The Near East of Maurice Barrès and André Malraux

This article presents the numerous similarities in the points of view on the Near East that are to be found in the works of Malraux and Barrès. It then analyses the differences, many of which are ideological, between the two writers. These authors constructed a personal ‘East’ that either reflects a reality, be it historical or topical, or an ‘isotopic’ East, namely a geographic space that is idealised or imagined, and one that is above all literary. Despite the differences, the writers share some important features.