Michel Deguy, Translation, and the Primary Chiasmus

This essay studies Michel Deguy’s theorization of the primary chiasmus as a gift-like exchange between language and being with a particular focus on how the primary chiasmus reveals the profound interconnectedness of poetry and translation. Additionally, this essay reevaluates Deguy’s skeptical and manifestly pessimistic critique of the ubiquitous and inescapable control of “le culturel” or mass-media culture, specifically with concern to technology and its effects on language, or logos.