VARIATIONS OF MYSTICAL IDEAS IN 19th-CENTURY LITERATURE (Honoré de Balzac, Joseph de Maistre, Charles Baudelaire)

Abstract

This work deals with an important aspect of the writings of three 19th-century authors - Joseph de Maistre, Honoré de Balzac and Charles Baudelaire. They were followers of the theory of correspondence, or ‘universal analogy’, which suggests that each visible thing is a symbol of the invisible world and each material phenomenon is in correspondence with the Divine laws. The author of this article highlights that it is impossible to reflect on the artistic legacy of these authors – ‘prophets’ and ‘clairvoyants’ – without understanding the mystical idea that is fundamental for their writings. They formed their own bonds with the mystics Louis-Claude de Saint-Martin and Emanuel Swedenborg. Balzac's novels contain numerous reminiscences of Swedenborg’s mystical works such as Arcana Coelestia (Heavenly Mysteries) and L’Homme de Désir, the influence of the ‘unknown philosopher’ Saint-Martin is evident in J. de Maistre’s ‘Les Soirées de Saint-Pétersbourg (Saint Petersburg Dialogues), while Charles Baudelaire repeatedly mentions Emanuel Swedenborg in his essays. The author of Les Fleurs du Mal (The Flowers of Evil) can also be regarded as a follower of Joseph de Maistre’s aesthetics, since Baudelaire’s revolutionary pathos contains a tinge of de Maistre’s political theosophy, which is based on the concept of Divine Providence that governs the material world. In so far as the concept of the Divine Proportion is concerned, the basic ideas of de Maistre’s providentialism are in line with philosophical theses of Balzac, another follower of the theory of correspondence. However, when it comes to the concept of matter, their views differ. According to the author of the Mystical Book, both the invisible spiritual world and the visible physical world consist of the same matter, which can transform itself but does not disappear. De Maistre, on the other hand, believed that matter is but a sign of the almighty Spirit. During their lifetime, the writers avoided owning that they were fascinated by mystical philosophy. However, their writings have proved that their knowledge of mysticism was indeed profound. By virtue of their powerful imagination, they were able to use the metaphor and convey their idea of the fundamental nature of the Divine idea. Each of them yearned to renovate the Christian religion and was looking for the possible ways of regaining the lost Unity, the poet’s role being that of a clairvoyant and an interpreter of the sacred signs.