Gérard de Nerval Criticism
Gérard de Nerval, born Gérard Labrunie in 1808, is a seminal figure in nineteenth-century literature, widely recognized for his groundbreaking exploration of the subconscious through dreams and hallucinations. His works often delve into vivid depictions of mental states and draw from a rich tapestry of influences, including mythology, religion, and the occult. Nerval's personal struggles with mental illness deeply informed his literary output, a connection astutely observed by Arthur Symons, who noted that his creative clarity often peaked during these turbulent periods.
Nerval's major works, such as Voyage en Orient and Les filles du feu, showcase his unique ability to blend fantasy, autobiography, and the theme of the doppelgänger. His sonnet sequence Les Chimères is particularly celebrated for its complex mythological and religious imagery, with "El Desdichado" and "Horus" serving as prime examples of his symbolic depth, as explored by John W. Kneller and William C. Strange, respectively. His final publication, Aurélia, marks a poignant narrative of his descent into madness, examined in detail by Lillian Feder.
Sylvie stands out as a masterful example of Nerval's integration of dreams and reality, a theme scrutinized by Alison Fairlie and Peter S. Thompson. The narrative's mythic undertones and exploration of unattainable love reflect a blend of personal and mythical influences. Meanwhile, H. Kay Moon highlights the autobiographical approach that connects Nerval's work with modern literary movements.
Nerval's influence on later literary movements is profound, impacting Symbolist and Surrealist writers like Baudelaire and Rimbaud, who admired his symbolic and hallucinatory focus. His ability to recreate memory and reverie prefigures the stream-of-consciousness technique later utilized by authors such as Marcel Proust. Noted in Wallace Fowlie's essay, Nerval's life and dreams were intricately intertwined, creating a unique narrative style. Meanwhile, Geoffrey Wagner affirms Nerval's enduring legacy within the artistic canon.
Critics have extensively analyzed his work, with Walter Strauss emphasizing the integration of his personal experiences into his writings, which continues to captivate scholars. Nerval's pioneering exploration of dreams, visionary language, and mythological references ensure his lasting impact on literature, affirming his place among the greatest literary figures of his era.
Contents
- Principal Works
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Nerval, Gérard de (Nineteenth-Century Literary Criticism)
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Introduction to Selected Writings of Gérard de Nerval
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Wagner offers a survey of Nerval's works and a summary of his influence.
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World of a Visionary
(summary)
In the following excerpt from an anonymous review of The Selected Writings of Gérard de Nerval, the critic comments on the wide appeal that Nerval's work has held for readers and critics over time.
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An Approach to Nerval
(summary)
In the following essay, originally published in 1961, Fairlie discusses the prevailing themes and images in Nerval's Les Chimeres and Sylvie.
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The Function of the Theater in the Work of Nerval
(summary)
In the following essay, Sullivan examines Nerval's use of the theater as a religious and metaphysical image in his writing.
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Comedy, Tragedy, and Madness in Nerval's Roman Tragique
(summary)
In the following essay, Zuckerman analyzes Nerval's difficulty with presenting a tragic vision in his novel Roman Tragique. Nerval presents the Roman tragique within the introduction to Les Filles du Feu as an illustration of his inability to write a novel from a comic perspective. The unfinished state of the Roman tragique, however, indicates that for Nerval writing a novel from a tragic perspective is equally problematic. In fact, the tragic novel continually puts its own structure into question, suggesting that for Nerval the language of the novel and a tragic vision of the world are in some sense incompatible.
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Nerval's Privileged Enclosures
(summary)
In the following essay, Brombert investigates "motifs of enclosure, escape, and freedom" in Nerval's work.
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Hakem
(summary)
In the following essay, Gilbert analyzes the figure of the double in Nerval's story "L'Histoire du Calife Hakem."
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The Aesthetics of Madness
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Feder explicates Aurélia as a work depicting madness as a process of self-creation and discovery for Nerval.
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Angelique and Sylvie
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Knapp interprets the myths that Nerval created in Angelique and Sylvie, relating them to Nerval's own psychological states.
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The 'Last Madness' of Gérard de Nerval
(summary)
In the following essay, Warren surveys prominent themes and images in Nerval's poetry and fiction.
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Nerval's 'Artemis'
(summary)
In the following essay, Kneller studies the language, imagery, and literary devices used in 'Artemis.'
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Woman: The Other as Sister
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Lokke discusses Nerval's social, psychological, and mythological portrayal of women in his prose.
