The transmission of legends
If the legends are transmitted orally and in song, writers have contributed to their preservation over the centuries. As early as the 12th century, Chrétien de Troyes launched Arthurian literature. Since then, Arthur's epic has inspired many renowned authors, and even Shakespeare, whose King Lear is said to be inspired by the Celtic mythological figure of Lir, god of the sea. And the transmission continues thanks to John Steinbeck with King Arthur and his valiant knights, Jean Cocteau and his play The Knights of the Round Table, Guillaume Apollinaire who wrote at 18 years a novel on Merlin, The Rotting Enchanter, Boris Vian and his opera revisiting the story of Lancelot, The Snow Knight, or the reinterpretation of the Arthurian legend by Rene Barjavel in The Enchanter.. The list is long and fascinating of those who were inspired by this mythical epic taking its source in the forest of Broceliande, today called Paimpont, in the east of the department. We can also mention the talented writer of Breton origin Jean Markale and his consequent work on the subject, for which he is passionate, and in particular the book Brocéliande et l'énigme du Graal.
And the tales and legends of Morbihan are the source of many books, such as those of Anatole le Braz, among which La Légende de la mort, a collection devoted to the Ankou, the Breton character of death, or of the author Xavier Hussön, with among others Merveilles et Légendes du Morbihan, a book appreciated by all generations! Moreover, children are not left out and a multitude of books on Breton legends are dedicated to them! From Elouan et les Korrigans, by Christophe Boncens, for the little ones, to Michael Morpurgo's book dedicated to young readers Le Roi Arthur, the choice is infinite!
Some authors from Morbihan
There is no shortage of local authors, and many of them like to anchor their novels in this land that is dear to them. This is notably the case of Séverine Le Corre-Mongin, from Pontivy, with Drame en Morbihan. Among the emblematic authors of the department, we can mention Irène Frain, from Lorient. This woman of letters from a rural background takes the reader on a journey to the heart of her origins and closest sources of inspiration, such as the sea and the Indian horizon, which was that of the Compagnie des Indes founded in Lorient several centuries earlier. In addition to her many novels, she delivers her personal account in La Maison de la source.
Earlier, the talented Marie Le Franc, born in Sarzeau in 1879, received the Femina prize in 1927 for her novel Grand-Louis l'innocent, and left her mark both on her native land, the media library of Sarzeau and a vocational high school in Lorient having inherited her name, and in Canada, where she spent part of her life, and where a lake bears her name.
The comic strip
In Morbihan, we love comics! Moreover, for a few years now, in September, the Lok'en Bulles festival in Locmariaquer allows you to meet the artists of the genre!
Of course, we find there a lot of this fantastic and legendary tradition. It is the case of the 7 magnificent volumes of Broceliande, forest of the small people, which put the korrigans in the honor, of the 2 volumes of Tears of Fairies or of the 5 volumes of Aliénor Mandragore, the daughter of Merlin. Sometimes, this Celtic inspiration is treated in a parodic way, as in Santiagolf du Morbihan, by B-Gnet, which has a lot of fun! More current and societal, the comic Belle-Île en père is inspired by the presence of Sarah Bernhardt on Belle-Île by painting a heroine who questions her celebrity in the island's setting.
