The Flowers of Evil / Les Fleurs du Mal: French and English Edition (Translated by William Aggeler with an Introduction by Frank Pearce Sturm)

Upon its original publication in 1857 Charles Baudelaire's "Les Fleurs du Mal" or "The Flowers of Evil" was embroiled in controversy. Within a month of its publication the French authorities brought an action against the author and the book's publisher claiming that the work was an insult to public decency. Eventually the French courts would acknowledge the literary merit of Baudelaire's work but ordered that six poems in particular should be banned from subsequent publication. The notoriety caused by this scandal would ultimately work in the author's favor causing the initial publication to sell out, thus prompting the publication of another edition. The second edition was published in 1861, it included an additional thirty-five poems, with the exclusion of the six poems censored by the French government. In this volume we reproduce that 1861 edition along with the six censored poems in an English translation by William Aggeler along with the original French. Rich with symbolism, "The Flowers of Evil" is rightly considered a classic of the modernist literary movement. Its themes of decadence and eroticism seek to exhibit Baudelaire's criticism of the Parisian society of his time. This edition is printed on premium acid-free paper and includes an introduction by Frank Pearce Sturm.

Author: Charles Baudelaire
Publisher: Digireads.com
Published: 06/16/2015
Pages: 256
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.72lbs
Size: 8.50h x 5.50w x 0.58d
ISBN13: 9781420951202
ISBN10: 1420951203
BISAC Categories:
- Poetry | European | French

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