The Return - A Mysterious Transition And Its Consequences - Walter De la Mare

. .

Résumé :
The Return" by Walter de la Mare is a novel that delves into the mysterious and unsettling transformation of Arthur Lawford, a man who experiences an inexplicable change in his appearance after a peculiar incident in a churchyard. The story begins with Lawford wandering through an old churchyard, reflecting on his life and health. He falls into a stupor and awakens to find his face altered beyond recognition. This metamorphosis leads to a series of events that challenge his identity and relationships, particularly with his wife, Sheila, who struggles to believe his story. Lawford's predicament is compounded by the disbelief of those around him, including the vicar, Mr. Bethany, who is called upon to provide guidance. As Lawford grapples with his new reality, he is forced to confront the nature of his existence and the essence of his being. The novel explores themes of identity, reality, and the supernatural, leaving readers to ponder the boundaries between the physical and the metaphysical. De la Mare's narrative is rich with psychological depth, capturing the protagonist's internal turmoil and the reactions of those around him as they navigate this extraordinary situation.

Biographie:
Walter John de la Mare OM CH (25 April 1873 - 22 June 1956) was an English poet, short story writer and novelist. He is probably best remembered for his works for children, for his poem The Listeners, and for his psychological horror short fiction, including Seaton's Aunt and All Hallows. In 1921, his novel Memoirs of a Midget won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction, and his post-war Collected Stories for Children won the 1947 Carnegie Medal for British children's books....

Sommaire:
Published in 1910, Walter de la Mare's The Return stands as a cornerstone of psychological horror, where the supernatural serves as a scalpel to dissect Victorian and Edwardian notions of identity. Arthur Lawford, an unremarkable man of the middle class, seeks rest in the Widderstone churchyard while recovering from a bout of influenza. By falling asleep near the grave of Nicholas Sabathier-a Huguenot who committed suicide in 1739-he inadvertently opens a door to a parasitic entity. When Lawford wakes, he is physically transformed. The mirror reveals a face that is lean, sardonic, and predatory-the face of Sabathier. This physical metamorphosis is the catalyst for a profound ontological crisis: if the body changes, does the soul remain intact? The Dissolution of the Self and Social Alienation The immediate conflict is not with the ghost of Sabathier, but with the living. Lawford's wife, Sheila, represents the rigid societal structures of the era. Her reaction is one of visceral repulsion mixed with social anxiety. To Sheila, Lawford's transformation is a scandal to be hidden rather than a tragedy to be understood. Her inability to recognize the true Arthur beneath the foreign features suggests that, in her world, identity is merely a surface-level contract. If the mask changes, the person is effectively dead. The Vicar, Mr. Bethany, provides a counterpoint. He represents the struggle of faith against the inexplicable. While he is deeply disturbed by Lawford's new appearance, he remains the only character from Lawford's old life who attempts to see through the mask. His presence highlights the tension between a materialistic worldview-where a change in features equals a change in personhood-and a spiritual one that seeks the permanence of the soul....