Paul Valéry (1871–1945)

This anthology, in addition to a selection of poems, includes essays, two dialogues, and two selections from Monsieur Teste. The essays are perhaps the most accessible of all the selections. But all of Valery's prose and poetry is stunning and warrants rereading to approach a basic level of understanding.

I was most fascinated with his essay on "The Method of Leonardo". As he put it, he attempted to "go beyond indiscriminate admiration", but it would seem at least in part a form of hubris to show more be too critical in the case of Leonardo. He struggles to encompass the mind of Leonardo and determine the balance between art and science.

In "The Crisis of the Mind", written in 1919 in response to the Great War we find Valery saying, "And we now see that the abyss of history is deep enough to hold us all. We are aware that a civilization has the same fragility as a life." (p 94) With observations of equal profundity and sufficient poetry to tantalize the reader, this is a volume to be recommended. show less

A princípio seriam 24 poemas em prosa para as 24 horas e letras do alfabeto. Seguem a partir desse plano mais livremente, inacabadamente, e a relação com o material também é solta. Talvez essa postura mais sentimental, e a relação da escrita com o âmbito das sensações e de um pensamento que observa as sensações é o que me afasta.

Comprei o livro pela edição bilíngue, porque ando querendo ler mais em francês, mas não sou fluente o suficiente para enfrentar desamparado livros show more mais poeticamente complexos. show less

"Charmes," or "Spells" is a collection of poems by the French writer Paul Valéry, originally published in 1922. The work is famous for its meditation on death and for being a manifestation of Valéry's search for pure poetry, which recovers the rigor of verse and explores the relationship between language, nature, myth, and sensations. The influence of Charmes is notable in the Modernist school of poetry.

Really, I just want to quote, but it's worth noting that what other characters write about M. Teste is much more interesting than the texts attributed to Teste himself.

"Coming back to Monsieur Teste... a character of this kind could not survive in reality for more than a few quarters of an hour."

"He said in his low quick voice: 'Let them enjoy and obey!'"

"I sometimes amuse myself with an idea of our hearts borrowed from physics: they are made of an enormous injustice and a very small show more justice intimately combined."

"Simply remember that between men there are two relations only: logic or war."

"At the end of the mind, the body. But at the end of the body, the mind."

And so it goes on: intellectually difficult, beautifully expressed, all a fascinating experiment. show less