Froth on the Daydream

Froth on the Daydream

infobox Book |
name = Froth on the Daydream
title_orig = L'Écume des Jours
translator = Stanley Chapman,


image_caption = First edition cover
author = Boris Vian
cover_artist =
country = France
language = French
series =
genre = Novel
publisher = Gallimard (orig) & Rapp & Carroll (Eng. trans.)
release_date = 1947 (Eng. trans. November 1967)
media_type = Print (Hardback & Paperback)
pages = 224 p. (hardback edition)
isbn = ISBN 0-85391-061-8 (hardback edition)
preceded_by =
followed_by =

"Froth on the daydream" (in French "L'Écume des Jours") is a novel written by French author Boris Vian, and published in 1947.

It has been translated several times into English, under different titles. Stanley Chapman's translation was titled "Froth on the Daydream"; Brian Harper's was titled "Mood Indigo, Foam of the Daze" (TamTam Books).

Plot summary

The protagonist, Colin, is a wealthy young man with a resourceful and stylish man-servant, Nicholas, and a healthy supply of doublezoons in his chest. With dizzying speed, Colin meets and weds Chloe in a grand ceremony. Generously, Colin bequeaths a third of his fortune to his friends Chick and Lisa so they too may marry. Happiness should await both couples but Chloe falls ill upon her honeymoon with a lily in the lung, a painful and rare condition that can only be treated by surrounding her with flowers. The expense is prohibitive and Colin soon exhausts his funds. Meanwhile, Chick's obsession with the philosopher, Jean-Pulse Heatre, causes him to spend all his money, effort and attention upon collecting Heartrian literature. Lisa hopes to save Chick financially and renew his interest in her by persuading Heartre to stop publishing books. She kills him when he refuses and seeks revenge upon the booksellers. Colin struggles to provide flowers for Chloe to no avail and his grief at her death is so strong his pet mouse commits suicide to escape the gloom.

Characters in "Froth on the Daydream"

*Colin – a wealthy young man
*Nicholas – Colin's man-servant
*Chloe – who Colin marries
*Chick- Colin's closest friend, who depends on Colin for financial support
*Lisa- a friend of Colin who dates Chick, she was called "Alise" in the original French version
*Jean-Pulse Heatre – a philosopher who Chick idolises (In the original French version he is called "Jean-Sol Partre," satirizing Jean-Paul Sartre)

Philosophical Ideas presented in "Froth on the Daydream"

As noted above, In the original French version of the novel, Jean-Pulse Heatre is known as Jean-Sol Partre, satirizing the French Existentialist Jean-Paul Sartre. Throughout the novel there are references various works by Sartre, but like the philosopher's name, Vian plays with words to make new titles for "Partre's" works. Sometimes he uses a synonym, such as "Le Vomi," (Original by Sartre "La Nausée") and sometimes he uses a homonym, such as "La Lettre et le Néon" (Original "L'Être et le Néant")

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

"L'Écume des Jours" was made into a movie, released in 1968. English title: "Spray of the Days". Directed by Charles Belmont, it stars Jacques Perrin, Marie-France Pisier, Sami Frey, Alexandra Stewart, Annie Buron, Bernard Fresson.

It was also made into an opera under the same title by the Russian composer Edison Denisov in (1981).

It was also adapted into a Japanese movie, released in 2001. English title: "Chloe". Directed by 利重 剛(Go Riju), it stars by 永瀨正敏(Nagase Masatoshi) cinematography by 篠田昇(Shinoda Noboru) and was selected in the competition of 2001 Berlin Film Festival.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • 1947 in literature — The year 1947 in literature involved some significant events and new books.Events* The Diary of Anne Frank is published for the first time. *Jack Kerouac makes the journey which he will later chronicle in his book On the Road . *Dorothy Parker… …   Wikipedia

  • Boris Vian — Infobox Writer name = Boris Vian pseudonym = Vernon Sullivan, Bison Ravi, Baron Visi, Brisavion birthdate = birth date|1920|3|10 birthplace = Paris, France deathdate = death date and age|1959|6|23|1920|3|10 deathplace = Paris, France occupation …   Wikipedia

  • Jean-Paul Sartre — Infobox Philosopher region = Western Philosophy era = 20th century philosophy color = # |250px image caption = name = Jean Paul Sartre birth = 21 June 1905 (Paris, France) death = death date and age|df=yes|1980|4|15|1905|6|21 (Paris, France)… …   Wikipedia

  • 20th century in literature — History of modern literature The early modern period 16th century in literature | 17th century in literature European literature in the 18th century 1700s | 1710s | 1720s | 1730s | 1740s | 1750s | 1760s | 1770s | 1780s | 1790s | …   Wikipedia

  • French literature — Introduction       the body of written works in the French language produced within the geographic and political boundaries of France. The French language was one of the five major Romance languages to develop from Vulgar Latin as a result of the …   Universalium

  • Stanley Chapman — Born in 1925, Stanley Chapman is a British architect, designer, translator and writer. His interests include theatre and pataphysics. He was involved with founding the National Theatre of London, was a member of Oulipo of the year 1960, founder… …   Wikipedia

  • L'Écume des Jours — can refer to in Literature * L Écume des Jours a French novel written in 1947 by Boris Vian. *variously translated over the years into English as:*Froth on the daydream ndash; (1967) (trans by Stanley Chapman):*Mood Indigo (novel) ndash;… …   Wikipedia

  • Mood Indigo (disambiguation) — Mood Indigo may refer to: Mood Indigo, classic jazz composition Mood Indigo (festival), annual cultural festival of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay Mood Indigo (Anouk), song from Anouk Mood Indigo, Foam of the Daze, an English title of… …   Wikipedia

  • Stanley Chapman — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Chapman. Né le 15 septembre 1925, mort le 26 mai 2009, Stanley Chapman est architecte, dessinateur, traducteur et écrivain anglais. Passionné de théâtre et de Pataphysique, il participe à la conception du… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Captain Beefheart — Don Van Vliet At Convocation Hall, Toronto, in 1974 Background information Birth name Don Glen Vliet Also known as …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”