Degenerates and Decadence: Was the Decadent movement a degenerate one?

Fin de sicle British society, seemingly had a strained relationship with certain individuals within it. Scary, dark, creative individuals. Creative individuals who at the time were producing art, literature, plays and poetry, which to this day are admired and studied. A collection of artists, a movement, that was to have a lasting impact on art to follow. As famous as it is infamous: the Decadent movement. Oscar Wilde, Joris-Karl Huysmans, Charles Baudelaire, Aubrey Beardsley, Max Beerbohm, Arthur Symsocial darwinismons, George Moore, Octave Mirbeau, Gustave Moreau, Jane de La Vaudr, Comte de Lautramont, that is only to name a few of the artists involved in the influential movement. In todays society these artists and writers are looked upon with credibility and respect. They are subject to mainstream acclaim and academic study. This however, was not always the case. At the turn of the 19th century, these same works were steeped in controversy. The majority of fin de sicle society saw the 'Decadents', as the lowest of life, 'the thing wrong with society today', degenerates. They were the rotten core of the empire. They would cause the collapse of society. The enemies of progress. A new century was dawning, things were changing, people were scared. Fin de sicle Victorian Britain, to be general, was focused on the idea of social progress. Charles Darwins On the Origin of Species (1859), had gained much fame and acclaim by the 1880s, his theory of natural selection and the evolution of society shaped popular opinion. As many more individuals of each species are born than can possibly survive; and as, consequently, there is a frequently recurring struggle for existence, it follows that any being, if it vary however slightly in any manner profitable to itself, under the complex and sometimes varying conditions of life, will have a better chance of surviving, and thus be naturally selected. From the strong principle of inheritance, any selected variety will tend to propagate its new and modified form.1 So, if society had evolved from the Stone Age, as man had evolved from ape. Was it possible for a similar devolution to occur? Society was exposed to suitably corrupt conditions could we go backwards? The acceptance of this possibility had given way to a plethora of new schools of thought. New imperialism, the new woman, new naturalism, sexology and eugenics. Society was anxious about it's future, concerned about the new century. Society was worried. Worried about the weak, the deviants. Could this group of writers, potentially cause ruin? What was to become of culture in the new century? The Decadents on the other hand looked at life a little bit differently. They did not share the conventional concerns. While the mainstream was concerned with society as a whole. The Decadents concern was the self, the the introverted self. They wanted to push the boundaries of self enquiry, self exploration. Document the self in unnatural states, in states of frenzy, in states of pleasure. They wanted to experience, in every sense of the word.
1
D arwin, C. On the Orig in of S pecies, by Mea ns o f Na tural Selectio n (Lo nd on : Joh n Murray, 18 59)

As such, indulgence and hedonism were the order of the day for the movement. Hedonistic experimentation, depicted through the written word and art. The characters created by Decadent authors were obsessive and excessive. Pursuing the interests of their desire to an obscene degree, gluttonous inquisition. Depictions of States of synaesthesia, melancholy and aboulia, neurosis and rampant, obsessive sexuality were common place in Decadent writing.: His alarm increased; but unfortunately the means of subduing the inexorable malady were not at hand. He had unsuccessfully sought to install a hydropathic apparatus in his dressing room[]Since he could not have floods of water playing on him from the nozzle of a hose, (the only efficacious means of overcoming his insomnia and calming his nerves through its action on his spinal column) he was reduced to brief sprays or to mere cold baths, followed by energetic massages applied by his servant with the aid of a horse-hair glove.2 Another aspect of the Decadent movement was an interest, almost a trust put in the mystical, a stark contrast to the emphasis put on science at the time. The Decadents yearned for the mystical, the paranormal and the magical. Occult imagery and ideas were prevalent Decadent works. Sometimes very explicitly, with direct references to the occult, tarot cards, kabala, Satanism and theosophy. J.K Huysmans La-Bas, with its depictions of Satanic Ritual and Black Mass. Even when not not directly referenced, this yearning for the mystical is present in the feel of the pieces. To me, there seems to be the aura of something lost. The rejection of the modern society and the lust for a return to mysticism. Attention should be drawn to Wildes work in particular. He after all is probably the most famous writer of the movement. In my reading of Wilde, his depictions of aesthetic philosophy, he very much promoted the idea of art for arts sake, which I think was a sign of the intention of the group as a whole: Those who find beautiful meanings in beautiful things are the cultivated. For these there is hope. They are the elect to whom beautiful things mean only beauty. There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written. That is all In this aesthetic theory, we see a decline away from modern thinking and meaning. This replaced by a trust in the irrational, less definable aspects of the world. An evocation of states of sensation and emotions, obsessively pursued in order to reach an exquisite, almost divine state. The decadence did not stop with the characters however. It was also in the style they wrote. The vocabulary they used. John Reed and his essay Decadent Style (1981),3 presents to us two essays. Both written at the time, both concerning Charles Baudelaire. In one we are presented with a clear example of how the Decadent authors depicted their ideas. Theophile Gautier describes association made between ideas of social decay, decline and literary style, views which are echoed by Paul Bourget: It is an ingenious, complex, learned style, full of shades and refinements of meaning, ever extending the bounds of language, borrowing from every technical vocabulary, taking colours from every palette and notes from every keyboard; a style that endeavours to express the most inexpressible thoughts, the vaguest and most fleeting contours of form, that listens, with a view to rendering them, to the subtle confidences of neurosity, to the confessions of aging lust turning into depravity, and to the odd
2
H uysm an s, J.K. A-Re bo urs (Pa ris: Ch ape ntie r 1 88 4), p p. 89

