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Visual poetry can be defined as poetry that is meant to be seen.
Combining painting and poetry, it attempts to synthesize the
principles underlying each discipline. Visual poems are immediately
recognizable by their refusal to adhere to a rectilinear grid and
by their tendency to flout their plasticity. In contrast to
traditional poetry, they are conceived not only as literary works
but also as works of art. Although they continue to provide visual
cues that aid in deciphering the text, they function simultaneously
as visual compositions. Whether the visual elements form a
rudimentary pattern or whether they constitute a highly
sophisticated design, they transform the poem into a picture.
Reading Visual Poetry examines works created in Spain, Latin
America, France, Italy, Brazil, and the United States. While it
attempts to recreate the historical and cultural context
surrounding each of the works in question, it is conceived
primarily as a series of readings-or rather as a series of readings
about reading. This book seeks to interpret a number of poems,
which, despite their apparent simplicity, can be difficult to
decipher. It explores the process of interpretation itself, which,
like the compositions, can be surprisingly complex.
Reviewing the previous scholarship for seventeen of the most
important poems in Alcools, this book provides a detailed analysis
of each work and includes a state-of-the-art survey of current
Apollinaire criticism. Besides acquainting readers with the
existing scholarship, the book considers all the interpretations
that have been proposed and indicates profitable directions to
pursue. Each poem is subjected to a rigorous, line-by-line analysis
that engages in a succession of dialogues with previous critics.
The studies themselves are arranged in roughly chronological order,
beginning with the "Rhenanes" in 1901-1902 and concluding with
"Zone" in 1912. Although each chapter is basically conceived as an
independent unit, readers are able to follow the evolution of
Apollinaire's aesthetics from his first mature creations through
his subsequent experiments with fantastic, hermetic, visionary, and
cubist poetry. At the same time, they witness Apollinaire's
personal evolution from his infatuation with Annie Playden through
a period of deep depression, his love affair with Marie Laurencin,
and the aftermath of that relationship.
This book focuses on avant-garde literature and art in Europe and
America during the first quarter of the twentieth century. It
examines five movements that shaped our response to the demands of
the modern age and contributed to the creation of a modern
sensibility: Cubism, Futurism, the Metaphysical School, Dada, and
Surrealism. Each of these arose in response to recent scientific,
technological, and/or philosophical developments that drastically
affected modern civilization. In turn, each was responsible for a
major paradigm shift that altered the way in which we view-and
respond to--the world around us. The final chapter is comparative
in nature and studies the role of the mannequin in literature and
art during the same period.
This book focuses on avant-garde literature and art in Europe and
America during the first quarter of the twentieth century. It
examines five movements that shaped our response to the demands of
the modern age and contributed to the creation of a modern
sensibility: Cubism, Futurism, the Metaphysical School, Dada, and
Surrealism. Each of these arose in response to recent scientific,
technological, and/or philosophical developments that drastically
affected modern civilization. In turn, each was responsible for a
major paradigm shift that altered the way in which we view-and
respond to--the world around us. The final chapter is comparative
in nature and studies the role of the mannequin in literature and
art during the same period.
Visual poetry can be defined as poetry that is meant to be seen.
Combining painting and poetry, it attempts to synthesize the
principles underlying each discipline. Visual poems are immediately
recognizable by their refusal to adhere to a rectilinear grid and
by their tendency to flout their plasticity. In contrast to
traditional poetry, they are conceived not only as literary works
but also as works of art. Although they continue to provide visual
cues that aid in deciphering the text, they function simultaneously
as visual compositions. Whether the visual elements form a
rudimentary pattern or whether they constitute a highly
sophisticated design, they transform the poem into a picture.
Reading Visual Poetry examines works created in Spain, Latin
America, France, Italy, Brazil, and the United States. While it
attempts to recreate the historical and cultural context
surrounding each of the works in question, it is conceived
primarily as a series of readings-or rather as a series of readings
about reading. This book seeks to interpret a number of poems,
which, despite their apparent simplicity, can be difficult to
decipher. It explores the process of interpretation itself, which,
like the compositions, can be surprisingly complex.
