Home >> The Modern Language Review, Volume 104, Number 2

Verlaine's Creation of `suspens' in Romances sans paroles

Author: Holmes, Anne

Source: The Modern Language Review, Volume 104, Number 2, 1 April 2009 , pp. 389-400(12)

Publisher: Modern Humanities Research Association

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Abstract:

The article examines six poems from Romances sans paroles, three parisyllabic and three imparisyllabic, with an emphasis on rhythm. (Syllabic lengths range from three to nine.) It considers the sense of weightlessness or `suspens' (Mallarmé's term) which Verlaine creates, as well as the network of relationships on which it relies. It examines, therefore, the use of both `Indécis' and `Précis', to use Verlaine's terms. Considering the subject-matter and the rhythmical phrasing of the poems, it asks how the poems which use an impair metre differ from those in parisyllabic verse. Synaesthesia, cyclical patterning, asymmetry, and the technique of `brouillage' are discussed in the context of the impair.

Keywords: Romances sans paroles; parisyllabic; imparisyllabic; rhythm; Synaesthesia; cyclical patterning; asymmetry; brouillage

Document Type: Research article

Affiliations: 1: Hertford College, Oxford

Publication date: 2009-04-01

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  • The Modern Language Review, the flagship journal of the Association, is available to all individual members as part of their subscription. MLR is one of the oldest journals in its field, maintaining an unbroken publication record since its foundation in 1905, and publishing more than 3,000 articles and 20,000 book reviews.

    Each volume consists of four issues, published in January, April, July and October of each year. Its 1000+ annual pages are divided roughly equally between articles, predominantly on medieval and modern literature in the languages of Europe, and over 500 reviews of books in these areas. All contributions are in English, and each section is edited by a noted scholar in the field, under the overall supervision of the General Editor. Articles are chosen not only for their scholarly worth and originality but also, as far as possible, for their potential interest to a wider readership in other disciplines.
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