A roman a clef is a novel about real life events overlaid with a facade of fiction, in which fictitious names stand in for real people. The key linking the fiction to the real people and events it describes may be published separately by the author as an explicit guide, or left implied through epigraphs and other literary techniques.
Facts
Place of OriginFrance, where Madeleine de Scudéry originated the form in the 17th century. 1 Notable ExampleThe Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway (1926), among the genre's English-language examples. 1 Defining TraitThe novel's fictitious names conceal real people, linked by a metaphorical key that may be explicit or implied through epigraphs and other literary techniques. 1 Defining Trait Connections
In the Other Atlases
Originated In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject originated.
Source Roman a Clef (Wikipedia)tier 2
Sources
1. Roman a Clef (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationLead section, second paragraph
Madeleine de Scudéry created the roman à clef in the 17th century to provide a forum for her thinly-veiled fiction featuring political and public figures.
Lead section, final paragraph
English-language examples include The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway (1926), Wigs on the Green by Nancy Mitford (1935), The Bell Jar (1963) by Sylvia Plath, and The Devil Wears Prada (2003) by Lauren Weisberger.
Lead paragraph
created the roman à clef in the 17th century
Lead paragraph, defining sentence
A roman à clef ( roh-MON ə KLAY; French: [ʁɔmɑ̃n‿a kle]; lit. 'novel with a key') is a novel about real-life events that is overlaid with a façade of fiction.
View the Source Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.
View At A Past Year
Choose a year to see this entry's facts and connections as the atlas records them at that moment: what it held then, what it held instead, and what it had not yet adopted. Choose Present for the current record.