The friendship between Hennique and Mirbeau, at the origins of naturalism

Octave Mirbeau should have been part of the Médan group. With Léon Hennique (1850-1935) in particular, a solid friendship was formed, coupled with mutual artistic admiration. We propose to study the special relationship between the two artists, and their importance in the history of naturalism, through a reading of their correspondence and their works of fiction. The confessions of the two friends will interest us as much as the literary criticism they express in their letters, as well as an article devoted by Mirbeau to Hennique’s spiritualist novel.