Gautier Theophile - poet of the Romantic era

French poetry of the XIX century gave the world many talented authors. One of the brightest at that time was Gautier Theophile. A critic of the romantic school, who created dozens of poems and poems popular not only in France, but also abroad.

The personal life of the poet

Gaultier Theophile was born on August 31, 1811 in the town of Tarbes on the border with Spain. True, after a short time his family moved to the capital. Gautier spent almost his entire life in Paris, keeping a longing for the southern climate, which postponed the imprint on both his temperament and creativity.

In the capital, Gautier received an excellent education with a humanitarian focus. Initially, zealously fond of painting, quite early became a supporter of the romantic trend in art. His first teacher believed Victor Hugo.

The young poet was well remembered by contemporaries for his bright outfit. His invariable red vest and long, loose hair became the image for a romantic young man of the time.

First publications

His first collection of poems Gauthier Theophile released in 1830, when he was 19 years old. It was called uncomplicated - "Poems". The same period (until 1836) includes most of his most famous works. This is the poem "Albertus", the novels "Young France", "Mademoiselle de Maupen", "Fortune", "The Tear of the Devil".

And if the early poem "Albertus" is written in the classical romantic style, then already in the novel "Young France" the creative individuality of the writer can be clearly seen. First of all, this is simplicity and poetry, which counterbalances the excessive pretentiousness and sharpness of the classical romantic style.

The peak of poetic creativity

Admittedly critics, the well-deserved place in the pantheon of French poets is Theophile Gautier. The works created by him are compared with precious stones, the poet could work on more than one month on one poem.

First of all, all this applies to the collection of "Enamels and cameos." Above him Gautier worked in the 50-70's of the XIX century. To him the author paid any free minute practically throughout the last 20 years of his life. All without exception, the works included in this collection are associated with personal memories and experiences. During the life of Gaultier, Theophile published six editions of Enamel and cameo, each of which was supplemented with new works. If in 1852 it included 18 poems, then in the final version of 1872, which was published several months before the poet's death, there were already 47 lyrical miniatures.

Traveling journalist

True, poetry could not fully contain Gauthier, so he was engaged in journalism. He treated this work without piety, often calling it "the curse of his life."

In the magazine "Press" Girardin Gautier, until his death, published dramatic satirical articles for the anger of the day. In addition, he wrote books devoted to criticism and the history of literature. Thus, in the "Grotesque" of 1844, Gautier opened for a wide range of readers several poets of the 15th-16th centuries who were unjustifiably forgotten. Among them are Villon and Cyrano de Bergerac.

At the same time, Gaultier was an avid traveler. He visited almost all the countries of Europe, including visited Russia. The trip subsequently devoted essays "Journey to Russia" in 1867 and "Treasures of Russian Art" in 1863.

His travel experiences were described in the artistic essays of Theophile Gautier. The biography of the author in them is well traced. This "Journey to Spain", "Italy" and "East". They are distinguished by the precision of landscapes rare for literature of this genre and the poetic representation of the beauties of nature.

The most famous novel

Despite strong verses, the majority of readers for another reason know the name of Theophile Gauthier. "Captain Fracassus" is a historical and adventure novel, published for the first time in 1863. Subsequently, he was translated into many languages, including Russian, twice in 1895 and 1957.

The actions take place during the reign of Louis XIII in France . This is the beginning of the XVII century. The protagonist - the young Baron de Sigonyak - lives in a family estate in Gascony. It is a dilapidated castle in which only one faithful servant remains with him.

Everything changes when a troupe of strolling artists is allowed into the castle for the night. The young baron without a memory falls in love with the actress Isabella and follows the artists to Paris. On the way one of the members of the troupe dies, and de Sigonyak decides on an act unprecedented for a man at that time. To achieve the location of Isabella, he enters the stage and begins to play the role of Captain Fracass. This is the classic character of the Italian comedy del arte. Type of adventurer-military.

Further events develop as in an exciting detective. Isabelu seeks to seduce the young duke de Vallombreuse. Our Baron summons him to a duel, triumphs, but the Duke does not give up his attempts. He organizes the abduction of Isabella from a Paris hotel, and to de Sigonyak himself sends a hired killer. However, the latter suffers a fiasco.

The ending is more like an Indian melodrama. Isabella languishes in the castle of the duke, who insistently offers her his love. However, at the last moment, thanks to the family ring, it turns out that Isabella and the duke are brother and sister.

The Duke and the Baron are reconciled, de Sigonyak takes the beautiful wife. In the end, he also discovers a family treasure in an old castle, hidden there by his ancestors.

The Legacy of Gauthier

Despite the love of poetry and creativity, enough time they could not pay Teofil Gauthier. He managed to create poetry only in his spare time, and devoted the rest of his life to journalism and the solution of material problems. Because of this, many works were imbued with a touch of sadness, often it is impossible to realize all the ideas and ideas.

Theophile Gautier died in 1872 in Neuilly near Paris. He was 61 years old.