How did Charles Baudelaire influence the Symbolist movement?

Charles Baudelaire served as a foundational influence on the Symbolist movement, acting as a crucial link between Romanticism and modernism. Symbolist forerunners, most notably Paul Verlaine and Arthur Rimbaud, were deeply inspired by his poetry, particularly the collection Les Fleurs du mal (1857).12

Baudelaire’s primary contributions to the movement included:

• Concept of Correspondances: He introduced the idea of correspondances between the senses, which Symbolists adopted and combined with the Wagnerian ideal of a synthesis of the arts to explore the musical qualities of poetry.2
• Shift to Symbol and Suggestion: By blending intellect with feeling and irony with lyricism, Baudelaire moved poetry away from the Romantic tradition of direct statement toward a modern focus on symbol and suggestion.1
• Modern Subjectivity: He was recognized for his ability to represent the complexity of modern man, influencing the Symbolist desire to describe the fleeting sensations of the inner life rather than adhering to rigid, traditional conventions.21

Ultimately, Baudelaire’s work provided the aesthetic framework that allowed Symbolists to prioritize subjective emotional responses and the "ineffable intuitions" of existence.2