Journal, 1940 June 17-1944 Sept. 21.

ArchivalResource

Villard, Léonie. Journal, 1940 June 17-1944 Sept. 21.

Journal, 1940 June 17-1944 Sept. 21.

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/39852087

Transcription of a dairy kept from 1940 to 1944 by an educated, middle-class woman living in Lyons and Oussiat, France. The journal begins with Maréchal Pétain's declaration of the "armistice" with Germany and ends with the liberation of Lyons by the Allies. Most of Villard's entries concern the everyday life of herself, her brother and her friends. The entries are a mixture of factual statements, such as the current cost of butter; opinions, such as the thrill of hearing DeGaulle speak over the B.B.C.; and reports of rumors. Although her life is centered on Lyons and her summer "bungalow" in the more rural Oussiat, there are frequent mentions of War news from outside France, particularly from North Africa and the rest of Europe. Many of the entries for 1942 and 1943 concern food-- its escalating cost, its unavailability (especially the lack of meat, sugar & salt), and the effects of malnutrition. Rationing food is described as one of the tactics employed by the Germans to keep the French subdued; the other principal tactics mentioned being propaganda and killing or imprisonment. Other topics repeatly mentioned are fuel shortages, forced conscription, the Resistance, the black market, and the political situation under the Vichy government. Occasional mention is made of the persecution of French Jews, with an increasing number of references in 1944. Her journal shows an awareness of how the reactions of the Germans in Lyons reflected the changing fortunes of Germany as the War progressed. Villard's descriptions of everyday life include celebrating Christmas, visiting friends, meeting students, going to the doctor, shopping and household chores. Included is a 1946 letter from Earle Balch at G.P. Putnam's Sons to Helen E. Patch at Mount Holyoke College expressing regret that the firm had decided not to publish the journal.

105 leaves ; 28 cm.

Mount Holyoke College, Williston & Miles-Smith Library