The Poetics of Reverie: Childhood, Language, and the Cosmos

Like many people, I faithfully read the introduction before plunging into the book itself. While containing useful information, this one almost made me quit before I started. Then, on page 25 of 26 pages, came a wonderful sentence: ". . . For, up there, in heaven, isn't paradise an immense library?" At that point I knew I was in for a delightful, thought provoking read.The reason I am giving it 4 stars is that this is very dense. Like multi-grain bread, it is very nutritious but you have to chew it thoroughly.Also, although the translator did a remarkable job, there are still adjustments in thought that have to take place when reading from an English speaker's perspective since we do not generally perceive words as male/female.

Few books satisfy the soul like this one. This book is to be read slowly, in solitude, and with the full attention of the heart.

Classic!

reverie as the joy of reading, the joy of reading poetry. the joy of reading can never be overstated. the kind of reading that concerned bachelard is word association, the wandering of the mind from word to word as imagery of objects as, and here is where philosophy enters, phenomena. bachelard sees this as dreamy, and the activity and the idealized object as simultaneously beautiful. the beautiful for bachelard falls under study of psychology instead of the expected purlieu of aesthetics. enter the psychology of carl gustave jung, his anima and animus reached after a very french discussion of masculine and feminine words, gender specifics lacking in american etymology. and a neat short leap, call it logical if you want, from the masculine/feminine to the child and imagination within childhood associative of the elemental pre-socratics who like children separated the being of the world into fire and water and air.poetry has never been about meaning. poetry is more like a dream language, and many selections of poetry bachelard quotes are from obscure poets and absurdists and surrealists. although there are valid arguments that reverie occurs free from poetics, bachelard’s presentation is akin to how another philosopher referred to his book about logic, it is a scaffolding, once the book is read you don’t need it. reverie, like logic, stands alone, free from interpretation, for those who do it no discussion is necessary. bachelard’s book is a recounting of a personal joy. for the reader who reads as reverie the joy in reading bachelard’s book is in the knowing of a kindred soul, plus the pleasure of picking up a new title or two to peruse.

A personal and profound argument for the power of "reverie," i.e., the active application of fantasy and imagination in life, love and perception. Bachelard argues for the importance of the "creating imagination" and argues that we are, first and foremost, beings who are "struck with wonder" by images: dreamers. In exploring three "deep" environments of reverie and imagination -- childhood, the cosmos and language itself -- Bachelard shows how "imagination augments reality" in such a way as to make life more poetic. Poets and poetry constitute the "soul" of language and, hence, our ability to perceive reality. Bachelard tells us that if there is a need for Freud's "reality principle," it is just as important that there be an "un-reality principle," i.e., fantasy and creative imagination as a "cushion" against the degradation of so-called "realism." Probably my favorite quote from this book, and the one that best sums up the entire work is this: "The reality of love is mutilated when it is removed from all its unreality." This is a transformational work. While Bachelard works of off Jung's archetypes, he adds his own unique insight and style in arguing that all imagination ultimately is a form of idealization, or, as he puts it "In order to truly perceive, we must not merely receive, we must affirm." If you have ever felt that rationality and knowledge are insufficient means to understand understanding, then you need to let Bachelard share his message with you. He says that writing a book is difficult work and one is tempted to merely dream it. Fortunately, Bachelard wrote this one so *we* could dream it. Share the dream. For as Heraclitus once put it, even the dreamers and sleepers are doing their part in the ongoing and unfolding work that is our world. According to Bachelard, dreamers and daydreamers are doing the most *important* work.

Bachelard's book on reverie wonderfully explores the space that looms somewhere in between wakefulness and dream. Reverie is a form of consciousness that departs from the words of poets and then grows. Each section of this essay refines or sketches further some of the liminal suggestions of the author. Some of these excursions resonate more sensibly than others of course, but all of the chapters thoughtfully meditate on a placid and exciting state. I do not think the second section on the significance of word gender is terribly fruitful, since gender is a grammatical rather than semantic property, but even such meanderings around and slight abuses of traditional understandings leads to some joyful venues and phenomenal considerations. A book need not be useful to be pleasant. This book has a mite of the former quality and a might of the latter quality.

Good book and delivered in good condition