Resisting the traditional model of nineteenth-century fiction, Joris-Karl Huysman produced in 1884 a novel unlike any other of his time. Against Nature is the story of Des Esseintes, an aesthete who attempts to escape Paris and, along with it, the vulgarity of modern life. As Des Esseintes hides away in his museum of high taste, Huysman offers the reader a treasury of cultural delights and anticipates many aspects of twentieth century modernism. Supplemented by notes and a critical introduction, this new translation is sure to engage today's reader.
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Joris-Karl Huysmans: A rebours Vollstandige Neuausgabe. Herausgegeben von Karl-Maria Guth. Berlin 2015. Umschlaggestaltung von Thomas Schultz-Overhage. Gesetzt aus Minion Pro, 11 pt."

Joris-Karl Huysmans: Against the Grain. (A rebours) Vollstandige Neuausgabe. Herausgegeben von Karl-Maria Guth. Berlin 2015. Umschlaggestaltung von Thomas Schultz-Overhage. Gesetzt aus Minion Pro, 11 pt."

Joris-Karl Huysmans: Gegen den Strich. Mit einer Einfuhrung von Jan ten Brink. Joris-Karl Huysmans: Aus dem Aufsatz Moderne franzosische Romanschriftsteller von Jan ten Brink. Erschienen 1889 in der Zeitschrift fur franzosische Sprache und Litteratur Band 11, S. 41-64 im Verlag von Eugen Franck, Leipzig. Ubersetzt von Lina Schneider, Koln. Gegen den Strich: Erstdruck: Paris (Charpentier) 1884. Originaltitel: A rebours. Hier in der Ubers. v. M. Capsius Vollstandige Neuausgabe. Herausgegeben von Francois Michel. Berlin 2015. Textgrundlage ist die Ausgabe: Huysmans, J oris-] K arl]: Gegen den...

The cult novel of fin de siecle decadence that inspired Oscar Wilde 'It will be biggest fiasco of the year - but I don't give a damn! It will be something nobody has ever done before.' The title page of the first complete English translation of Against Nature (published in the French as A Rebours) included the caption 'the book that Dorian Gray loved and inspired Oscar Wilde.' It was, declared Wilde, one of the best novels he had ever read. It is the story of Jean des Esseintes, the last of a proud and noble family, who retreats from the world in disgust at bourgeois society and...