Love of life and aversion to the flesh
In the late Middle ages, the poetics of death is very well developed. There are picturesque image of death particularly the death of egalitarian: whoever you were, señor influential or poor, in the end you will be nothing but bones and dust. The same motifs are present in philosophy, which is based on the text written in the late twelfth century by the future Pope innocent III, "On contempt for the world or the insignificance of the human condition" ("De miseria humanae conditionis"). Innocent writes about the aversion to the flesh of teeming worms, decomposition and so on.
Villon also depicts death, he has an excellent description of the agonizing, and often say that Villon is a poet of death. But he had no aversion to flesh. In one place he found the verb "to rot", but in a very beautiful formulation: "VUT Mieux vivre sous gros bureau / Pauvre, qu avoir été seigneur / Et pourrir sous riche tombeau!".
I think Villon attracts not death but life. In his poetry found the motive of the transition from death to life. Researchers often say that it's ironic. In my opinion, it is something more: Villon wants to obtain the assumption of the body, like the virgin; he wants the body was not destroyed death and has passed from death to life. Therefore, in my view, correct to speak of Villon, not only as a poet of death, but also as a poet of life.
As Villon plays "great rhetoric"
Villon writes at the same time with the poets, who are called "great rhetoric". This court poets who turn to the stilted wording, talking about the great events complex language and use highly complex stylistic figures and poetic form.
It amazes me that Villon wrote is very simple: easier to get. In addition, Rondo, and especially ballad in this era very well designed shape. However, he is fluent in the language of the great rhetoric and uses it for entertainment. For example, in "Ballads on a color jargon" is the string "Joncheurs jonchans en joncherie" literally "trickery, rogues”. ("Cheating, clinging skokie Il Tira" in translation). Such stylistic figure could only use "Grand rhetoric".
Another important aspect of the poetics of Villon is the rhythm. He uses this technique as unmatched rhythmic pause at the end of the row with a logical break, for example at the end of sentences. As a result, the background simple occurs broken syntax which makes the poetry of Villon alive. Villon is not aloof from the poetic movements of his time, he owns the poetic form and the poetry of the force of the verse.
On the one hand, he speaks of the "lyrical hermaphroditism" Villon. This is a subtle wording. Mandelstam saw in his poetry, Villon projecting himself as the male and female characters: it can be a Great Slimnica, and maybe a clerk at her bed, ready to write her will.
On the other hand, Mandelstam compares Villon a Verlaine, less original, because since the XIX century all in a row. Paraphrasing Verlaine, Mandelstam writes: "Movement first" ("Du mouvement avant toute chose") Verlaine, this phrase sounds so: "Music before all things" ("De la musique avant toute chose"). Mandelstam saw in the poetry of Villon is the liveliness, the movement. That is why Villon is not only a poet of death. For example, in "Ballad of the hanged" it is on behalf of themselves hanged. One could say that it's bleak, but here the bodies are shaken: "And we are rocking back and forth by the winds" ("Puis ça, puis la, comme le vent varie"). That is, to Villon, and in death there is life, there is movement, there is wind. And he embodies this idea in the present series. Mandelstam noted that: the movement first of all this is the poetry of Villon.
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