II.

Surrealist Literature

The Surrealists claimed as their literary forebears a long line of writers, outstanding among whom is the Comte de Lautréamont, author of the lengthy and complicated work Les Chants de Maldoror (1868-1870). Besides Breton, many of the most distinguished French writers of the early 20th century were at one time connected with the movement; these include Paul Éluard, Louis Aragon, René Crevel, and Philippe Soupault. Younger writers such as Raymond Queneau were also influenced by its points of view.

Pure Surrealist writers used automatism as a literary form—that is, they wrote whatever words came into their conscious mind and regarded these words as inviolable. They did not alter what they wrote, as that would constitute an interference with the pure act of creation. The authors felt that this free flow of thought would establish a rapport with the subconscious mind of their readers. A typical short example of Surrealist writing is the proverb by Paul Éluard stating that “Elephants are contagious”. This purely psychic automatism was modified later by the conscious use, especially in painting, of symbols derived from Freudian psychology.

Like their forerunners, the Dadaists, the Surrealists broke accepted rules of creativity and personal conduct in order to liberate their sense of inner truth. The movement spread all over the world and flourished in America during World War II, when André Breton was living in New York.