The subject of my research focuses on the multiplicity of literary currents and genres in Boris Vian's L'Écume des Joures. He is a man of many talents: he is a writer, poet, lyricist, singer, translator, painter, music critic, and jazz trumpeter. In the second chapter, entitled "A Novel at the Crossroads of Several Genres and Literary Currents," I will seek out surrealist traits through burlesque, fantasy, and hoax. Certainly, Boris Vian tries all literary movements, but one wonders why the irrational and the humorous prevail throughout his novel.

At the same time, I shed light on how Boris Vian views existentialism and its creator, whom he calls Jean-Sol Partre, as well as the Zazous, as a social phenomenon in reaction to the Vichy government. What does Vian propose as an alternative to existentialism? Finally, it seems that L'Écume is close to the tale and the Nouveau Roman. Is the marvelous sufficient to classify it as a tale? Could Boris Vian be considered a precursor of the nouveau roman?