From the degree of the angle to which a building is adjacent from another, to the palpable explanations of otherwise mundane objects, like a chair, Aragon’s words draw the reader in as imagination blends with description. I had never read a book quite like this before. With little plot, but extensive descriptions mixed with existential pondering, the book reads as whimsical and I feel as though I am reading a painting. After the inclusion of André Breton, I had to search up his relationship with author and suddenly all the pieces came together.

Aragon has a unique way of combining hyperreal descriptions with metaphors and imagination which I had previously only experienced in the visual art world. Lines that encapsulate this writing style to me is ‘everything is cognate of imagination, and imagination is innate in everything’ (p. 64) paired with ‘the trouble is that you fail to appreciate the strength of the unreal. Your imagination, my dear fellow, is worth more than you can imagine.’ (p.61). These emphasize the role of the psyche and subconscious in both creating and everyday life, which is a reflection of the modernist movement combined with the intentions of surrealism.  The second quote is followed by a conversation written as a play between Sense, Will, Understanding, and Man. Non-tangible sentiments like these, and Boredom later on in the book, take on life forms and personalities, juxtaposing the concrete structures and their contents being described in explicit, often lifeless details. This flipping back and forth, waiting for the metaphysical to appear in the hyperreal, creates pace and was the most enjoyable part of the book to me. My favourite example of this is ‘this spectre is boredom, an exquisitely beautiful young man who yawns and walks around with a butterfly net to catch goldfish’ (p. 127). I much preferred that fun characterization unlike his mechanical depictions of André Breton and Marcel Noll.

I found it a bit hard to follow at times as Aragon truly does have imagination in everything, but enlightening nonetheless. While Aragon and the surrealist movement emphasize the role of imagination, why is so little left to it at times? Aragon describes some of the bars down to how many chairs at each table and their specific locations. As well, how can dadaism be seen in this work besides the graphic inserts? Where do dadaism and surrealism intersect here? A great feature of literature courses is others sharing connections that I have not made and I am eager to hear what I haven’t picked up.