Given that the Surrealists were initially met with widespread
incomprehension, mercilessly ridiculed, and treated as madmen, it
is remarkable that more than one hundred years on we still feel the
vitality and continued popularity of the movement today. As Willard
Bohn demonstrates, Surrealism was not just a French phenomenon but
one that eventually encompassed much of the world. Concentrating on
the movement's theory and practice, this extraordinarily
broad-ranging book documents the spread of Surrealism throughout
the western hemisphere and examines keys texts, critical responses,
and significant writers. The latter include three extraordinarily
talented individuals who were eventually awarded the Nobel Prize in
Literature (Andre Breton, Pablo Neruda, and Octavio Paz). Like
their Surrealist colleagues, they strove to free human beings from
their unconscious chains so that they could realize their true
potential. One Hundred Years of Surrealist Poetry explores not only
the birth but also the ongoing life of a major literary movement.
In this, the only full-length study of the visual poetry of the
early twentieth century, Willard Bohn expertly illuminates the
works of Apollinaire, Josep-Maria Junow, Guillermo de Torre, and
others. His fascinating aesthetic insights bring to life this
elusive and often misunderstood genre.
"An important contribution. Highly sophisticated, the study tends
to raise its reader's impression of visual poetry in the twentieth
century from trivial pastime to serious preoccupation."--Eric
Sellin, "Journal of Modern Literature"
"With his definitive analyses full of quotable observations and
sharp critical insights, Bohn has provided a model, pioneering
study, one from which current and future studies of visual poetry
will most certainly benefit."--Gerald J. Janacek, "Romance
Quarterly"
"Bohn substantiates his thesis with thoughtful and often ingenious
"explications "of texts both well known and hard to find. . . .
"Aesthetics of Visual Poetry" is a thoroughly researched,
beautifully written and fascinating introduction to an infinitely
intriguing genre."--Mechthild Cranston, "French Review"
Given that the Surrealists were initially met with widespread
incomprehension, mercilessly ridiculed, and treated as madmen, it
is remarkable that more than one hundred years on we still feel the
vitality and continued popularity of the movement today. As Willard
Bohn demonstrates, Surrealism was not just a French phenomenon but
one that eventually encompassed much of the world. Concentrating on
the movement's theory and practice, this extraordinarily
broad-ranging book documents the spread of Surrealism throughout
the western hemisphere and examines keys texts, critical responses,
and significant writers. The latter include three extraordinarily
talented individuals who were eventually awarded the Nobel Prize in
Literature (Andre Breton, Pablo Neruda, and Octavio Paz). Like
their Surrealist colleagues, they strove to free human beings from
their unconscious chains so that they could realize their true
potential. One Hundred Years of Surrealist Poetry explores not only
the birth but also the ongoing life of a major literary movement.
Reading Apollinaire's Calligrammes examines Guillaume Apollinaire's
second major collection of poetry. Composed between 1913 and 1918,
the nineteen poems examined here fall into two main groups: the
experimental poetry and the war poetry. They also provide glimpses
of the poet's personal history, from his affair with Louise de
Coligny-Chatillon to his engagement to Madeleine Pages and his
marriage with Jacqueline Kolb. Each section examines all of the
previous scholarship for the work in question, provides a detailed
analysis, and, in many cases, offers a new interpretation. Each
poem is subjected to a meticulous line-by-line analysis in the
light of current knowledge.
Surrealist Poetry presents new English translations of nearly 150
poems alongside their original French and Spanish versions. Founded
by Andre Breton in 1924, Surrealism sought to examine the
unconscious realm by means of the written or spoken word. Seeking
to expand the ability of language to evoke irrational states and
improbable events, it consistently strove to transcend the
linguistic status quo. By stretching language to its limits and
beyond, the Surrealists transformed it into an instrument for
exploring the human psyche. The twenty-three poets in this
collection come not only from France, where Surrealism was
invented, but also from Spain, Belgium, Martinique, Mauritius,
Catalonia, Mexico, Chile, and Peru. Three of them were awarded the
Nobel Prize for Literature (Vicente Aleixandre, Pablo Neruda, and
Octavio Paz). Equipped with a critical introduction and a brief
bibliography, this anthology will appeal to anyone interested in
modern literature.
