Des Esseintes
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
(Difference between revisions)
| Revision as of 18:51, 5 September 2011 Jahsonic (Talk | contribs) ← Previous diff |
Revision as of 18:51, 5 September 2011 Jahsonic (Talk | contribs) Next diff → |
||
| Line 2: | Line 2: | ||
| [[Des Esseintes]] is a [[fictional character]] and the protagonist of the [[French novel]] ''[[Against the Grain]]''. He is an [[eccentric]], [[reclusive]] [[aesthete]] and [[antihero]]. He is said to have been partly based on [[Robert de Montesquiou]], a French aristocrat who used his [[wit]] to shield himself from genuine human emotion, and partly on [[Francis Poictevin]]. There are many similarities between [[Des Esseintes]] and [[Patrick Bateman]], protagonist of ''[[American Psycho]]'', both are relentless [[aesthete]]s, both are [[jaded]]. | [[Des Esseintes]] is a [[fictional character]] and the protagonist of the [[French novel]] ''[[Against the Grain]]''. He is an [[eccentric]], [[reclusive]] [[aesthete]] and [[antihero]]. He is said to have been partly based on [[Robert de Montesquiou]], a French aristocrat who used his [[wit]] to shield himself from genuine human emotion, and partly on [[Francis Poictevin]]. There are many similarities between [[Des Esseintes]] and [[Patrick Bateman]], protagonist of ''[[American Psycho]]'', both are relentless [[aesthete]]s, both are [[jaded]]. | ||
| - | :There is a memorable passage in ''[[A Rebours]]'', the transcription of which, by Mr. [[George Moore]], may be helpful in understanding the work of that rare literary artist, [[Francis Poictevin]]. " The poem in prose," wrote Huysmans, "handled by an alchemist of genius, should contain the quintessence, the entire strength of the novel, the long analysis and the superfluous description of which it suppresses ... the adjective placed in such an ingenious and definite way that it could not be legally dispossessed of its place, that the reader would dream for whole weeks together over its meaning, at once precise and multiple; affirm the present, reconstruct the past, divine the future of the souls revealed by the light of the unique epithet. The novel thus understood, thus condensed into one or two pages, would be a communion of thought between a magical writer and an ideal reader, a spiritual collaboration by consent between ten superior persons scattered through the universe, a delectation ofifered to the most refined and accessible only to them." --[[James Huneker]], ''[[Egoists: A Book of Supermen]]'' (1909) | ||
| ==See also== | ==See also== | ||
| *[[The library of Des Esseintes]] | *[[The library of Des Esseintes]] | ||
| *[[Prose pour des Esseintes]] | *[[Prose pour des Esseintes]] | ||
| {{GFDL}} | {{GFDL}} | ||
Revision as of 18:51, 5 September 2011
|
Related e |
|
Featured: |
Des Esseintes is a fictional character and the protagonist of the French novel Against the Grain. He is an eccentric, reclusive aesthete and antihero. He is said to have been partly based on Robert de Montesquiou, a French aristocrat who used his wit to shield himself from genuine human emotion, and partly on Francis Poictevin. There are many similarities between Des Esseintes and Patrick Bateman, protagonist of American Psycho, both are relentless aesthetes, both are jaded.
See also
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Des Esseintes" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
