Aurelia

work by Nerval

Also known as: “Aurélia”

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June 18, 2026

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Aurélia, also known as Aurelia, is a significant work by the French Romantic poet Gérard de Nerval. Written between 1853 and 1854, it is a prose work that delves into Nerval's personal experiences with mental illness, obsessions, and hallucinations. The work is deeply personal, drawing heavily on his memories and internal struggles, particularly influenced by his unrequited love for Jenny Colon.

Nerval viewed dreams as a vital connection between the mundane world and supernatural events. Aurélia reflects this belief, transcribing his visions and fantasies. This work, along with his sonnet sequence Les Chimères, is considered a peak of his artistic achievement, showcasing his unique ability to blend exquisite taste with an intuitive grasp of imagery to convey his dreams of a lost paradise. His exploration of symbolism and the prose poem in Aurélia influenced later poets like Baudelaire and Mallarmé.12

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French literature
Nerval
Aurelia). The dense symbolic allusiveness of these latter works is the poetic transcription of an anguished, mystical quest that draws on the most diverse religious myths and all manner of literary, historical, occult, and esoteric knowledge. They represent one of the peaks of achievement of…
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Aurelia). The dense symbolic allusiveness of these latter works is the poetic transcription of an anguished, mystical quest that draws on the most diverse religious myths and all manner of literary, historical, occult, and esoteric knowledge. They represent one of the peaks of achievement of…
Read More