Editing Prosper Mérimée (section)

==''La Vénus d'Ille'', ''Colomba'' and ''Carmen'' (1837–1845)==
While he was researching historical monuments, Mérimée wrote three of his most famous novellas; ''[[La Vénus d'Ille]]'' (1837), ''[[Colomba (novella)|Colomba]]'' (1840) and ''[[Carmen (novella)|Carmen]]'' (1845). ''The Venus d'Ille'' was a by-product of his 1834 monument inspection tour to [[Roussillon]], to the village of Casefabre and the Priory of Serrabina, near Ille-sur-Têt. The novella tells the story of a statue of Venus that comes to life and kills the son of its owner, whom it believes to be its husband. The story was inspired by a story of the Middle Ages recounted by the historian Freher.{{Sfn|Darcos|1998|page=270}} Using this story as an example, Mérimée described the art of writing fantasy literature; "Don't forget that when you recount something supernatural, one should describe as many details of concrete reality as possible. That is the great art of [[E. T. A. Hoffmann|Hoffmann]] and his fantastic stories".{{Sfn|Darcos|1998|page=270}}

''[[Colomba (novella)|Colomba]]'' is a tragic story about a Corsican [[Feud|vendetta]]. The central character, Colomba, convinces her brother that he must kill a man to avenge an old wrong done to their family. This story was the result of his long trip to that island researching historic monuments, and is filled with details about Corsican culture and history. When it was published in the ''Revue des deux Mondes'' it had an immense popular success. It is still widely studied in French schools as an example of [[Romanticism]].{{Sfn|Mérimée|1995|pages=3–54}}

''[[Carmen (novella)|Carmen]]'', according to Mérimée, was based upon a story which the [[María Manuela Kirkpatrick de Grevignée|Countess of Montijo]] had told him during his visit to Spain in 1830. It tells of a beautiful ''Bohémienne'' ([[Romani people|Romani]]) who robs a soldier, who then falls in love with her. Jealous over her, he kills another man and becomes an outlaw, then he discovers she is already married, and in jealousy he kills her husband. When he learns she has fallen in love with a [[picador]], he kills her, and then is arrested and sentenced to death. In the original story told to Mérimée by the Countess, Carmen was not a ''Bohémienne'', but since he was studying the Romani language and Romani culture in Spain and in the Balkans, he decided to give her that background. ''Carmen'' did not have the same popular success as ''Colomba''. It did not become really famous until 1875, after Mérimée's death, when it was made into opera by [[Georges Bizet]]. The opera ''[[Carmen]]'' made major changes to Mérimée's story, including eliminating the role of Carmen's husband.{{Sfn|Darcos|1998|page=270}}

Mérimée was anxious to solidify his literary reputation. He first campaigned methodically for election to the French Academy of Inscriptions and Belles-Lettres, the highest academic body, which he finally attained in November 1843. He next campaigned for a seat in the most famous literary body, the {{lang|fr|[[Académie française]]|italic=no}}. He patiently lobbied the members each time a member died and a seat was vacant. He was finally elected on 14 March 1844, on the seventeenth round of voting.{{Sfn|Darcos|1998|page=270}}