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    The Flowers of Evil / Les Fleurs du Mal
    Unavailable
    The Flowers of Evil / Les Fleurs du Mal
    Unavailable
    The Flowers of Evil / Les Fleurs du Mal
    Ebook454 pages3 hours

    The Flowers of Evil / Les Fleurs du Mal

    By Charles Baudelaire and Roy Campbell

    4.5/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    The poetic classic of decadence and eroticism. Beautifully translated by Roy Campbell. 
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherReading Essentials
    Release dateJan 5, 2019
    ISBN9781773233857
    Unavailable
    The Flowers of Evil / Les Fleurs du Mal
    Author

    Charles Baudelaire

    Charles Baudelaire (1821-1867) was a French poet. Born in Paris, Baudelaire lost his father at a young age. Raised by his mother, he was sent to boarding school in Lyon and completed his education at the Lycée Louis-le-Grand in Paris, where he gained a reputation for frivolous spending and likely contracted several sexually transmitted diseases through his frequent contact with prostitutes. After journeying by sea to Calcutta, India at the behest of his stepfather, Baudelaire returned to Paris and began working on the lyric poems that would eventually become The Flowers of Evil (1857), his most famous work. Around this time, his family placed a hold on his inheritance, hoping to protect Baudelaire from his worst impulses. His mistress Jeanne Duval, a woman of mixed French and African ancestry, was rejected by the poet’s mother, likely leading to Baudelaire’s first known suicide attempt. During the Revolutions of 1848, Baudelaire worked as a journalist for a revolutionary newspaper, but soon abandoned his political interests to focus on his poetry and translations of the works of Thomas De Quincey and Edgar Allan Poe. As an arts critic, he promoted the works of Romantic painter Eugène Delacroix, composer Richard Wagner, poet Théophile Gautier, and painter Édouard Manet. Recognized for his pioneering philosophical and aesthetic views, Baudelaire has earned praise from such artists as Arthur Rimbaud, Stéphane Mallarmé, Marcel Proust, and T. S. Eliot. An embittered recorder of modern decay, Baudelaire was an essential force in revolutionizing poetry, shaping the outlook that would drive the next generation of artists away from Romanticism towards Symbolism, and beyond. Paris Spleen (1869), a posthumous collection of prose poems, is considered one of the nineteenth century’s greatest works of literature.

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    Reviews for The Flowers of Evil / Les Fleurs du Mal

    4.5/5

    13 ratings13 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Seminal work of poetry by the French symbolist poet inspired by the work of Edgar Allen Poe.
    • 5/5
      This wasn't the pit of debauchery I'd half expected from its reputation. Which isn't to say there aren't some shocking images ("The Carcass" comes to mind), but times have moved on.It's an interesting reflection that poems explicitly about necrophilia weren't banned upon publication, but those about, or even hinting at, lesbianism were. A man's pleasures were seemingly more acceptable, however depraved.It's not all about sex though (ok, a lot of it is!), and Baudelaire also tackles art and artists, love and romance, depression and, well, more depression, the inequalities of society, and the lives of the poor and wretched inhabitants of Paris's deprived urban landscapes away from the bright lights of the cafes and salons of the bourgeoisie.A slightly unsettling 5/5 ?
    • 3/5
      A rather mediocre translation which does not keep the rhyme of the original.
    • 4/5
      I don't know French, so unfortunately am unable to ascertain how true to the original this translation is. Thus, based purely on the English half of this book, I was a bit disappointed that the poetry did not speak to me as much as it once had. The words and messages seem fairly simplistic. Baudelaire has his moments, but they were way too infrequent. His subject matter was also simplistic, which tended to result in rather course poems, instead of uplifting common language to a higher plain. The Parisian Scenes and Death sections were the highlights and do have some interesting ideas worth exploring. Overall, this was a book worth reading (and re-reading), but I don't think the potential of some of Baudelaire's ideas were fully realized.
    • 5/5
      Baudelaire's Les Fleurs is a piqued sensorium; it's the silken petal gliding over flesh, guided by fingers that captivate. It's sensual and Baudelaire's emphasis on modern alienation serves to make it even more so. Whether because the theme of modern alienation speaks so loudly to our day to day or because it's laid so bare by Baudelaire's personal context, I'm not sure. I felt pulled by both during the read and this edition has become a favorite as a result.

      Baudelaire speaks to the senses the way Whitman speaks to word lovers, the way a spoken word piece sinks into its audience. His verses have a lasting presence.

      I would definitely recommend this edition to first time readers of Baudelaire. I enjoyed reading in French but it was interesting to have the English versions as well to see if there was a trade-off in meaning or overall feel.
    • 3/5
      Zeer veelvormige stukjes over allerhande thema's, sommige ontluisterend, andere prikkelend, over schoonheid en over de zelfkant van de maatschappij. Poëzie en proza door elkaar. Opvallende rol geuren en zintuiglijke indrukken. Diverse gelijkenissen met Poe.
    • 5/5
      The book that convinced me that there might actually be something to this thing called "poetry" after all. Picked it off the library shelf in spite of my prejudices against the form (probably due to nothing more than its admittedly awesome title) and then sat in my bed that evening, put on some Nick Cave and started reading the book. And man, it moved me! I felt it deep in my blood and it was taking me along with it! Whilst previously poetry had always just sat there on the page as I read it, this poetry brought me down into the page and shook me up before deigning to let me go. Then immediately went back to the library and got out some Rimbaud and didn't like it. But man, Baudelaire! There's a dude if there ever was one!
    • 5/5
      A beautifully written classic.
    • 4/5
      I don't usually read poetry but I found this collection of 'decadent' poems were both beautiful and nightmarish.
    • 5/5
      This is a completely new translation of this seminal work. Each poem is translated into rhyming verse, preserving both the rhyme scheme and metre of the original. A must-read for all non-francophone poetry lovers.
    • 5/5
      One of the few books of poetry that I can stand, and the one I enjoy most.
    • 4/5
      Simply powerful and moving. Baudelaire really knows how to throw a reader in to an abyss. While the poems have a tendency to be grim, the language that he uses makes them lovely in their very own way. I haven't read all the poems in French but some things get lost in translation in the English versions. I recommend reading them in French as well.
    • 5/5
      The epitome of decadence and one of the greatest volumes of modern poetry. Dark, sometimes gruesome, images of sex and death are presented in beautiful language completely opposite to its subject. It is no wonder why this volume fought constant censorship in France from its initial publication in 1857 all the way up to sixty years ago. If you enjoy poetry, you have to read this. If you don't enjoy poetry, you have to read this. I read the MacGowan translation, which seems to preserve the cadence very well. Perfect for a cold morning with a cup of hot tea.