journal, Les Guêpes (The Wasps), of a keenly satirical tone, a publication which brought him the reputation of someone of "imperishable words" and biting wit. The first volumes of the journal, or magazine, were published from 1839-43. Karr attempted to revive the publication of Les Guêpes from 1852-55, an undertaking doomed to failure given the conditions of state censorship (under the regime of Napoleon III). In 1848, he founded Le Journal. Memorable quotations Karr is remembered for many of his statements, including the well-known aphorism plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose usually translated as "the more things change, the more they stay the same". On the proposal to abolish capital punishment, he wrote: "je veux bien que messieurs les assassins commencent" (i.e. "let the gentlemen who do the murders take the first step"). Legacy Karr is one of the French artists and writers caricatured by Benjamin Roubaud in his drawing "Grand Chemin de la Postérité". Karr's head is drawn on the body of a wasp (alluding to Les Guêpes) and annotated "KARicature" (sic). The short story Les Willis was the basis of Giacomo Puccini's opera Le Villi (1884). The bamboo species Bambusa multiplex Alphonse Karr'' was named in his honour. Numerous roads have been named after him including: Rue Alphonse Karr in Paris Avenue Alphonse Karr in Saint-Maur-des-Fossés Place Alphonse Karr in Barentin Allée Alphonse Karr in Châlons-en-Champagne The Collège Alphonse Karr college in the resort town of Saint-Raphaël on the Côte d'Azur. References External links Alphonse Karr, LETTRE X. Text with audio (in French) 1808 births 1890 deaths Writers from Paris 19th-century French journalists French male journalists 19th-century French novelists French male novelists 19th-century French male writers French literary critics French satirists