« Ce n'est pas la poésie qui doit être libre, c'est le poète. » A legendary figure within the Surrealist movement, Robert Desnos (1900-1945) has left a unique legacy as a poet of distinction, as a 'dormeur éveillé' revered by his fellow Surrealists, and as a free spirit par excellence. In celebrating Desnos's unique creative voice, this book re-evaluates his prominence within and beyond the Surrealist movement, reappraises his status as a poet, and sheds new light on his contribution to the literary and cultural life of his age. The essays in the volume reflect the ongoing vitality and relevance of Desnos's poetry and the originality of his contribution to the various other forms of expression in which he excelled: journalism, short stories, script-writing and song-writing. Desnos's extensive writings on art and artists, his active involvement in avant-garde film and his close associations with a number of renowned painters are also addressed. This fresh look at Desnos's activities and contexts includes an interview with the artist Georges Malkine's daughter, Fern Malkine-Falvey, and a study of the memoirs of Desnos's wife, Youki. The volume closes with a rare collection of journalistic writings by Desnos which appeared in Le Soir in the late 1920s and have never appeared in print since their original publication.

Autorentext

The Editors: Marie-Claire Barnet is Senior Lecturer in French at Durham University. Eric Robertson is Professor of Modern French Literary and Visual Culture at Royal Holloway, University of London. Nigel Saint is Lecturer in French at the University of Leeds.

Klappentext

« Ce n est pas la poésie qui doit être libre, c est le poète. » A legendary figure within the Surrealist movement, Robert Desnos (1900-1945) has left a unique legacy as a poet of distinction, as a dormeur éveillé revered by his fellow Surrealists, and as a free spirit par excellence. In celebrating Desnos s unique creative voice, this book re-evaluates his prominence within and beyond the Surrealist movement, reappraises his status as a poet, and sheds new light on his contribution to the literary and cultural life of his age. The essays in the volume reflect the ongoing vitality and relevance of Desnos s poetry and the originality of his contribution to the various other forms of expression in which he excelled: journalism, short stories, script-writing and song-writing. Desnos s extensive writings on art and artists, his active involvement in avant-garde film and his close associations with a number of renowned painters are also addressed. This fresh look at Desnos s activities and contexts includes an interview with the artist Georges Malkine s daughter, Fern Malkine-Falvey, and a study of the memoirs of Desnos s wife, Youki. The volume closes with a rare collection of journalistic writings by Desnos which appeared in Le Soir in the late 1920s and have never appeared in print since their original publication.

Inhalt

Contents: Marie-Claire Barnet/Eric Robertson/Nigel Saint: Introduction - Roger Cardinal: The Diary of an Apparition - Michael G. Kelly : Pureté de l'impur. Robert Desnos et Le Grand Jeu - Philippe Met : ' SÉLAVY (Rrose) ou c'est la viscérose ' : Desnos selon Leiris, ou la voie/x de son maître ? - Andrew Rothwell : 'Robert Desnos parle surréaliste à volonté' - Georgiana M.M. Colvile: Éros, Hypnos et Thanatos : The Night of Loveless Nights (1927-1930) - Mary Ann Caws: The Destiny of Robert Desnos - Katharine Conley: Against the Grain: tracing Desnos's Contrée in Pétain's France - Marie-Claire Dumas : Belle Angleterre de légendes - Adelaide Russo: Robert Desnos's 'Gymnastics' - Jonathan Eburne: On Murder, Considered as one of the Surrealist Arts: Robert Desnos in the shadow of Jack the Ripper - Marie-Claire Barnet : Les Voix de la sirène : bavardage, tatouage, et décalcomanie - Renée Riese Hubert : Robert Desnos rhabillé par ses illustrateurs, même - Elza Adamowicz: Desnos's Writings on Art: Beyond the Exotic? - Ramona Fotiade: Automatism and the Moving Image: from verbal to visual metaphor in L'Étoile de mer - Fern Malkine-Falvey: Robert Desnos and Georges Malkine: some recollections.