Understanding French Poetry: Essays for a New Millennium

In an era of declining interest in poetry studies, this collection of essays provides the groundwork for understanding how and why French verse has been overshadowed by prose at the dawn of the new millennium. Although poetry has not declined in terms ot quality or quantity, its role within the French literary tradition has markedly diminished. This volume specifically addresses the issue of why French poetry has suffered a loss of prestige in the English speaking world and examines the three major causes of this fall from grace. Written by some of the foremost scholars of French poetry, the essays embrace a wide spectrum of topics such as versification, interpretation, translation, typography, canonization, politics, and gender. Highly recommended for the scholar and advanced undergraduate or graduate student. The book was originally published in a slightly different form by Garland Press.