French poets

Charles Baudelaire

1821 - 1847

Great French poet and author of Les fleurs du Mal ("Flowers of Evil")

Le cygne (The Swan)

Andromaque, je pense à vous !

Baudelaire's poem about loss and longing

Marcel Proust

1871 - 1922

From “À la Recherche du Temps Perdu”

Saint-Loup of the Brazen Helm

M. Bloch souffrait beaucoup des mensonges de son oncle

Young Bloch and his Homeric turn of phrase

Chanson de Printemps

Les souffles flottant dans les bois en fleurs

A love poem by Marcel Proust

Racine

1638 - 1699

Jean Racine, 1638 – 1699, is one of France’s great flowering of dramatic poets in the 17th century

Phèdre, Act II, Scene V

Phaedra declares her love

Ah cruel! Tu m'as trop entendue!

Phèdre confesses her love