Dehors la nuit est gouvernée
Paris, GLM, (May 30) 1938.
1 vol. (190 x 290 mm). Triple-layered binding in anthracite box calf, matching suede doublures, beige suede flyleaves, chemise and matching slipcase (Devauchelle).
First edition.
One of 250 copies on vélin (no. 256).
Bound at the end, four signed autograph poems:
– Dire aux miens (Sulfater).
– Conséquence.
– A un fantôme de la réflexion surpris chez les pleutres de la providence.
– Prouver par la vie.
The last poem is followed by the date 1937, and, in a different ink and in brackets, by the title of the following collection, followed by the author's signature and the autograph presentation inscription below:
“A Vous qui perdez vos feuilles dans la nuit, grande Fleur et Arbre à la fois, ces poèmes sont donnés pour vêtir vos rameaux et me sauver du Jour ! 15-2-39 R.C.”
One of 250 copies on vélin (no. 256).
Bound at the end, four signed autograph poems:
– Dire aux miens (Sulfater).
– Conséquence.
– A un fantôme de la réflexion surpris chez les pleutres de la providence.
– Prouver par la vie.
The last poem is followed by the date 1937, and, in a different ink and in brackets, by the title of the following collection, followed by the author's signature and the autograph presentation inscription below:
“A Vous qui perdez vos feuilles dans la nuit, grande Fleur et Arbre à la fois, ces poèmes sont donnés pour vêtir vos rameaux et me sauver du Jour ! 15-2-39 R.C.”
After the publication of Moulin premier and his gradual departure from a poetry close to Surrealism, Char changed direction and, in the face of the anguish caused by the rise of Nazism, wrote his next two collections: Placard pour un chemin des écoliers, then Dehors la nuit est gouvernée.
In August 1936, René Char went to convalesce at Céreste, at the foot of the Luberon, accepting an invitation from Maître Roux, whose eldest son had become close to Char and his wife. It was on this occasion that he began writing Dehors la nuit est gouvernée. In his preface, he elevates poetry to the rank of a “fifth element, sowing its inner planets in the sky of man” — a sky darkened by grim forebodings about the fate of Europe.
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