Product Description

In this Companion, essays by outstanding scholars illuminate Charles Baudelaire's writing for the lay reader and specialist. In addition to a survey of his life and a study of his social context, the volume includes essays on his verse and prose, analyzing the extraordinary power and effectiveness of his language and style, his exploration of intoxicants like wine and opium, and his art and literary criticism. The volume also discusses the difficulties, successes and failures of translating his poetry and his continuing power to move his readers. It features a guide to further reading and a chronology as well.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1058085 in Books
• Published on: 2006-01-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 258 pages

Review
'In this excellent collection of sixteen essays the editor sets out to explore the wide-ranging effects of Bauledaire's writing both in French literature and further afield.' Contemporary Review

About the Author
Rosemary Lloyd is Rudy Professor of French at Indiana University.

Customer Reviews

A Miscellany
The "Cambridge Companion to Baudelaire" casts a wide net, trying to appeal to every one from casual readers to specialists, with a scattershot collection of essays about a variety of topics: Baudelaire's life and politics, his poetry and versification, prose poems, ethics, Paris, use of intoxicants, Art, Music and theatre, literary criticism, his place in literary and cultural history, posthumous editions of his work, translating Baudelaire, and less classifiable essays of personal reactions to his work.

This may sound like, and is, an attractive selection of subject matter. Some prior familiarity with Baudelaire's work (including his criticism and prose poems, not just the "Fleurs du Mal") is expected, and the quality of the essays is uneven; although each is written by a certified expert in Baudelaire studies, this is probably not a book that will last "for the ages." I think it might best be received as an undergraduate supplement; for the lay reader, there is probably more chaff here than wheat.