Georges Darien

Born in Paris on April 6, 1862, Georges Darien was the pen name of Georges Hippolyte Adrien. He became known as a novelist, playwright, and polemicist whose writing challenged the values of bourgeois society and attacked institutions he saw as violent or corrupt.

Darien's life fed directly into his work. After time in the military and punishment in a disciplinary battalion, he drew on those experiences in Biribi, one of his best-known books. He was associated with anarchism and was also an outspoken supporter of Georgism, and his fiction often mixes personal revolt with political criticism.

He wrote with energy, sarcasm, and a strong sense of injustice, which helped make books such as Le Voleur stand out. Though never a conventional literary figure, he has remained an important voice for readers interested in radical French literature. He died on August 19, 1921.