Nerval's “Aurélia”: Schizophrenia and Art

Gérard de Nerval, a French poet known primarily by the literary élite of his own time, was one of the few writers whose works were deemed worthy of excavation by the literary anthropologists of the symbolist movement and its descendants. One finds Nerval especially interesting today for much the same reason as that given by Maurice Barrès: “He makes no sense and yet, somehow, he casts a spell.”

The literary works of Nerval captivate the reader. Yet their poetic qualities do not possess the charismatic power Barres speaks of. One is more entranced by the personality of Nerval himself, revealed in his work. Plagued and obsessed by mental illness, Nerval attempted to understand his confused world, and to lessen the emotional impact of those strange periods in his life when madness overcame reason. To understand his work, one must delve into the troubled mind of the author.

A twentieth century diagnosis of Nerval's illness would most likely be chronic undifferentiated schizophrenia. Nerval's autobiographical works show that the author's schizophrenic reaction evolved from a number of severe conflicts concerning self identity, from the belief in the existence of a double who was himself, but distinct from himself. He was driven by a desire for the spirit of his mother, the unattainable female, never faltering in his belief that this woman would give him divine, ideal love. Revolt against reality, against his father, and against a world which Nerval felt placed man at the mercy of malevolent fates, left deep-seated guilt feelings which contaminated more and more of his thought. Conflicts between Christianity and the occult added to already severe guilt feelings, and he pleaded that his sins be forgiven or his wrongs undone. One finds him offering flowers to an ever-powerful father, prayers to the Christian God, his own clothing to the needy he happens to pass on the street, performing cabalistic rituals to counter evil spells.

Before examining Nerval's life and works, I woul