The Breton Sisters
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Les Demoiselles de Concarneau (1936) is a roman dur by Georges Simenon, translated as The Breton Sisters.
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Summary
In the town of Concarneau, at the wheel of his new car, Jules Guérec, a wealthy fisherman, knocks down and mortally wounds little Joseph Papin. After fleeing the scene of the accident, racked with remorse, he takes an interest in the family of his victim, the Papins: he hires Philippe, the simple-minded uncle, aboard one of his boats, and shows a great deal of attention to Edgard, the little victim's twin brother, and especially to Marie, the daughter-mother, whom he imagines he is slowly falling in love with.
Jules Guérec lives with his two sisters, Céline and Françoise, who manage everything and control his life.
In his desire for a home of his own, Jules Guérec dreams of marrying Marie Papin, despite the indifference of the young woman and the unwavering opposition of the two Guérec girls. Céline, the younger sister, guesses that the mysterious murderer of Joseph Papin is none other than her own brother. She goes to Marie's house to reveal everything and obtain her silence. By offering her a large sum of money to compensate her, she manages to stifle the scandal. Jules Guérec can no longer bear the oppressive authority of his sisters and especially the destruction of what he believes to be his love. He runs away after a violent argument during which he sacks their store. Nevertheless, he will soon fall under their control again, because, for forty years that they have jealously guarded him, Jules has remained before them only an apathetic and timid being. Once again, he will submit.
After the death of Françoise, the eldest, Céline and Jules continue their small, regulated life, far from their hometown and the poorly suppressed scandal. One day, they learn by chance of Marie Papin's marriage.
Special aspects of the novel
The story is based on the theme of involuntary manslaughter, which serves to reveal the guilt complex linking the protagonist to his two sisters: it is this complex, laid bare, that determines the evolution of the drama.
Work description
Space and time frame
Space
Concarneau, Rennes, Plouay (near Quimperlé), Rouen, Versailles.
Time
Contemporary time (reference to the 1914-1918 war).
The characters
Main character
Jules Guérec. Fishing boss. Single. 40 years old.
Other characters
- Françoise, about 50 years old, and Céline, 42 years old, sisters of Jules Guérec, shopkeepers
- Marie Papin, 22 years old, single, mother of Edgard and little Joseph
- Philippe, brother of Marie Papin, handyman
- Marthe and Emile Gloaguen, sister and brother-in-law of Jules Guérec
Adaptations
- 1987 : Les Demoiselles de Concarneau, épisode 4 de la série télévisée française L'Heure Simenon réalisé par Édouard Niermans, avec Béatrice Agenin, Christiane Cohendy et Jean-Pol Dubois
