André Robert Breton (19 February 1896 – 28 September 1966) was a French writer and poet, the co-founder, leader, and principal theorist of surrealism. His writings include the first Surrealist Manifesto (Manifeste du surréalisme) of 1924, in which he defined surrealism as “pure psychic automatism.”
Along with his role as leader of the surrealist movement he is the author of celebrated books such as Nadja and L’Amour fou. Those activities, combined with his critical and theoretical work on writing and the plastic arts, made André Breton a major figure in twentieth-century French art and literature.
(Wikipedia)
Breton’s Flirtation with Madness
We are challenged to impose some sense on the disorder the book shows us, through either analysis or fiction, but also to postpone that sense-making, to live (however briefly) with the unexpected contingencies of modern life.
Breton Videos
Surrealism in 5 Minutes: Idea Behind the Art Movement:
Lit chat – Nadja by André Breton – book ‘review’:
Nadja – Andre Breton BOOK REVIEW:
- Burgin, Victor. “Chance Encounters: Flâneur and Détraquée in Breton’s Nadja.” Qui Parle 4.1 (Fall 1990): 47-61.
- Cardinal, Roger. “Nadja and Breton.” University of Toronto Quarterly 41.3 (Spring 1972): 185-199.
- Dalí, Salvador. The Secret Life of Salvador Dalí. Trans. Haakon M. Chevalier. New York: Dial, 1942.
- Devereux Herbeck, Mariah. “André Breton’s Nadja: A Vagabonde in a Femme Fatale’s Narrative.” Dalhousie French Studies 82 (Spring 2008): 163-171.
- Foucault, Michel. The History of Sexuality. Volume 1: An Introduction. Trans. Robert Hurley. New York: Pantheon, 1978.
- Papalas, Marylaura."Léona Delcourt and Suzanne Muzard: A Gendered Perspective on Flânerie". Dada/Surrealism 22 (November 2018): 1-12.
- Polizzotti, Mark. “Introduction.” Nadja. By André Breton. London: Penguin, 1999. ix-xxvii.
- -----. Revolution of the Mind: The Life of André Breton. Revised and updated ed. Boston, MA: Black Widow, 2009.
- Silveri, Rachel. “Être-objets and objets-êtres: Picasso’s Le Verre d’absinthe (1914) and Surrealism.” Picasso’s Sculpture. Museum Research Consortium Dossier 2. New York: Museum of Modern Art, 2017. 25-30.
Breton and Nadja repeatedly meet in bars and cafés—their relationship takes place almost entirely in public, on the streets of Paris or on an excursion to the outlying town of Saint-Germain—but we are not told what they eat or drink. By the early twentieth century, however, one drink very much associated with Paris’s Bohemian demi-monde was absinthe: an anise-flavoured spirit whose ingredients include extracts from the wormwood plant. Such was the drink’s reputation, thanks to its clientele and rumours of its hallucinogenic effects, that by the 1920s it was banned in much of Europe (including France), as well as in the United States. Such prohibition only added to its mystique, and in 1936 Breton included a Picasso sculpture of an absinthe glass (Le Verre d’absinthe of 1914) in a catalogue of “surrealist objects” (Silveri, “Être-objets and objets-êtres”). Picasso’s sculpture would not hold a drink—one side is open to the world—but it is a reminder of the Surrealist impulse to find in everyday things, perhaps under the influence of wormwood and alcohol, inspiration for aesthetic experimentation.
Breton Resources
Léona Camille Ghislaine Delcourt (1902-1941), the woman on whom Breton based Nadja:
The image of Delcourt’s eyes, which was included in the revised (1963) edition of Nadja:
For more on Delcourt, see Marylaura Papalas, “Léona Delcourt and Suzanne Muzard: A Gendered Perspective on Flânerie”. Dada/Surrealism 22 (November 2018): 1-12.
Breton Questions
- The book opens with the question: “Who am I?” By the end of the book, do we have a better sense of who Breton is?
- And Nadja… do we come to understand her and why she acts/thinks the way she does?
- What attracts Breton to Nadja?
- What attracts Nadja to Breton?
- Arguably, Paris is also a character in this novel. What do we learn about the city?
- Why is Nadja institutionalized at the end of the novel?
- Why does Breton not try to save her?
- What is “Surreal” in this novel? What do we learn of Surrealism from it?
