ABSTRACT
Always hardworking, Yves Bonnefoy, who was born in 1923, has become even more prolific in his mid-eighties. Several book-length essays and collections of essays, plus the translations of, respectively, his commentaries on Shakespeare and his most recent collection of poems, have appeared since 2003. Of course, some volumes originated as public lectures, and repetitions occur in distinct texts on Mallarmé, Baudelaire, and Goya; but this is not to suggest that any of these books has been hastily prepared. Bonnefoy has amended, polished, and often expanded his talks, all the while maintaining the conversational tone and implicit openness to dialogue that have become the hallmark of his criticism. His expansive style never blurs his close reading, sensitive observations of fine details, and sure knowledge of biographical, philological, or historical research on his subject.
