Maurice Nadeau (1911–2013)

Glad I read this; I learned a lot about surrealism's political side, and I'm actually a bit less enamored of it than I was before. Lost steam badly at the end, but, hey, so did surrealism.

Very comprehensive history of the movement largely based on the group's documents: manifestos, edicts, articles, and speeches. Unfortunately that means that the individual participants remain sketchy (Breton coming across the clearest) and there's next to nothing about the art. Still, an impressive feat, particularly since it came out in France in 1945, not the most amenable era for scholarly research.

Awarded the esteemed Paris Critics' Prize, this interesting account of Flaubert's life and his works (Bovary, Salammbo, Sentimental Education) is written by an authority on Flaubert. Maurice Nadeau edited the 18-volume edition of Flaubert's works, and he was one of the more perceptive critics of his day. He was editor of Les Lettres Nouvelles and La Quinzaine Litteraire. The book highlights Flaubert's life and works with a chronology of his life and selected bibliography.

La querelle Barthes Picard remue le landerneau littéraire parisien. Revel défend Picard et Finas Barthes.
Quand freudisme, marxisme et linguistique allaient devenir les trois mammelles de la critique littéraire et que d'aucuns voulaient que la littérature ne soit accessible qu'à travers des lunettes qu'ils étaient seuls à posséder et dont ils changeaient à loisir la focale.
Selon Lucette Finas, "La littérature n'est pas un hochet, ni une parure ni un miroir ; elle ne fait pas la show more leçon, elle ne cherche pas l'homme sous l'auteur ; elle n'est pas un moyen, ni un instrument. La littérature ne veut plus 'dépendre'. Elle réclame son statut. Elle se veut."
Bref lecteur passe ton chemin et laisse la littérature aux "structuralistes". show less