About
Joris-Karl Huysmans, born Charles-Marie-Georges Huysmans, was a French writer and art critic. A civil servant at the Ministry of the Interior for 32 years, he published his first collection, Le Drageoir à épices, in 1874. After naturalist novels influenced by Zola, he broke with the movement with À rebours (1884), a defining work of the Decadent movement. His novel Là-Bas (1891) evoked Satanism in Paris. Converted to Catholicism in the 1890s, he chronicled his spiritual journey in En Route (1895) and La Cathédrale (1898). A founding member of the Académie Goncourt, he served as its president from 1900 until his death.
* 1848-02-05 — † 1907-05-12
Major works
- Le Drageoir à épices (1874)collection of prose poems
- À rebours (1884)novel
- Là-Bas (1891)novel
- En Route (1895)novel
- La Cathédrale (1898)novel
Key milestones
- 1892Appointed Knight of the Legion of Honour.
- 1900Becomes president of the Académie Goncourt.
- 1905Promoted to Officer of the Legion of Honour.
Themes
DecadenceSpirituality and conversionArt and aestheticismSocial critiqueSatanism and occultism
Sources: id.loc.gov · britishmuseum.org · newadvent.org