Twinning, Splitting and Shifting Perspectives in Agota Kristof’s Trilogy: Le Grand cahier, La Preuve, Le Troisième Mensonge

Abstract

Agota Kristof (1935-2011), Hungarian writer exiled in Switzerland since 1956, tackles the topic of twinship in her first three novels: Le Grand cahier(1986), La Preuve (1988), Le Troisième mensonge (1991). The two main characters, Lucas and Claus, represent the dream of twin brothers as a way of reaching the full identity. From one novel to other arise a wicked twinship characterized by the splitting and the fictional game. Her characters embody the parody of men unable to live in a unity project and the sarcastic allegory of the lived situation in eastern Europe in the XX century. The experience of totalitarianism marks her live and her work.