The Arcades Project - Operi

and back." Ch. B., Oeuvres completes, vol. 2, pp. 420-421 ("L'Ecole
pa'ienne").246 Compare the anecdote about Baudelaire and the Mexican idol
. [J47,2]
Toward the end of the Second Empire, as the regime relaxes its pressure, the
theory of l'art pour l'art suffers a loss in prestige. [J47,3]
From the argument of the Guys essay, it would appear that Baudelaire's fascination
with this artist was connected above all with his handling of backgrounds,
which differs little from the handling of backgrounds in the theater. But because
these pictures, unlike scenery on a stage, are to be viewed from close up, the
magic of distance is canceled for the viewer without his having to renounce
the judgment of distance. In the essay on Guys, Baudelaire has characterized the
gaze which here and in other places he himself turns toward the distance. Baudelaire
dwells on the expression of the oriental courtesan: "She directs her gaze at
the horizon, like a beast of prey; the same wildness, the same indolent distraction,
and also at times the sanle fixity of attention;' eh. E., OeuvreJ) vol. 2,
p. 359.247
[J47,4]
In his poem L'Heautontimoroumenos" , Baudelaire himself
speaks of his shrill voice. [J47,5]
A decisive value is to be accorded Baudelaire's efforts to capture the gaze in
which the magic of distance is extinguished. (Compare "L'Arnour du mensonge;')
Relevant here: my definition of the aura as the aura of distance opened
up with the look that awakens in an object perceived.248 [J47,6]
The gaze in which the magic of distance is extinguished: "Let your eyes plunge
into the fixed stare / of satyresses or water sprites" ("L'Avertisseur" ,The Lookout»
."" [J47a,1]
Among the prose poems planned but left unwritten is ""La Fin du monde." Its basic
theme is perhaps best indicated in the following passage from "Fusees," no. 22:
""The world is about to come to an end. The only reason it should continue is that
it exists. What a weak argument, compared with all the arguments to the contrary,
and especially the following: 'What, in future, is the world to do in the sight of
heaven?' For, supposing it (ontinued to have material existence, would this existence
be worthy of the name, 01' of the Encyclopedia of History? ... For my part, I
who sometimes feel myself cast in the ridiculous role of prophet, I know that I shall
never receive so much as a doctor's charity. Lost in this base world, jostled by the
mob, I am like a weary man who sees behind him, in the depths of the years, only
disillusionment and bitterness, and in front of him only a tempest that brings
nothing new . ... I seem to have wandered off. ... Nevertheless, I shall let these
pages stand-because I wish to set an exact date to my anger." eh. B., Oeuvres,