Gautier, Théophile
Gautier, Théophile (1811–72),French poet, critic, and author of fantastic tales. He abandoned art studies to pursue poetry after Nerval introduced him to Hugo, for whom he led the legendary defence of Hernani (1830). A member of Le Petit Cénacle (literary salon of extreme romantics), he embraced the bohemian lifestyle represented in Les Jeunes‐France (The Young‐France, 1833) and caused a scandal with the ‘art for art's sake’ manifesto‐preface to Mademoiselle de Maupin (1835). A lengthy journalistic career as a leading art critic followed, with success for his poetry: Émaux et Camées (1852; Enamels and Cameos, 1903) inspired the Parnassian poets and influenced Baudelaire, who dedicated to Gautier Les Fleurs du mal (Flowers of Evil, 1857).
Gautier also wrote novels (Le Roman de la momie, 1858/The Romance of the Mummy, 1863; Le Capitaine...
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