Chapter 4 - Paris

Summary

Along with the destinations Bishop traveled to and lived in for a time – Key West, New York, Brazil, Mexico – Paris holds a key place. Her extended periods of time there where she studied the French language, met fellow artists, and immersed herself in the culture, became a wellspring for her poetic development. While it is her earlier poems where she incorporates her experience of Paris most directly, even later work reflects her continuous interest in those French poets whom she most admired. Bishop frequently refers to those writers: Baudelaire, especially, and the symbolists and surrealists who follow him. Bishop did not adhere to any one poetic school; however, her poems and stories reflect her engagement with many traditions, including her reading of modern French poetry and poetics. This chapter traces Bishop’s relationship to Paris and French poetry, biographically and aesthetically, focusing on the city’s impact on her work.