An Interview with Paul Auster

Nathalie Cochoy: One of my fields of interest is New York, and the representation of walking in New York.When thinking about the art of walking, I often think of Thoreau and his concept of "sauntering."In "Walking," Thoreau simultaneously associates the French etymology of the word "sauntering" with a loss-être sans terre-and a form of pilgrimagealler à sainte terre.You also seem to consider getting lost as a means of finding yourself.In The Invention of Solitude, you recall your enjoyment at being lost in the maze of Amsterdam.I also remember these ambivalent lines in one of your poems: "A footstep / gives ground," evoking a form of relinquishment and a form of birth.Is this something you often experience?Is walking a means of returning to the origins of your art?SV: So how do you consider those three volumes in your work?Do they constitute a special group of works in your eyes?PA: Well, actually, there are five of them, The Invention of Solitude, Hand to Mouth, The Red Notebook, the complete one with the four sections, and then the last two, Winter Journal and Report from the Interior.There are five autobiographical works in all

Etymology · Representation · Cultural Insights and Digital Impacts

• Réception et traduction de l’œuvre de Paul Auster en France

  Anne‐laure Tissut, Anne-Laure Tissut et al.•Revue française d’études…•2026

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