The Duality Of Baudelaire

In France, and among the whole world, Baudelaire’s poetry and his thought attract much attention because of its originality, richness and enormous influence. The researches about his modernity, symbolism, mysticism, and aesthetics are fruitful, in addition of all these researches, the poet himself are plenty of stories. His spirit and works are intricately connected to his aesthetics, poetry, creative concept and view of human nature. Baudelaire, in my eyes, is a person living in an eternal dynamic equilibrium, like a pendulum, always keeping shaking between two poles. His life is full of fear and ecstasy, full of beauty and ugliness, good and evil. The duality occupies his works and life.The main part of the memory is divided into three chapters:In the first chapter I borrow Buffon’s "homo duplex" theory to explore the soul and spirit world of Baudelaire. Firstly, clarify the connotation of "homo duplex" theory (opposites of animality and spirituality), as well as to inter-relate with the view of human nature of Baudelaire. On the basis of Baudelaire’s double tendency, the first chapter is generally divided into two parts:physical depravation and spiritual redemption. The first part draws the portray of a pessimistic and hopeless Baudelaire. He indulges in sex, alcohol and opium with momentary pleasure; the second part reveals an optimistic and positive side of Baudelaire, his longing for the spiritual love, his looking for exotic, his warm engagement in poetry creation.The second chapter explores the duality in Baudelaire’s poetry. The "oxymoron" that frequently appears in the poem is the manifestation of duality in literature."Oxymoron" is not only a performance of a rhetorical device, but also a way of thinking. It creates both a magical and special aesthetic taste, and a strong tension. Then, I’ll analysis "oxymoron" in two ways:"oxymoron" in the aesthetic and that in the poetry.The third chapter describes the reasons that contribute to the internal divisions and contradictions of Baudelaire. I think about why the duality of the poet is so ingrained, what the reasons are behind. First, I reference Pascal’s dialectics to prove the universality of the duality which is the normal state of human nature so everybody like Baudelaire cannot escape the battle of good and evil in the heart; second, the poet’s miserable infancy and his complex relationship with her mother produce a certain degree of influence; third, the terrible physical condition and mental illness and the dependence on opium addiction accelerate his trend of split.From the dual perspective of Good and Evil, Beauty and Ugliness, this paper proves that the duality is not only the main colors of the poet life, but also the important themes and characteristics of his works. It also opens up a new way to read Baudelaire so that more and more readers can get deeper experiences and feelings about themselves and human society.