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Traveling from the Orient to Aurélia: Nerval Looks for the Words
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Carpenter draws a connection between translation, language, and madness in Nerval's works, focusing on 'Aurélia.'
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Introduction to Selected Writings of Gérard de Nerval
(summary)
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Nerval, Gérard de (Poetry Criticism)
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Nerval: The Poet's Uncrowning
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Fowlie speaks of the life and works of Nerval as those of a man inhabiting a dream world. He discusses how for most romantics, the dream world was an escape from reality, but for Nerval, it was a realm governed by its own laws, where his life and dreams are intertwined.
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The Poet and His Moira: 'El Desdichado'
(summary)
In the following essay, he provides an exegesis of 'El Desdichado,' finding the sonnet to be an expression of Nerval's belief about his lot in life.
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The Seer in French Romanticism
(summary)
Bays is an American educator and critic specializing in French literature. In the following excerpt, she asserts that Nerval attempted to unify myth, the occult, and religion in Les Chimères.
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Gérard de Nerval
(summary)
In the following excerpt, he summarizes Nerval's philosophical orientation and discusses Les Chimères, focusing on the poems "El Desdichado" and "Artemis."
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The Proper Marriage of Allegory and Myth in Nerval's 'Horus'
(summary)
In the following essay, Strange contends that the allegorical dimension of 'Horus' is augmented by the mythology employed in the poem.
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Anteros, Son of Cain?
(summary)
In the following essay, Kneller explicates the poem "Anteros" as the protagonist's announcement of his revolt against God.
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Nerval: The Poet's Uncrowning
(summary)
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Nerval, Gérard de (Short Story Criticism)
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The Problem of Gérard de Nerval
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Symons discusses the effect of madness on Nerval's works, concluding that Nerval is "only inspired, only really wise, passionate, collected, only really master of himself, when he is insane."
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An Approach to Nerval
(summary)
In the excerpt below, Fairlie examines themes, form, and tone in Sylvie. Sylvie used to be read as a delightful country idyll. Reaction set in and it became 'le poème de la fin du monde', a 'bilan de la faillite'—'Sylvie s'achève en débâcle'. Here I disagree, and think that the undertones of the last chapter have been overlooked, and with them some of the use of themes and form throughout the story.
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Gérard de Nerval: A Reappraisal
(summary)
Here, American educator and critic Moon surveys Nerval's life, short fiction, and influence on later literature. Moon states that Nerval is "best when he is autobiographical." Unfortunately, scholars have generally neglected or ignored Gérard de Nerval as a possible precursor to modern tendencies in literature. It will be my purpose in the pages that follow to (1) explore the elements of his biography that seem to contribute to an understanding of his development as a writer, (2) venture a few observations regarding his short prose fiction, and (3) suggest briefly the possible extent of his relevancy in the flood of literary trends since his time.
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Isis: The Cult of the Madonna
(summary)
In the following excerpt, American educator and author Knapp explores the religious aspects of Isis and the role of the female in the work. Nerval's narrative Isis (1845) is an expression of his syncretistic approach to religion and, in particular, an example of the immense role played by the feminine principle in his cosmology.
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Sylvie: The Method of Myth
(summary)
Below, Thompson addresses the function of myth in Sylvie, focusing on Nerval's use of colors and treatment of memory to suggest a fantastic world. The critic finds in the story an overflowing of the "unreal from amid the real."
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Pandora's Quality of Figure
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In the following essay, Smith describes the quality of figuration in Pandora that prevents the novella from succumbing to abstraction, disorder, and senselessness. She also delineates the differences between Pandora and 'Les Amours de Vienne,' the earlier sketch by Nerval on which the novella is based.
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Seduction Renounced: 'Sylvie' as Narrative Act
(summary)
Here, Chambers analyzes several narrative approaches in Sylvie and comments on themes in the novella.
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Woman: The Other as Sister
(summary)
In the excerpt below, Lokke discusses Nerval's depiction of women in his short fiction.
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Nerval: Reading between the Lines
(summary)
In the following excerpt, Noakes observes the significance of time in Aurélia and comments on the relationship between the narrator and his double in the novella.
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Gérard de Nerval: 'Madness Tells Her Story'
(summary)
Below, MacLennan studies Nerval's subjective portrayal of madness in Aurélia and relates the tale to other nineteenth-century French literature. He examines the story's conclusion and reviews Nerval's use of visionary sequences and dream narratives.
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The Problem of Gérard de Nerval
(summary)
- Further Reading