Marcel Raymond
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Marcel Raymond (December 20, 1897 in
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
– November 28, 1981 in Geneva) was a
Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...
literary critic Literary criticism (or literary studies) is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of literature's goals and methods. Th ...
who specialized in
French literature French literature () generally speaking, is literature written in the French language, particularly by citizens of France; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of France other than Fr ...
. He is generally grouped with the so-called "
Geneva School The expression Geneva School refers to (1) a group of linguists based in Geneva who pioneered modern structural linguistics and (2) a group of literary theorists and critics working from a phenomenological perspective. Geneva School of Linguisti ...
".


Biography

Marcel Raymond first studied in Geneva, and then moved to France to study at the
Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...
in Paris under the scholars
Henri Chamard Henri is an Estonian, Finnish, French, German and Luxembourgish form of the masculine given name Henry. People with this given name ; French noblemen :'' See the ' List of rulers named Henry' for Kings of France named Henri.'' * Henri I de Mont ...
(a specialist in
La Pléiade La Pléiade () was a group of 16th-century French Renaissance poets whose principal members were Pierre de Ronsard, Joachim du Bellay and Jean-Antoine de Baïf. The name was a reference to another literary group, the original Alexandrian Pleiad ...
) and Abel Lefranc. He received his doctorate in 1927 with a dissertation on the influence of
Pierre de Ronsard Pierre de Ronsard (; 11 September 1524 – 27 December 1585) was a French poet or, as his own generation in France called him, a "prince of poets". Early life Pierre de Ronsard was born at the Manoir de la Possonnière, in the village of C ...
on
French poetry French poetry () is a category of French literature. It may include Francophone poetry composed outside France and poetry written in other languages of France. French prosody and poetics The modern French language does not have a significant st ...
(1550–1585); published shortly after, the work has become a classic (it was republished in 1965). Raymond's subsequent study of French poetry from the end of the nineteenth century to the beginning of the twentieth – ''De
Baudelaire Charles Pierre Baudelaire (, ; ; 9 April 1821 – 31 August 1867) was a French poet who also produced notable work as an essayist and art critic. His poems exhibit mastery in the handling of rhyme and rhythm, contain an exoticism inherited fro ...
au surréalisme'' (1933) – brought him universal critical praise. In it he developed the idea that poetry is a fully engaged act and that a poem should be appreciated as an organic production that requires an intimate act of reading. Raymond taught at the
University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 Decemb ...
, at the
University of Basel The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis'', German: ''Universität Basel'') is a university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest surviving universit ...
and, in 1936, succeeded Albert Thibaudet at the
University of Geneva The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology until the 17th centu ...
, where he would stay until his retirement in 1962. At Geneva, he became friends with Georges Poulet and Albert Béguin, and along with
Jean Starobinski Jean Starobinski (17 November 1920 – 4 March 2019) was a Swiss literary critic. Biography Starobinski was born in Geneva in 1920, the son of Jewish physicians Aron Starobinski of Warsaw and Sulka Frydman of Lublin. Both his parents left ...
and
Jean Rousset Jean Rousset (20 February 1910 – 15 September 2002) was a Switzerland, Swiss literary criticism, literary critic who worked on French literature, and in particular on Baroque literature of the late French Renaissance literature, Renaissance a ...
they formed the core of what would come to be called the
Geneva School The expression Geneva School refers to (1) a group of linguists based in Geneva who pioneered modern structural linguistics and (2) a group of literary theorists and critics working from a phenomenological perspective. Geneva School of Linguisti ...
of literary criticism. During the Second World War, Raymond lost his father and several friends (including Benjamin Crémieux who died in a
concentration camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simply ...
), but he poured himself into essays, critical editions and anthologies on
Montesquieu Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (; ; 18 January 168910 February 1755), generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher. He is the principa ...
,
Agrippa d'Aubigné Théodore-Agrippa d'Aubigné (, 8 February 155229 April 1630) was a French poet, soldier, propagandist and chronicler. His epic poem ''Les Tragiques'' (1616) is widely regarded as his masterpiece. In a book about his Catholic contemporary Jean de ...
,
Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...
and
Paul Valéry Ambroise Paul Toussaint Jules Valéry (; 30 October 1871 – 20 July 1945) was a French poet, essayist, and philosopher. In addition to his poetry and fiction (drama and dialogues), his interests included aphorisms on art, history, letters, mus ...
. After the war, this work continued on
Pierre Bayle Pierre Bayle (; 18 November 1647 – 28 December 1706) was a French philosopher, author, and lexicographer. A Huguenot, Bayle fled to the Dutch Republic in 1681 because of religious persecution in France. He is best known for his '' Historica ...
,
Pierre de Ronsard Pierre de Ronsard (; 11 September 1524 – 27 December 1585) was a French poet or, as his own generation in France called him, a "prince of poets". Early life Pierre de Ronsard was born at the Manoir de la Possonnière, in the village of C ...
,
Arthur Rimbaud Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud (, ; 20 October 1854 – 10 November 1891) was a French poet known for his transgressive and surreal themes and for his influence on modern literature and arts, prefiguring surrealism. Born in Charleville, he starte ...
,
Paul Verlaine Paul-Marie Verlaine (; ; 30 March 1844 – 8 January 1896) was a French poet associated with the Symbolist movement and the Decadent movement. He is considered one of the greatest representatives of the ''fin de siècle'' in international and ...
, Senancour,
Baudelaire Charles Pierre Baudelaire (, ; ; 9 April 1821 – 31 August 1867) was a French poet who also produced notable work as an essayist and art critic. His poems exhibit mastery in the handling of rhyme and rhythm, contain an exoticism inherited fro ...
, etc. But the majority of his post-war work was focused on
Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...
, and he was asked to participate with Bernard Gagnebin on the critical edition of Rousseau's works for the
Bibliothèque de la Pléiade The ''Bibliothèque de la Pléiade'' (, "Pleiades Library") is a French editorial collection which was created in 1931 by Jacques Schiffrin, an independent young editor. Schiffrin wanted to provide the public with reference editions of the c ...
. His 1955 book, ''Baroque et renaissance poétique'' would complete his work on 16th and 17th century poetry. In 1962 he retired from teaching. His wife died in 1963. His later work comprises both poetry (''Poèmes pour l'absente'' dedicated to his wife), autobiographical works (''Le Sel et la cendre'', ''Souvenirs d'un enfant sage''), fragments of a diary (''Le Trouble et la présence'', ''Écrit au crépuscule''), philosophical reflection (''Par-delà les eaux sombres''), literary theory (''Vérité et poésie'', ''Être et dire'') and studies on Senancour, Fénelon and
Jacques Rivière Jacques Rivière (15 July 1886 – 14 February 1925) was a French "man of letters" — a writer, critic and editor who was "a major force in the intellectual life of France in the period immediately following World War I". He edited the ...
. In all of his work on French poetry and on Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the fundamental principle of Raymond's approach was a focus on the ways literature comes out of a contemplative discovery of the self within the world.


