Claire Malroux

Claire Malroux (born 3 September 1925) is the pen name of French poet, essayist and translator Josette Andrée Malroux. Malroux has published a dozen poetry collections and also serves as the French translator for notable American poets such as Emily Dickinson and Wallace Stevens.^[1] Malroux's own poetry has been translated into English by Marilyn Hacker.^[2]

Malroux was born on 3 September 1925 in Albi, France.^[3] She studied at the École Normale Supérieure in Paris. Malroux was a teenager during World War II. Her father was Augustin Malroux, a socialist, teacher and member of the French Resistance, which led to his arrest, deportation and death during the war.^[4]

Malroux has published 12 volumes of poetry, in addition to two "hybrid prose works." Four of those volumes (Edge, A Long-Gone Sun, Birds and Bison and Daybreak) have been translated into English by Hacker.^[4][5] Her 1998 work Soleil de jadis: recit poeme tells the story of World War II from a child's perspective through poetry.^[4]

Malroux has translated the works of numerous English-language poets into French, but cites Emily Dickinson as one of the most impactful, describing it as the "awakening of a personal affinity."^[4] In 1999, she was awarded the title of Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur for her translation work.^[6]