Michaux l'insaisissable: socioanalyse d'une entrée en littérature (review)

This ambitious and rigorous study on the first twenty years of Henri Michaux's literary output looks set to shake up criticism on the 'double artist', currently the most studied poet in France (p. 15). In the introduction, Vrydaghs succinctly outlines his sociological approach, heavily influenced by the work of Pierre Bourdieu. As a starting premise, he states that Michaux has often been (and still is) deemed an unclassifiable creator. This book's aim is to shatter this unlikely myth and to place him instead in a literary context. Vrydaghs sets out to establish how and why Michaux created his stance within the Belgian and French literary scenes and how and why he often contributed to this myth-making process. The book is divided into two chronological parts: the first is concerned with Michaux's early forays into the literary and intellectual world before his reputation as a writer was established; the second focuses on the period from 1940 to 1944 when he had to reposition himself in response to events in the outside world. In the first section, the impact of Michaux's Belgian education and upbringing on his literary approach is examined. Vrydaghs discusses how the poet experimented with travel writing and essay form to find his place and to invent himself as a writer. At this stage, he identifies this image as '[un] poète médiocre, maudit et mystique' (p. 71) and not a Surrealist because of his lack of political engagement and his obsession with the unwell body as a site of experimentation. Vrydaghs suggests that Michaux oriented his writing towards prose to obtain a contract with Gallimard and to confirm his reputation as a promising young writer. In the second section, the critic analyses in exemplary fashion the impact of the Second World War on the French literary scene. He examines the difficulties in understanding Michaux's relationship to the war, the Occupation and the Resistance and how he encouraged this confusion. The author discusses the poet's departure for Garabagne and how these tales from imaginary lands and his other contemporary publications bear witness to the times. He also highlights André Gide's and Maurice Blanchot's critical engagement with Michaux's work as crucial in establishing his enigmatic reputation. In convincing fashion, Vrydaghs concludes that, rather than being a solitary iconoclast, Michaux tried and succeeded in carving his own niche in the contemporary literary establishment. This monograph is an important and necessary contribution to Michaux studies; some reservations persist, however. Firstly, there is little mention of Michaux's important artistic activity. Secondly, Vrydaghs's socio-analytical approach lacks subtlety when it comes to textual analysis, for example, some comments about the importance given to literary form by Michaux are unconvincing (e.g. p. 64 or p. 99). Thirdly, the author is dismissive of other critics who have produced nuanced analyses of Michaux's texts, when his own study would complement and inform many of these close readings. Despite these caveats, Vrydaghs's study would lend itself well to a second volume, continuing this socio-historical analysis of Michaux's literary production.