3
Ree d, J. Dec ade nt S ty le (The No rth Ame rica n Revie w: Vol.2 66 , 1 95 3), p p. 59- 61

hallucinations of fixed ideas passing into mania. This Decadent style is the final expression of the Word which is called upon to express everything, and which is worked for all it is worth.4 Wildes Picture of Dorian Grey and Huysman's A-Rebours to name a couple are clearly presented in this way. An obsession of the protagonist is depicted in a format akin to a miniessay. This done in flowery, complicated language. All done to encourage the wilful decline of the reader, a pleasurable deterioration, a beautiful decay. The very definition of Decadent. If the libertines of the Decadent movement were at one end of the scale, at the other we find Max Nordau and his theories of degeneration. As we have mentioned previous, concerns about the turn of the century, the future of society, the collapse of all that was good, was born out of the popularity of social Darwinism. Articulating these worries and providing people to point the finger at was Max Nordau. In his major work Degeneration, degeneration theory is presented to the worried fin de seicle reader. Playing on the fears and anxieties at the time, and suggesting potential scapegoats. The theory itself, is presented in Nordau's screaming, soap-box style. At its most basic, the theory goes that deviants in society are being allowed to flourish, have influence of the majority. Their influence in turn would effect the evolution of society. It would cause us to become immoral scum. Society would collapse. The people were at the Dusk of nations, in which all suns and all stars are gradually waning, and mankind with all its institutions and creations is persisting in the midst of a dying world ,5 Nordau named, highlighted and investigated in to degeneracy in the civilised world. He is at his most charming when he gives his opinions on Wilde: Wilde []Wilde obtained, by his buffoon mummery, a notoriety in the whole Anglo-Saxon world that his poems and dramas would never have acquired for him however the whole of the Decadent movement touches out. So to does Nietzsche, Ibsen and Wagner amongst many more.6 This is clearly a knee jerk response to things the author simply doesn't understand. A piece designed to exploit the fear of the unknown, to enduce moral panic and more importantly, to create scandal and sell copy. However, there must have been some to it. Degeneration theory must in some way be a reflection of genuine concerns. But were they founded? Were they fair? Certainly there would have been a swell of negative opinion damning the Decadent movement. The artists alternative lifestyles, the banned publications, the controversial subject matter, all contributed to the public's negative perception of the group. Most infamously, Wilde's trouble's and subsequent arrest were the scandals of the time. He, a married man with children, was outed as living a secret homosexual life. Not only with the 9th Marquess of Queensberry's son, Lord Alfred Douglas, but with male prostitutes as well. While now it is outrageous to think a man would be jailed for being a homosexual, at the time it was equally as outrageous to be outed as gay. The way Wilde was treated was totally wrong, appalling, but it was sadly sign of the times. However, I don't believe the group was a bunch of degenerates, wanting to bring about the downfall of society at the time. Aiming to cause a devolution Rather they were trying to
4
G autier, T. qu oted by Ree d, J. Ib id, pp .5 9

