Contemplations

Contemplations are a collection of 158 poems gathered in 6 books that Victor Hugo published in 1856. He is regarded as the lyric masterpiece of this author. The majority of these poems were written between 1841 and 1855. But the oldest poems of this collection go back to 1834. Contemplations are a collection of the memory, love, joy but also of death, mourning and even mystic.

Formerly: 1830-1843

Contemplations like collection of the love

The love in Contemplations can take various forms. It can be a question of the naive love of teenager (Old woman song of the young time). It is a love where the expression of the feelings is awkward and hesitant.

The sensual love also is important. The sensuality is discrete (as in the majority of the poems) even in an erotic exceptional way. The love is thus source of happiness and joy.

Lyricism in love and nature

But the poems of the love are also of the poems of nature: “we were going to the orchard to gather bigarreaus”. Lyricism in love mixes with lyricism with nature without them merging. It is not the unhappy love affair which Hugo sings but on the contrary the love like source of plenitude, of happiness with two and of communion with nature.

How the poet speaks about the love and nature? In the forms of often short poems as if Hugo sought more to collect one fugitive moment that to give a long painting of his feelings. Hugo often concentrates on some parts of reality by thus giving a fragmented image: he does not make a portrait of cape in foot of the woman whom he loves but evokes his nape of the neck or his feet and his hair. Nature itself is described in a very fragmentary way: Hugo evokes a tree and his branches, the bank and the snap rings. In the poems of love, the love and nature are closely dependant. It is as if the only function of nature were to be the place of the moments shared between Hugo and the woman whom he likes.

Contemplations like works of mourning

Contemplations are also a collection of the memory of Léopoldine and nostalgia:

The told memories are those of happy moments spent with his/her daughter: Hugo evokes the tales which he told with his children and the title pauca meae means “some worms”… for Léopoldine.

But the moments spent together are always evoked in a vague way and by fragments (on the 17 poems of Pauca meae Hugo tells only in 4 poems of the scenes of the past.)

But Hugo also clearly shows his refusal of died and does not cease questioning God as for the direction of the death of Léopoldine. Pauca meae is thus above all the poems of the suffering: on nearly 9 poems out of 17 component Pauca meae it is question of pains. The death of Léopoldine makes waver the faith of Hugo and its confidence as a God. and even the idea that the Poet must be made messenger of God and guide of the people (idea however old at Hugo). But at the same time Hugo acknowledges his incapacity to include/understand the intentions of God and his tender with the divine will. Hugo outlines by there the idea that the life ends in a mystery that no one cannot include/understand.

As for the tone and the style of Hugo, his language and its poetry are characterized by their simplicity. The same rhymes return from a poem to another.

Hugo refuses moreover any pathos. He has recourse to a double to speak about his own sufferings thus giving the impression of speaking about another. He refuses any exaggerated personal lyricism. He writes for example in: “I will look at neither the gold of the evening which falls Nor the veils to far descendant towards Harfleur” and seems by there rejecting any easy sentimentalism.

Which is the recipient of Pauca meae ? His/her Léopoldine daughter initially to which Hugo addresses himself. Hugo writes for example “see you, I know that you await me”. A way of interptéter it worms is to think that Hugo addresses to God. It is as if the Poet were not any more messenger of God but was not capable any more to include/understand the intentions of God. Poetry is made prayer pointing out the Bible. Hugo addresses to the other men: its sufferings are those of all: “homo sum” writes it in the Foreword. Poetry calls upon universal feelings.

Conclusion

Place des Contemplations in the work of Hugo

Contemplations and the Punishments form a block much more homogeneous than one could believe. The melancholy is made inconsolable sorrow born all at the same time loss of Léopoldine and the Exile which seems to have to be without end. Lyricism crosses these two collections: lyricism in love and lyricism born with mourning and in addition in the Punishments lyricism which tries in spite of anger to take again its rights). Lastly, it is the confidence in the divine intentions - were incomprehensible which crosses the two collections: Lux and has Villequier are both of the poems of confidence as a God.

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