SOURCE: The Inner Theatre of French Poetry: Cendrars, Tzara, Péret, Artaud, Bonnefoy, Princeton University Press, 1972, pp. 75–105.

In the following excerpt, Caws discusses Péret's poetry as it embodies Surrealist ideals, such as his use of a “language of abundance and explosion.” Caws also examines the ways in which his works stand out among surrealists, such as the uniquely “epic gesture” of some of his poetry.

1. a Language of Explosion

Faithful to the surrealist movement until his death, Péret has often been considered the most remarkable poet of that movement, its ideal spokesman of spontaneity. He is known for his unrelenting defense of human liberty against what he calls its clerical and capitalist oppressors, his constant testimonies to the idea of an amour sublime, and especially for the easy brilliance of his poetic imagery. The most direct of all the surrealist poets, he casually displays the effortless...