Pierre Loti

Louis-Marie-Julien Viaud, known as Pierre Loti, born on January 14, 1850, in Rochefort, and died on June 10, 1923, in Hendaye, was a French writer, naval officer, and member of the Académie Française. Pierre Loti, whose work is largely autobiographical, drew inspiration from his travels for his novels, for example, in Tahiti for *Le Mariage de Loti* (Rarahu) (1882), in Senegal for *Le Roman d'un spahi* (1881), and in Japan for *Madame Chrysanthème* (1887). Throughout his life, he retained a strong affinity for Turkey, where he was fascinated by the role of sensuality: he notably illustrates t...