47 - Robert DESNOS. *Le Vin est tiré*... Novel. Paris, Gallimard, 1943.

Robert DESNOS. *Le Vin est tiré*... Novel. Paris, Gallimard, 1943. In-12, paperback, modern paper slipcase. First edition; no large-format editions were printed. Press copy accompanied by the publication announcement on salmon-colored paper. A precious autographed dedication signed on the flyleaf: “To Paul Éluard, this poorly constructed book which owes only to its ferocity the esteem one might have for it, to Nouche, affectionately, Desnos.” A superb “exchange of ink” between two Resistance poets, in the midst of the war. On February 19, 1943, Robert Desnos and Paul Éluard met to prepare for the publication of *L’Honneur des poètes*, the Resistance anthology that would be released in July under the auspices of Éditions de Minuit, for which Éluard would serve as literary director starting in June in the absence of Pierre de Lescure, who was being sought by the Gestapo. One can imagine that it was on that day that Desnos dedicated his book to Éluard and his partner, Nusch. They were all active in the Resistance at the time. A year later, Desnos would be arrested. *Le Vin est tiré* is not merely a disillusioned novel about drug addiction—from which Desnos managed to free himself—but also “an allegory of the dark years and the struggle required to resist German subjugation.” Fond of proverbs, the poet alludes to the expression “Quand le vin est tiré, il faut le boire” (Once the wine is poured, you must drink it), which means one must bear the consequences of one’s actions… For the poet, the allusion is twofold. He has come to terms with the past: he has left the world of opium behind. Now, he plunges into the murky and dangerous world of the Resistance because he is a “freedom addict” (Anne Egger, Robert Desnos, p. 908).