- What is the role of the photographs and illustrations in the book?
- What do you make, more specifically, of the drawings by Nadja?
The following questions are taken from your blog posts…
Nadja
One question I would like to post about the novel is Nadja’s answer “I am the soul in limbo.” What is your interpretation of this answer about who Nadja is, and how does it contribute to the surrealistic atmosphere in the novel?
Did the protagonist of the story, Nadja really exist or was she just portrayed as a simple, innocent girl with hardships and difficulties?
Narratively, what do you think Nadja’s role in this book is? Was she simply a woman who he could connect with who wasn’t his wife? Or perhaps did she serve a purpose in the fundamental character of Breton?
What did you think of the portrayal of Nadja? Did she remind you of any female love interests in popular media?
Nadja defines her name as “the beginning of the word hope, and because it’s only the beginning” (p. 66). What do you think is the significance of this definition? How does it support the themes of the book, including surrealism?
How did the ambiguity surrounding Nadja’s presence further blur the lines between reality and imagination?
Do you think that Nadja was a real person or was she rather a means for Breton to explore surrealism and himself?
How does Nadja’s peculiar attitude to life challenges society standards, and what does it it reveal about Breton’s own romantic aspirations and expectations in the realm of love?
Breton
Do you think the author really loved Nadja? Why or why not?
Would Breton be surprised by our lack of progress, or would it align with his expectations of the future? What do you all think? Further, “who are we” to have allowed this to happen and to allow it to persist?
How do we think Nadja would describe our narrator? He too seems like an odd character.
Does Breton’s view of Nadja have roots in misogyny and could it possibly be that he romanticized her madness and viewed her as only something her could use to further himself on his self-enlightenment journey?
What do you think the author learned about himself at the end of this relationship? Was writing this novel truly therapeutic, and a successful exercise at self-discovery?
What do you think of Breton as a person after reading the novel? Is he an unpleasant character?
What made Breton and Nadja attract each other? Was Nadja using Breton to cure her loneliness?
Relationship(s)
Do you think Breton took advantage of Nadja? Did their relationship ever have mutual love for each other, or was it one sided?
Do you believe Breton could have found any sense of self in Nadja initially or do you believe this affair just made him worse off?
Do you think Breton mistook his obsession for love? And does obsession ever equate to love or is it love misconstrued in its most unhealthy form?
Where do we draw the line between loving something or someone and being obsessed with them?
After reading Breton’s cautionary tale with surrealism, where would you place yourself in terms of your relationship with surrealist ideals and moreover surrealist art and literature?
What is the nature of the relationship between Brenton and his wife? How do you think his wife viewed Nadja?
What do you think about the relationship between the narrator and Nadja? Would you agree on my take of the narrator’s self-importance, or did you view it differently?
Do you think this truly was a love story, or was Breton just infatuated with Nadja due to his interests and curiosities?
The Images
What would be your interpretation of these images/illustrations in Nadja?
Do you believe the images shown throughout the book had any major significance or symbolism besides just representing what’s written in the text?
The novel emphasizes the distinct configuration of “Nadja” and draws comparisons with children’s books, in which graphics hold an important place. How does “Nadja”‘s use of images evoke feelings of familiarity or nostalgia for books read as children? Can you identify specific aspects that resonate with your own memories of illustrated books?
Was there a specific illustration that caught your attention among all the comparisons and illustrations that Andre provided?
Dreams
What elements of this book stuck out to you as the most dreamlike?
Other
Do you think freedom needs to be controlled, or even confiscated, just like Nadja?
What themes other than surrealism were present in the book?
What are some clues that hint to what happens to Nadja at the end of the story?
What is something you’re actively afraid of, but are willing to give a shot?
Is the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope ever redeemable or used well? What’s an example?
Is there a line between being infatuated with love and obsession? What do you think differentiates the two?
Do you feel that Breton’s writing style and strange divisions of narrative added or subtracted from your comprehension and enjoyment of the text?
Were the surreal elements in « Nadja » relatable or too abstract? How did Breton’s narrative style shape your understanding and enjoyment of the book?
The novel greatly emphasizes the idea of how to understand someone. So, in your opinion what is the best way to understand a person?
I think we can all agree this book is not a novel, if you had to describe it, what would you say it is? Would you consider it to be a romance book? A surrealist romance book?
Where do you see yourself if being in a state of limbo was a scale?
