French Literature Reviews - 2026
The Presence of Jaccottet
Poetry and Poetics
20/03/07: book received, awaiting a reviewer for Acta Fabula
For half a century, Philippe Jaccottet has embraced the poetic task of a spokesperson. Through his translations, his critical essays—scattered across various notebooks or gathered into volumes—and his poetic writings, he tirelessly shifts and revitalizes literary genres. From text to text, intersecting the voices of multiple authors, Jaccottet evokes, in his distinctive phrasing that combines verse and prose, fresh polyphonies, thereby paving future pathways for "secret transactions." Year after year, Jaccottet's writing redraws the absent, yet all the more exemplary, figure of the poet.
Pierre Brunel, Philippe Jaccottet ou l'impossible requiem. Françoise Rouffiat, De la poésie comme prière. Bruno Blanckeman, Liminaires, lapidaires. Jean-Claude Mathieu, Écriture et inscription. Patrick Née, Réparer. Marie-Annick Gervais-Zaninger, Corps et poésie. Nicholas Manning, La Ville onirique. Françoise Chenet, Les leçons du verger. Fabien Vasseur, Chouettes et hiboux. Michèle Monte, La métaphore chez Philippe Jaccottet. Dominique Kuntz, L'image-mobile. Christine Lombez...
Présence de Jaccottet, essays collected by Pierre Jourde, Catherine Langle, Dominique Massonaud, Kimé, 2007.
ISBN 9782841744206
Price incl. VAT €26.00
Philippe Jaccottet occupies a place in contemporary French literature, known for a body of work that frequently blurs the boundaries between verse and prose. His career is marked by a persistent engagement with translation and critical essay writing alongside his own poetic output. By integrating the voices of various authors and exploring the intersections of different literary genres, his writing style revitalizes traditional forms. This collection of essays, Présence de Jaccottet, addresses the work of the poet.
The contributors to this volume examine aspects of Jaccottet's writing, including his use of metaphor, the representation of the body, and the presence of urban landscapes. The essays discuss his critical reflections and poetic techniques, as well as themes of nature and the act of writing. Readers interested in the evolution of twentieth-century French poetry and the intersections of translation and creative practice may find these critical perspectives relevant to their study of the author.