Benjamin Péret (1899-1959) was a French poet and surrealist.

Born in Rézé in 1899, and enlisted in the army to avoid being jailed. He saw action in the Balkans, and served through the war. Afterwards, he joined the Dada movement, and in 1921 published a collection of poetry. He left the Dada movement with Breton and joined Surrealism.

Beginning in 1924 he was the co-editor of the journal "La Revolution Surrealiste", becoming chief editor in 1925. In 1928, while living in Brazil, he published "Le Grand Jeu". Buffetted by the winds of politics, he fought in the Spanish Civil War, met Trotsky in Mexico City, and returned to France only to be arrested for subversion, released, and then spent the remainder of his life in Paris.

External Link

A biography of Péret in French