Great Liberty - Paperback
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Great Liberty by Julien Gracq - Surrealist Prose Poetry
A previously untranslated gem of Surrealist prose poetry from the acclaimed French novelist
In 1941, Julien Gracq, newly released from a German prisoner-of-war camp, wrote a series of prose poems that would come to represent the only properly Surrealist writings in his oeuvre. Surrealism provided Gracq with a means of counteracting his disturbing wartime experiences; his newfound freedom inspired a new freedom of personal expression, and he gave the collection an appropriate title, Great Liberty: "In the occult dictionary of Surrealism, the true name of poetry is liberation."
About This Collection
Gracq the poet rather than the novelist is at work here: Surrealist fireworks lace through bewitching modernist romance, fantasy, black humor and deadpan absurdism. This collection showcases a different side of the author known for dreamlike novels such as The Castle of Argol, A Dark Stranger, The Opposing Shore and Balcony in the Forest.
A later, postwar section entitled "The Habitable Earth" presents Gracq as visionary traveler exploring Andes and Flanders and returning to the narrative impulse of his better-known fiction. These prose poems blend experimental form with deeply personal reflection, offering readers insight into the author's creative process during one of history's most turbulent periods.
Julien Gracq (1910-2007), born Louis Poirier, was close to the Surrealist movement, and André Breton in particular, to whom he devoted a critical study. This collection represents his most direct engagement with Surrealist techniques and philosophy, making it essential reading for scholars and enthusiasts of French modernist literature.
Published by Wakefield Press in their ongoing effort to bring underground and avant-garde literature to English-speaking audiences, this translation finally makes these important works accessible beyond their original French publication.
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