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I read roughly half of this book, but came away with so many excellent notes that were vital for my current (self-guided, personal) studies, which I'm hoping will inform a project I've slowly been realizing. Rosemont's introduction to Breton and the movement he spearheaded is indispensable; the excerpts included, and other source texts, are a mixture of good to explore/skim and revelatory (and several have made it onto my to-read list at a quick clip). This, alongside Rosemont's collection 'Blac I read roughly half of this book, but came away with so many excellent notes that were vital for my current (self-guided, personal) studies, which I'm hoping will inform a project I've slowly been realizing. Rosemont's introduction to Breton and the movement he spearheaded is indispensable; the excerpts included, and other source texts, are a mixture of good to explore/skim and revelatory (and several have made it onto my to-read list at a quick clip). This, alongside Rosemont's collection 'Black Brown & Beige,' makes for required reading to understand what's too often set aside as a purely aesthetic, and temporally finite, movement. Surrealism is as alive today as ever, in hearts and in minds—and leftists in the West could very much use it to expand and revitalize their arsenal that is sadly too orthodox in its Marxism, and too conservative in its dreams for revolutionary action (and Breton's a better realizer and synthesizer of dreams than Marx ever was—though they both share the bourgeoisie trappings that make each good bedfellows, and need to each be reincorporated into the larger intellectual reality of the left and our struggle for liberation and emancipation). I have been reading this book, off and on, for many years.
I never get engrossed in it. There are a lot of interesting ideas in here, sure, but it's a challenging read. Considering the anti-bourgeois, anti establishment stance of the Surrealists, Breton's writing comes across as very academic and esoteric, which, to me, smacks of intellectualism. While that's not necessarily a condemnation, it certainly keeps the ideas out of the hands of common people that may not have had access to private sch I have been reading this book, off and on, for many years. I never get engrossed in it. There are a lot of interesting ideas in here, sure, but it's a challenging read.
Considering the anti-bourgeois, anti establishment stance of the Surrealists, Breton's writing comes across as very academic and esoteric, which, to me, smacks of intellectualism. While that's not necessarily a condemnation, it certainly keeps the ideas out of the hands of common people that may not have had access to private schools. In comparison, 'Dada, Art And Anti Art' by Hans Richter is written in such plain spoken prose with such a direct and humble tone, it is very endearing to read. Maybe it's not fair to compare the two, since Richter's book is a memoir and Breton's is not, but it serves to show that if you want to reach people and communicate your ideas, it may be best to be as plain-spoken and clear as possible. I do like a book that challenges me, and I will continue to come back to 'What Is Surrealism?'
As I return to it, I hope that I can get more out of it while I'm digging in, instead of being put off by it.
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What is Surrealism? Find out with this art film, includes homework help and facts for kids about Salvador Dali, Joan Miro and Dorothea Tanning. What is Surrealism? Find out with this art film, includes homework help and facts for kids about Salvador Dali, Joan Miro and Dorothea Tanning. A literary and art movement, dedicated to expressing the imagination as revealed in dreams, free of the conscious control of reason and convention.