Decadence ... What is it? The significance of the phenomenon in the culture of the 19th century

At the end of the nineteenth century a new phenomenon arose in European art and literature. It became known as decadence. What it is? Translated from French (or even from medieval Latin), this word means "sunset", "decline". In the beginning, historians used it to describe the situation that developed in the culture of late Rome in the era of antiquity. But then the term was adopted by the artists themselves, after which it acquired a somewhat different meaning. Decadence began to be considered something special, opposed to philistinism and respectable burghery. In Russian art and literary criticism, another term is often used. This is "decadence".

In the visual arts, adherents and adherents of the new phenomenon often opposed the formalization of such a popular and generally accepted style as academicism. Representatives of the same decadence, in fact, were modernists and thirsted for new forms, which, in their opinion, were more in line with the complex and often contradictory nature of modern culture. In addition, the writers and poets who wrote in this style aspired to unlimited self-expression. They were interested not so much in the fate of society, as in the questions of personal being, or rather, of its finiteness. It is not without reason that death is often associated with decadence.

The meaning of the word, of course, changed, and in the current culture it means a certain ecstasy, ugliness, sadness and fear. In a word, what is dear to the so-called Goths. But in those days poets, artists and writers did not just aspire to "lovers of death." They also tried to discover this topic, quite tabooed by the philistines.

And here we say to ourselves: decadence ... what is this? Where did this phenomenon come from and what does it mean? We are trying not just to label him, but to understand why these people are often called immoral. After all, these are the great creators - Verlaine, Oscar Wilde, Edgar Poe, Theophile Gautier ... Perhaps because many of them believed that the moral norms of modern society are also outdated and turned into formal categories. And, probably, these norms required expansion. It is generally accepted that the decadent poets, like Oscar Wilde, were fascinated by evil. But this writer and the esthete actually suffered for his homosexual tendencies. And today, many human rights advocates advocate that such people should have the opportunity for self-realization.

Decadence ... What is it? It was about this that the famous philosopher of the nineteenth century, Friedrich Nietzsche, asked himself. And he answered this in the following way: these are the times when culture dies, becomes its opposite, and a person weakens and loses his will to live and to power. Spengler echoed him. The culture of modern Europe tends to decline and loses all its main positions. However, the twentieth century demonstrated to us that this ambiguous phenomenon was just a harbinger of change. Perhaps his followers felt the approach of a severe crisis, world wars and turmoil. After all, our morals have really changed. And now the word "decadence" is again in fashion. What does this mean for modern man? For someone, this fascination with the art of the XIX century, for someone - a rapture with death, and for someone - just an album of the group "Agatha Christie". We live in a time of pluralism. The choice is ours.