As the twentieth century dawned, artists and writers increasingly
felt that realistic themes and realistic techniques were inadequate
to address the human condition. Convinced that there was more to
reality than physical appearance, they turned their gaze inward and
adopted a number of unconventional approaches. Paradoxically,
considering that they strove to give a more faithful impression of
reality, their experiments were overwhelmingly anti-realistic. Some
artists and writers, such as the cubist and the futurist poets,
subverted traditional rhetorical devices. Others, like the cubist
and the metaphysical artists, invented new spatio-temporal
constructions. Some individuals, including the cubists and
futurists, borrowed freely from other disciplines. Others,
especially the dadaists and the surrealists, cultivated nonsense
and illogicality. Focusing on basic principles and drawing on their
personal experience, poets and painters writers began to explore
subjective reality, which proved to be far more interesting than
its objective counterpart. As they soon discovered, the quest for a
new reality required the creation of a new language that could
express that reality. Each goal was inextricably bound up with the
other in a relationship that was fundamentally reciprocal. Artists
and writers searched for a language that would express the
complexity of the modern world while revolutionizing traditional
aesthetics. Visual imagination demanded linguistic innovation and
vice versa. Language and vision were entwined in a double helix
like a strand of DNA. Rather than opposite sides of the same
aesthetic coin, they represented complementary ways of processing
experience. So important were vision and expression to the vanguard
enterprise that this double quest soon became obligatory--an
"avant-garde imperative." Eager to attract attention, artists and
writers struggled to be on the cutting edge. Keen to impress
publishers, dealers, and colleagues, they dressed original ideas in
striking new clothes. The insights, impressions, and ideas
generated by contemporary technological developments demanded to be
expressed in a brand new language. As poets and painters strove to
create such a language, however, they discovered that this activity
also provided them with new insights, impressions, and ideas. By
expanding the ability of language to express the tremendous
complexity of modern life, they hoped to overcome this complexity
by inventing new ways of thinking about the world and of
interacting with it. To be sure, the search for an alternate means
of expression assumed many different guises over the years. Each of
the individuals examined in these pages struggled long and hard to
discover a suitable vehicle for his or her voice. Each searched for
a radical new art form that, in addition to expressing his or her
personal vision, would transform the way we view things. Besides
poets and painters, to be sure, the avant-garde included numerous
people associated with other disciplines. Dancers, choreographers,
musicians, composers, film makers, theater directors,
scenographers, art dealers, playwrights, actors, critics, and
publishers all contributed to the heady mix. While freely
acknowledging their important contributions, the present study
concentrates on art and literature, which, as the volume
demonstrates, evolved along parallel lines. Although writers and
artists mostly worked in radically different media, which partially
determined what they could accomplish, they shared the same goals.
In their quest for new domains to explore, they developed
anti-realistic strategies that would revolutionize modern
aesthetics. The Avant-Garde Imperative is an important volume for
anyone interested in modern aesthetics. It will appeal not only to
scholars of twentieth-century literature but also to those working
in the field of modern art.
Reading Apollinaire's Calligrammes examines Guillaume Apollinaire's
second major collection of poetry. Composed between 1913 and 1918,
the nineteen poems examined here fall into two main groups: the
experimental poetry and the war poetry. They also provide glimpses
of the poet's personal history, from his affair with Louise de
Coligny-Chatillon to his engagement to Madeleine Pages and his
marriage with Jacqueline Kolb. Each section examines all of the
previous scholarship for the work in question, provides a detailed
analysis, and, in many cases, offers a new interpretation. Each
poem is subjected to a meticulous line-by-line analysis in the
light of current knowledge.
Surrealist Poetry presents new English translations of nearly 150
poems alongside their original French and Spanish versions. Founded
by Andre Breton in 1924, Surrealism sought to examine the
unconscious realm by means of the written or spoken word. Seeking
to expand the ability of language to evoke irrational states and
improbable events, it consistently strove to transcend the
linguistic status quo. By stretching language to its limits and
beyond, the Surrealists transformed it into an instrument for
exploring the human psyche. The twenty-three poets in this
collection come not only from France, where Surrealism was
invented, but also from Spain, Belgium, Martinique, Mauritius,
Catalonia, Mexico, Chile, and Peru. Three of them were awarded the
Nobel Prize for Literature (Vicente Aleixandre, Pablo Neruda, and
Octavio Paz). Equipped with a critical introduction and a brief
bibliography, this anthology will appeal to anyone interested in
modern literature.
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