«Quan és el cor qui canta, no res del món l’enuja». Apropos the poem «A un gripau» by Josep Carner

Abstract

This article starts from the premise that different versions of a given text do not represent a diachronic movement towards an unattainable ideal text, but are a juxtaposition of synchronic stages, each of which is the result of an ideal text located within a value system of its author, and is diferent at each stage. Therefore, this study aims to show the impossibility of making a teleological reading (from the first to the last version) or archaeological reading (from the last to the first version), and proposes an interpretation of «A un gripau» by Josep Carner from this perspective. At the same time, it puts forward the hypothesis that Carner introduced certain changes driven by the need to be understood and to defend himself against those who called him superficial. The consideration of all these materials reinforces the idea that it is necessary to approach the literary text from a non apriori perspective.