‘Abîme Inconnus’: Raïssa Maritain’s Poetic and Mystical Gifts
Abstract
Abstract Raïssa Maritain is one of the most compelling Catholic poets of the twentieth century, and yet her work is largely overlooked by literary critics. This short essay explores her mystical reading of darkness as a place of spiritual discernment, intuition, and kenosis and the poetic night vision she developed to negotiate it. The essay reads her as a fire-thief intent on stealing from poetry a light able to illuminate God’s dazzling darkness and the ruinous gloom of war.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Catholicism and Religious Studies
Poetry Analysis and Criticism
French Literature and Poetry
Publication details
- Journal / source
- New Blackfriars
- Volume
- 107
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 195–201
- Publication date
- 23 February 2026
- Language
- EN