Twentieth-Century French Poetry: A Critical Anthology (review)

The format adopted in this presentation of the French poetic century just past is that of a single poetic text (on occasion an extract from a longer piece) by each of thirty-two featured poets, followed by a critical discussion of the text that engages (variably) both in close reading and in the broader problematics and contexts of the individual poet's work. The anthology is divided into four sections, which function both chronologically, in that they partly follow on one from the other, but also meta-poetically. Thus an opening selection on 'Traditions and modernisms' groups seven poets from Valéry to Senghor, and is followed by a section on 'Avant-gardes' that presents works from a number of major Surrealists as well as Reverdy and Michaux (among others). 'Poetics of presence' includes key figures of the post-1945 generation such as Bonnefoy (who also provides a tonic Foreword to the anthology), Jaccottet, and Dupin, and a concluding, larger section introduces 'New voices, new visions', ranging from Michel Deguy to Pierre Alferi. The selection of poets is necessarily canonical in large part, given the overall scope of the work. The scarcity of female voices, an oft-lamented feature of successive states of the twentieth-century champ poétique, is in negative evidence in this anthology also. There is relatively less conventionality in the line-up of the final section, which includes excursions into self-translated work (Nguyên-Hòang Bao Viêt's 'Anne Frank') and indeed into the current century (Gérard Titus-Carmel's 'Or battant …' from Seul tenant (2006)). The choice of individual works provides more room for manoeuvre, in a sense, and even those widely-read across the poetry of the century may encounter here writing that is unfamiliar and engaging. The accompanying essays, by seasoned commentators of the poets they discuss, are generally both thought-provoking and informative on their chosen works. The editors have taken the step of including, in English translation, a number of commentaries by noted French poet-critics such as Béatrice Bonhomme and Jean-Michel Maulpoix. This ecumenical gesture enhances the organic nature of a dialogue continued here between French- and English-language thinking on poetic practice in French over the last century. That said, the primary emphasis throughout is on maintaining a balance between insight and accessibility, making the anthology recommendable without reservation to readers (with French) who are new to the subject. Sound bibliographical details at the end of each piece, and in conclusion, also make the anthology a useful and up-to-date source for more experienced explorers of the subject. Key to the volume's self-conception is its commitment (articulated in Hugues Azérad's General Introduction) to a view of poetry as an enriching, future-tending textual presence. 'Critical' in the sense of practising creative and questioning engagement with its chosen texts, the anthology is clearly also committed to the poetic as a durable value and open principle in contemporary French-language culture. The readings act cumulatively to establish this implicit continuity with current experiences and concerns, successfully conveying the sense that twentieth-century poetry in French (incidentally — a possible alternative remit of the work in hand, or that of a future, expanded anthology?) remains a critical presence for poetry's ongoing self-realization and differential engagement with the present day.