The centenary of the death of writer Rene Vivien (Pauline Tarn, 1877-1909) is the occasion for an extended meditation on the role of graves and cemeteries in commemorative culture. An examination of the various materials left at Vivien's grave over a period of years (and documented in accompanying photographs) is the starting point for a discussion of the place of 'haunting' in the cultural imagination in general and in the gay and lesbian community in particular. Vivien's grave in the Passy cemetery, Paris, may be compared to other 'cult' graves, such as that of Oscar Wilde, but there are notable differences in how different subcultural communities have responded to these two commemorative sites. W. S. Maney & Son Ltd 2012.
