Poetry
Stances et Poèmes
Not translated into English
Sully Prudhomme · 1865
Synopsis
The author's first collection, the book gathers stanzas and short poems, intimate and melancholy, nourished in part by a disappointment in love. The poet meditates on love and its wounds, with restrained sensibility and constant care for form. It includes Le Vase brisé, in which a vase struck by a light blow slowly lets its water leak out, an image of the wounded heart.
Context
The collection, the author's first book, appeared in 1865; Sainte-Beuve praised it, which established the poet's reputation. It contains Le Vase brisé, which became his most famous poem, in which a heartbreak is figured by a cracked vase. These early verses, personal and melancholy, precede the author's turn towards a philosophical and scientific poetry, committed to the formal perfection dear to the Parnassians.
Who it is for
Short, accessible poems, in a classical and regular form, which can be read separately.
Prizes and reception
The collection that made its author known, the future Nobel laureate of 1901; Gallica offers the digitised text.
Sources for this page 8
The pages consulted to check this page.