenbach, and tells the story of Hugues Viane, a widower who has never moved on from his wife’s death. His monotonous daily routine is unexpectedly shattered when he crosses paths with a mysterious dancer who bears an uncanny resemblance to his late wife, forcing him to choose between wallowing in the past or daring to embrace the future and the hope of a new beginning… Bruges-la-Morte is considered one of the most important works of Symbolist fiction, and was the first novel to use photographs as an accompaniment to the text. It was adapted into a Flemish-language film in 1981.

About Georges Rodenbach

Georges Rodenbach was a Belgian poet and novelist who was best known for being part of the Symbolist movement. Although he moved to Paris in 1888 and wrote in French, he was a firm believer in the importance of Belgian literature. Accordingly, many of his books are set in Belgium, including Bruges-la-Morte and The Bells of Bruges, which are arguably his best-known works.