Poetry and Poem
This section consists of one relatively short text, which takes the form of a manifesto: ‘the Rhythm Party Manifesto’. It is a chapter of the book with the ironic title Célébration de la poésie (Lagrasse: Verdier, 2001) which is a reflection on what a poem is and does. But as every reflexion, it is situated. Meschonnic attacks his contemporary French intellectual scene and its representation of poetry – what he considers not only a use and abuse of poetry, but also a misunderstanding based on a wrong conception of language. Meschonnic explains here his definition of the poem as opposed to a fixed idea about poetry. Meschonnic insists on the uniqueness and unforeseeability of a poem. As soon as we believe we know what poetry is, there cannot be poetry anymore. Consequently, by celebrating it, we have preconceived ideas and miss what makes a poem a poem.