Les “Stances” d’Agrippa d’Aubigné ou la saison de la «disperata»

This essay traces the development of the disperata and its themes in Italy and their adoption and adaptation in France, where Agrippa d’Aubigné stands as its most remarkable and faithful interpreter. In his Stances in particular, he embraces its motifs with enthusiasm and vigor and creates original and skillful interpretations. Moreover, d’Aubigné replaces love with sophisticated nuances of despair, which are used as a defense mechanism. Indeed, since love can no longer nourish his poetry in the difficult historical and political circumstances of the end of the sixteenth century, despair becomes a more compelling lyrical inspiration. Despair turns out to be not only an attractive alternative to the beloved but also the only way to write and to survive

Art · Humanities · French Literature and Criticism · Medieval European Literature and History · Renaissance Literature and Culture