5
Norda u, M.S . Dege neratio n (2 n d ed .) (Ne w Yo rk: A pp leton , 1 89 5)

6
Ibid pp .3 17

answer the same anxieties that everyone else had. They just came up with different answers. Where others found science, they found mysticism. Nordau's answer was to to marginalise people for not living in the way he saw fit. He saw a group of artists with alternative interests and used them as scapegoats. Labelling them 'victims of modernity'. He really runs with this, going so far as to suggest that their brains have actually decayed, leading to a moral depravity which is depicted in their art. While this again is more of Nordau's mad ranting, he uses science as a weapon. However, there is something to it. We have on one end of the scale people that believe science, even in the crude manner depicted here, provide the answers to the worries of society. Science will allow society to progress as a whole. On the other end of the scale we have a group of artists, that believe self inquest with provide the answers to the anxieties of the day. Where Nordau's theory highlights concerns about the levels of emotionalism in society , the lack of manliess of the public. Deeming it to be a mental stigma of degenerates.7The introverted, isolationist nature of Decadent literature, contrasts. Rather than reject you embrace difference, seek to understand it. Embrace introversion. Self knowledge then replaces shock treatment. The works of the Decadent movement, in this light, read like guides to individual progress. A road map to progress for culture rather than society. Society exists only as a mental concept; in the real world there are only individuals.8 This view is expressed most plainly, in Wilde's The Soul of Man Under Socialism(1891): Individualism will be far freer, far finer, and far more intensified than it is now. I am not talking of the great imaginatively realised Individualism of such poets as I have mentioned, but of the great actual Individualism latent and potential in mankind generally. For the recognition of private property has really harmed Individualism, and obscured it, by confusing a man with what he possesses. It has led Individualism entirely astray. It has made gain not growth its aim. So that man thought that the important thing was to have, and did not know that the important thing is to be. The true perfection of man lies not in what man has, but in what man is.9 For the Decadents, the individual must be allowed space, freedom and even economically, to express themselves and experiment Evolution is the law of life, and there is no evolution except towards Individualism.10Progress was sought by the moment just a different kind. This is why it is wrong to class them as degenerate. They were not immoral, just different, The art of the Decadent movement, be it illustration, painting, poetry or literary work, presented to fin de sicle society an individualistic, positivist alternative to conventional, rationalist thought. The Decadents sought to emphasise individual expression and experimentation as a crucial element of 'progress'.

7
Norda u, M. S. De gene ra tion pp . 32 1

8
Wild e qu ote d in Haley, B. Wildes Decade nce an d th e Po sitivist Tra ditio n, pp .1 35

9
Wild e, O. The S ou l o f Man u nde r S ocialism

10
Wild e, O. In te ntio ns (Lon do n, 1 89 1) , Ch pt. The Artist a s Critic

It is true, the decadent movement did seek a decline in society. But it was a decline in the idea of a homogenised society. Rather than a herd, a man stands alone. They advocated a wilful falling away in to ones self. A move away from scientific, testable knowledge and one towards a unique kind of positivism. A positivism, which put at the centre of its concern the individual. The acquisition of knowledge, through experimenting with ones senses. The result is to maximise the possibility of artistic expression and creativity. They too sought progress for society, but that progress is found in the individuals artistic and creative expressions. Beauty being the fundamental goal, the highest value. It could be the case, for the most part, they might have been right. Maybe a societies worth shouldn't be measured by it's economic valuation, scientific contribution or monopolisation of certain markets. But rather, it's artistic and creative output.

Bibliography Primary Sources

Carpenter, E. Loves Coming of Age (London: Methuen, 1914), Chpt. The Intermediate Sex, found in Ledger, S., Luckhurst, R. The Fin de Sicle, A Reader in Cultural History c. 1880-1900 (London: Oxford University Press 2000) Darwin, C. On the Origin of Species, by Means of Natural Selection (London: John Murray, 1859), ed. Penguin World Classics, 2002 Hake, E. Regeneration: A Reply to Max Nordau (Westminster: Archibald Constable 1895), found in Ledger, S., Luckhurst, R. The Fin de Sicle, A Reader in Cultural History c. 1880-1900 (London: Oxford University Press 2000) Huysmans, J.K. A-Rebours (Paris: Chapentier 1884), ed. Penguin World Classics, 2004 Huysmans, J.K. La-Bas (Paris: Chapentier 1887), ed. Deladus, 2008 Mill, J.S. On Liberty (London, 1859), ed. Oxford University Press, 2000 Nordau, M.S. Degeneration (2nd ed.) (New York: Appleton, 1895), ed. Nabu Press, 2009 Nordau, M. S. The Man of Genius (New York: Appleton 1889), ed. Nabu Press, 2009

Lankester, E. R. Degeneration: A Chapter in Darwinism (London: Macmillan, 1880), found in Ledger, S., Luckhurst, R. The Fin de Sicle, A Reader in Cultural History c. 1880-1900 (London: Oxford University Press 2000) Lombroso, C. Criminal Man (Turin 1871), ed. Trans: Mary Harper, Duke University Press, 2006 Symons, A. The Decadent Movement in Literature (London: Harpers, 1893), found in Ledger, S., Luckhurst, R. The Fin de Sicle, A Reader in Cultural History c. 1880-1900 (London: Oxford University Press 2000) Smiles, S. Self Help: With illustrations of Conduct and Persaverence (1879), retrieved Feburary 23, 2010, from Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext97/selfh10h.htm, 1997) Stoker, B. Dracula (London: Methuen 1897), ed. Oxford Worlds Classics, 2002 H. G. Wells Zoological Retrogression (London, 1891), found in Ledger, S., Luckhurst, R. The Fin de Sicle, A Reader in Cultural History c. 1880-1900 (London: Oxford University Press 2000) Wilde, O. The Soul of Man Under Socialism (London: Fortnightly Review, 1891) found in Wilde-The Major Works, (London: Oxford Worlds Classics, 2006) Wilde, O. The Picture of Dorian Grey (London: Lippincott, 1890) ed. Modern Library, 1998

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