Edinburgh University Press Mallarmeand the Politics of Literature: Sartre, Kristeva, Badiou, Ranciere (Crosscurrents)

Recounts the radical readings of Mallarme's seminal poems by some of France's most important 20th century thinkersWhy is Stephane Mallarme, one of modernity's most ingenious yet obscure poets, so important to French philosophers? With in-depth studies of Jean-Paul Sartre, Julia Kristeva, Alain Badiou and Jacques Ranciere, along with shorter analyses of Jean-Claude Milner and Quentin Meillassoux, Boncardo situates Mallarme within these thinkers' philosophical and political projects.Key FeaturesExplains different thinkers' distinct approaches to Mallarme's poetry and prose, in particular to their political significanceReflects on the various ways literature has been conceived of politically by French thinkersThe first work of English-language scholarship on each of these thinker's reading of Mallarme and the first work to read each of these thinkers in tandem, locating their points of contact and difference From the Inside Flap The name Mallarmé has become a tool for the praise and condemnation of poetry. In French philosophy, he is associated with the intoxicating idea of poetry as politically efficacious, and the counter-charge of effete elitism. In this lively and impressive re-telling, we see how this poet becomes a magnet for a stunning cascade of delirious praise and vilification. Robert Boncardo convincingly shows that despite the insights of the French obsession with Mallarmé, we need new ways to formulate the links between politics and literature.Alison Ross, Monash University.Robert Boncardo investigates how Stéphane Mallarmé, one of modernitys most ingenious yet obscure poets, became an object of major political significance for French intellectuals.With in-depth studies of Jean-Paul Sartre, Julia Kristeva, Alain Badiou and Jacques Rancière, along with shorter analyses of Jean-Claude Milner and Quentin Meillassoux, Boncardo situates Mallarmé within the philosophical and political projects of some of Frances greatest thinkers.He asks how this most refined and seemingly aristocratic of poets became the writer of choice for leftist intellectuals and reflects on the ambivalent relation between literature and its political destiny in modernity.Robert Boncardo is a tutor at Sydney University. He completed his doctorate in French Studies at the University of Sydney and Aix-Marseille Université.Cover image: iStockphoto.com and text from Mallarmé's Notes en vue du 'Livre'Cover design:[EUP logo]edinburghuniversitypress.comISBN [PPC] 978-1-4744-2952-8Barcode From the Back Cover 'The name Mallarmé has become a tool for the praise and condemnation of poetry. In French philosophy, he is associated with the intoxicating idea of poetry as politically efficacious, and the counter-charge of effete elitism. In this lively and impressive re-telling, we see how this poet becomes a magnet for a stunning cascade of delirious praise and vilification. Robert Boncardo convincingly shows that despite the insights of the French obsession with Mallarmé, we need new ways to formulate the links between politics and literature.' Alison Ross, Monash University. Robert Boncardo investigates how Stéphane Mallarmé, one of modernity's most ingenious yet obscure poets, became an object of major political significance for French intellectuals. With in-depth studies of Jean-Paul Sartre, Julia Kristeva, Alain Badiou and Jacques Rancière, along with shorter analyses of Jean-Claude Milner and Quentin Meillassoux, Boncardo situates Mallarmé within the philosophical and political projects of some of France's greatest thinkers. He asks how this most refined and seemingly aristocratic of poets became the writer of choice for leftist intellectuals and reflects on the ambivalent relation between literature and its political destiny in modernity. Robert Boncardo is a tutor at Sydney University. He completed his doctorate in French Studies at the University of Sydney and Aix-Marseille Université. Cover image: iStockphoto.com and text