Aurélia, followed by Sylvie

Throughout his life, the poet and writer Gérard de Nerval (1808-1855) struggled with bouts of madness, and ended his life wandering homeless on the streets of Paris until he was found hanging from a sewer grating, an apparent suicide. As one of the most individualistic of the colorful French Romantics, the details of Nerval’s life have passed into legend, as writers and commentators have served up any number of versions of his mysterious love affair with the actress Jenny Colon-not to mention his famous habit of walking a lobster on a pale blue leash through the gardens of the Palais Royal. Soon after the completion of his novella Sylvie in 1853, Nerval began, under advice from his doctor, an extended personal journal/essay chronicling his psychic experiences and visions. What emerged from these writings is Aurélia, a masterpiece in the literature of dreams and hallucinations, and one of the most remarkable prose works of nineteenth century French literature.