Schreib ohne Furcht und viel
('Write without fear, and often')
'If you have loved someone, you will love them forever.
If you were no longer alone once, you will never be alone again.'
Maria Casarès
The French writer and philosopher Albert Camus and the Spanish-born actress Maria Casarès, whose family had moved to France, met in Paris in 1944 and became lovers during the rehearsals for Camus' Le Malentendu (The Misunderstanding) at the Théâtre des Mathurins. Camus was married, but separated from his wife due to the war and the occupation of Paris. After a break of two years, his relationship with Casarès reignited from 1948 onwards, and continued until Albert Camus' death in an accident.
Until December 1959, they wrote each other 865 letters that reveal the intensity and intimacy of their relationship. They are 'rations de bonheur' – rations of happiness – and chronicle a love story that was as much characterised by deprivations and absence as it was by mutual understanding and desire, by savouring the days spent together, by working with each other, by the search for true love, its perfect expression, and fulfilment. 'Write without fear, and often': Maria Casarès' acclamation sounds like a motto for their correspondence. In a language that is exceptionally poetic, they reassure each other of their love; they discuss their everyday lives, but also major events in politics and literature.
Maria Schrader and Matthias Brandt read from this impressive exchange of letters that is almost novel-like and provides a unique insight into the busy and fascinating lives and work of these two 20th century icons. Published for the first time in 2017, they are a literary sensation.
