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Closerie Des Lilas

La Closerie Des Lilas

Built in 1847, La Closerie des Lilas became an iconic Parisian cafe frequented by the many artists and citizens who populated the Montparnasse district of Paris. Much like the Select and the Rotonde, La Closerie des Lilas was a check-in point for the American Expatriate community who flocked to Paris in the early 20th Century in search of universal artistic acceptance.

“When we had had our fill of the faces and the snatches of conversation
at the Coupole, we strolled along the boulevard as far as the Closerie
des Lilas. How lovely the lighted tables spread out under the chestnut

trees looked that April night; a little oasis of conviviality!" (Callaghan, 1963)



What the dialogue above offers us, is a glimpse into a typically Parisian night on the Boulevard du Montparnasse; right at the heart of all the artistic activity. The importance of socializing and interacting is stressed throughout the text, with cafe-sitting or progressing becoming almost ritualistic for many characters on a nightly basis.

With the aid of Digital Geographical mapping we are able to pinpoint the character’s movements throughout the district of Montparnasse, a screenshot of Loretta and Morley Callaghan’s gentle evening stroll along the Boulevard is attached below.



Google Ngrams allows us to plot the trending frequency with which the name ‘Closerie des Lilas’, and the district of ‘Montparnasse’ appear throughout texts written between 1800 and present day. We are able to see use of the term Closerie Des Lilas began right around 1855 - a trend which is reflected by the opening of the Cafe in the mid-1840’s. What is particularly noteworthy is the spike in appearance of ‘Montparnasse’ within texts, which effectively ‘boomed’ right around the 1920’s mark, where it steadily climbed until the mid 30’s, before beginning to decline. This can be accounted for by the mass-migration of American Expatriates who showered the french Quarter with their artistic endeavours.


Callaghan, Morely. 1963. That summer in Paris: Memories of tangled friendships with Ernest Hemingway and Scott Fitzgerald. London MacGibbon & Keehttp://fitzgerald.narod.ru/bio/callaghan-thatsum.html

Fitch, N R, Midgley, A. 2006. The Grand Literary Cafes of Europe. New Holland Publishers (LTD) UK, London.

http://books.google.com/ngrams

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