Memoir, is a literary nonfiction genre.
More specifically, it is a collection of memories that an individual writes about moments or
events, both public or private that took place in the author's life.
The assertions made in the work are understood to be factual.
While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of autobiography since the
late 20th century, the genre is differentiated in form, presenting a narrowed focus.
Like most autobiographies, memoirs are written from the first-person point of view.
An autobiography tells the story of a life, while a memoir tells a story from a life,
such as touchstone events and turning points from the author's life.
The author of a memoir may be referred to as a memoirist.
Early memoirs Memoir has been written since the ancient
times, as shown by Julius Caesar's Commentarii de Bello Gallico, also known as Commentaries
on the Gallic Wars.
In the work, Caesar describes the battles that took place during the nine years that
he spent fighting local armies in the Gallic Wars.
His second memoir, Commentarii de Bello Civili is an account of the events that took place
between 49 and 48 BC in the civil war against Gnaeus Pompeius and the Senate.
The noted Libanius, teacher of rhetoric who lived between an estimated 314 AD and 394
AD, framed his life memoir as one of his literary orations, which were written to be read aloud
in the privacy of his study.
This kind of memoir refers to the idea in ancient Greece and Rome, that memoirs were
like "memos", or pieces of unfinished and unpublished writing, which a writer might
use as a memory aid to make a more finished document later on.
In the Middle Ages, Geoffrey of Villehardouin, Jean de Joinville, and Philippe de Commines
wrote memoirs, while the genre was represented toward the end of the Renaissance, through
the works of Blaise de Montluc of France.
Until the Age of Enlightenment encompassing the 17th and 18th centuries, works of memoir
were written by Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury; François de La Rochefoucauld,
Prince de Marcillac of France; and Louis de Rouvroy, duc de Saint-Simon, who wrote Memoirs
at his family's home at the castle of La Ferté-Vidame.
While Saint-Simon was considered writer possessing a high level of skill for narrative and character
development, it wasn't until well after his death that his work as a memoirist was recognized,
resulting in literary fame.
From the eighteenth century Over the latter half of the 18th through the
mid-20th century, memoirists generally included those who were noted within their chosen profession.
These authors wrote as a way to record and publish their own account of their public
exploits.
Authors included politicians or people in court society and were later joined by military
leaders and businessmen.
An exception to these models is Henry David Thoreau's 1854 memoir Walden, which presents
his experiences over the course of two years in a cabin he built near Walden Pond.
Twentieth-century war memoirs became a genre of their own, including, from the First World
War, Ernst Jünger and Frederic Manning's Her Privates We.
Memoirs documenting incarceration by Nazi Germany during the war include Primo Levi's
If This Is a Man, which covers his arrest as a member of the Italian Resistance Movement,
followed by his life as a prisoner in Auschwitz; and Elie Wiesel's Night, which is based on
his life prior to and during his time in the Auschwitz, Buna Werke, and Buchenwald concentration
camps.
Collections With the expressed interest of preserving
history through the eyes of those who lived it, some organizations work with potential
memoirists to bring their work to fruition.
The Veterans History Project, for example, compiles the memoirs of those who have served
in a branch of the U.S. military – especially those who have seen active combat.
Many public libraries give Memoir Writing classes that are geared towards senior citizens.
See also Journal
Diary Last will and testament
Fake memoirs Histoire de ma vie
References