French Perspectives on Eugenics as Seen Through Selected Writings of Georges Duhamel

Abstract

This article considers changes in French attitudes towards eugenics, or the science of producing higher-quality human beings, during the 1930s, as viewed through the writings of the médecin-écrivain Georges Duhamel. Particular reference is made to Scènes de la vie future (1930), a satire inspired by the author's 1928 visit to the USA, and Les Maîtres (1937), an autobiographically inspired novel recounting the formative years of a young researcher in the scientific laboratories of 1900s Paris. Duhamel's writings reveal a strong hostility towards eugenics, seen as the extreme limit of mass-production technology in its direct application to human beings, which may be traced back to the beginning of his career and which remained constant thereafter. This article will aim to show how, in spite of this unchanging hostility, Duhamel's work reflects the growth of interest in eugenic issues in 1930s France.