Works

* 1928 – ''Ronsard's influence on French poetry (1550–1585)'' (republished 1965) * 1933 – ''De Baudelaire au surréalisme'' (republished 1940) * 1942 – ''Génies de France'' (anthology) * 1945 – ''Paul Valéry et la tentation de l'esprit'' (essay) (reedited 1964) * 1948 – ''Le Sens de la qualité'' * 1952 – ''Anthologie de la nouvelle française'' (anthology) * 1955 – ''Baroque et renaissance poétique'' * 1964 – ''Vérité et poésie'' * 1967 – ''Fénelonhfcxdugh'' * 1968 – with J.A. Steele, ''La poésie française et le maniérisme, 1546–1610'' (anthology) * 1970 – ''Être et dire'' * 1970 – ''Le Sel et la cendre'' (autobiographical * 1971 – ''Mémorial'' José Corti * Correspondence with Georges Poulet (1950–1977) * 1975 – ''Par-delà les eaux sombres'' * 1976 – ''Souvenirs d'un enfant sage'' (autobiography) * 1977 – ''Le Trouble et la présence'' * 1980 – ''Écrit au crépuscule''


See also

*
Structuralism In sociology, anthropology, archaeology, history, philosophy, and linguistics, structuralism is a general theory of culture and methodology that implies that elements of human culture must be understood by way of their relationship to a broader ...
*
New Criticism New Criticism was a formalist movement in literary theory that dominated American literary criticism in the middle decades of the 20th century. It emphasized close reading, particularly of poetry, to discover how a work of literature functioned as ...


References

* This article is based on the biographic portrait of Marcel Raymond at the ''Académie Royale de Langue et de Littérature Françaises'' of Belgium (see below).


External links


Marcel Raymond
on the Académie royale de langue et de littérature françaises of
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
(in French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Raymond, Marcel 1897 births 1981 deaths Writers from Geneva Swiss literary critics Members of the Académie royale de langue et de littérature françaises de Belgique Swiss male writers