Stefan ZWEIG (1881-1942). L.A.S., Salzburg January 4, 1927, - Lot 510

Stefan ZWEIG (1881-1942). L.A.S., Salzburg January 4, 1927, to André Suarès; 2pages in-4 in his cipher; in French. Superb literary letter. Zweig was saddened by the death of Rainer Maria Rilke, "that admirable man, who remained pure and solitary at a time when even the most aesthetic have bent over backwards towards that bordello-like mirror called public glory. He was always traveling, always far from his homeland and his language, and he defended himself against everyone, even his friends. [...] He liked you. In 1913 I lent him some of your books [...] I was not in his intimacy, he only spoke well with women and had a chastity, a modesty of speech in front of men [...] the translations of his books only give a shadow of the magic color of his words. He was our master, our example through his life and his work. [...] a man who lived a life both lyrical and monastic, a life shrouded in silence and mystery"... Then Zweig talks about himself: "I belong to a generation that thought it was fighting and getting closer to life. But my heart remains with those who were wiser, more serene". He greatly admired Suarès's new book: "You can't embrace the spiritual world to the same extent as from the solitude of private life. I study a lot too, I've withdrawn from the city, so as not to lose myself". He announces an essay on Tolstoi and Stendhal: "I see Tolstoy differently, as you do: the sharpest, most solid eye of modern humanity. But what a weak brain! What a mania for tackling questions that by their very nature cannot be answered. And what a fear of death, what a fear of a wounded animal more than of a man, what a sickly, cowardly fear that drives him to the last refuge of all those who are afraid, to Christ. [...] How much I prefer Stendhal [...] prince of psychologists, a man without fear and without vile modesty". Zweig hopes that Suarès's books will finally appear in German, and finally asks him: "Write your life! You're past fifty, you've lived with open eyes and a fervent heart. You have the courage of truth. Write your Henri Brulard. It is the duty of all great psychologists to turn their gaze towards themselves once in their lives, and to tell that supreme truth, which can only be known by looking inward"...