Dictionnaire d'argot fin-de-siècle

Step into the bustling streets of Paris at the turn of the twentieth century, where a hidden language pulses through cafés, workshops, and the shadowy alleys of the underworld. This compact guide captures the slang that ordinary dictionaries ignore, presenting each term exactly as it was spoken by the men and women who lived it. The compiler, a former bookseller turned chronicler, drew on his own immersion in the world of cabarets and workshops to give the entries an authentic, lived‑in feel.

Beyond mere definitions, the work offers brief sketches of the social settings where the words thrive, from the spirited crawl of a cabaret to the rough camaraderie of a dockyard. Readers will hear the wit, the grit, and the humor that color everyday conversations, gaining insight into a culture that both mirrors and rebels against bourgeois norms. It serves as a linguistic time capsule, showing how slang evolves, adapts, and sometimes slips back into obscurity.