Volume 55, Number 13 · August 14, 2008
The Fantoms of Théophile Gautier
By Richard Holmes
In 1857 Charles Baudelaire dedicated his collection of poems, Les Fleurs du Mal, to his 'friend and master' Théophile Gautier. Following a trial for obscenity (guilty on six counts), The Flowers of Evil rightly became the most famous book of erotic poetry published in nineteenth-century France, and the wording of Baudelaire's dedication to Gautier became equally celebrated: 'Au poète impeccable, au parfait magicien ès lettres françaises' ('To the irreproachable poet, perfect magician of French literature').
Feature, 4513 words
To read the full text of this piece, please choose one of the following options:
|
If you are already a subscriber to the Review's electronic edition, please sign in: |
To subscribe to the electronic edition, please press the button below. |
To purchase access to this article for $3, please press the button below. |