Memorable Quotations: Charles Baudelaire

Charles Baudelaire (1821–67) was a French poet whose work has been a most important influence on Western poetry. His poems, classical in form, introduced symbolism. Baudelaire was sullen and rebellious, instilled with a passionate religious mysticism, and his work displays an incessant inner despair. His central theme is the inseparable nature of beauty and corruption. His major work, The Flowers of Evil (1857), initially condemned as obscene, is acknowledged as a masterpiece, especially significant for the brilliant phrasing, rhythm, and expressiveness of its lyrics.