French Literature Reviews - 2026

B. Andréo, Artaud and Breton Confronting the Sacred
Poetry and Poetics

Benjamin Andréo, Artaud et Breton face au sacré

Paris: Hermann

2011, 306 pages

• ISBN: 9782705680992
• Price: 30 euros

Publisher's overview

Antonin Artaud and André Breton: two leading voices of modern thought, two figures whose impact has been fundamental to the development of 20th- and 21st-century artistic, literary, and critical fields. Two distinct paths: the differences that divided them were too deep, not to say too numerous. Yet their trajectories continually intersected, and their voices echoed one another, carrying on a dialogue across the years that began during Artaud's collaboration with the Surrealist group. At the heart of these exchanges lies a religious question whose role is still too often overlooked. The writings of Artaud and Breton offer two distinct yet complementary examples of how the concept of the sacred is defined and utilized. In the context of 20th-century secularization, how—starting from identical premises (a recognition of religion's failure and inadequacy)—did these two poets confront the problem of meaning? Their approach stems from a desire to "strip the sacred clean," cleansing it of conventional religiosity while simultaneously revitalizing both the word and the concept. Thus, Artaud and Breton sought to reconnect with a modern sense of the sacred that would become a driving force in their poetics. Through analyses grounded in figures central to the writings of Artaud and Breton (sphinxes, masks, mummies, ghosts), this study examines the modalities of this redefinition, ultimately uncovering why poetry was chosen as a space in which to investigate and practice a modern form of sacrality. In doing so, it restores the sacred to its rightful place within the writings of these poets and within their respective poetic programs.

Benjamin Andréo is a Senior Lecturer at Aberystwyth University (Wales), where he teaches French language and literature.

Surrealism emerged in the early twentieth century as a powerful force challenging conventional bourgeois values and traditional religious institutions. While André Breton guided the movement's core doctrines, Antonin Artaud's brief yet intense collaboration with the Surrealist group marked the beginning of a complex, lifelong intellectual dialogue between the two thinkers. Despite their deep personal and philosophical differences, both writers faced a rapidly secularizing world where traditional religious frameworks seemed increasingly inadequate. This shared crisis of meaning led them to confront the problem by attempting to cleanse the sacred of conventional religiosity and revitalize the concept.

In the writings of Artaud and Breton, motifs such as sphinxes, masks, mummies, and ghosts serve as central figures. Through these symbols, poetry became a space for investigating and practicing a modern form of sacrality. Benjamin Andréo's study examines these poetic modalities to show how both writers sought to redefine and revitalize the sacred. Readers interested in modernist French literature, Surrealism, and the intersection of poetry and religion may find this comparative analysis relevant.