Musset, Alfred de

Musset, Alfred de

▪ French author
in full  Louis-Charles-Alfred de Musset 
born Dec. 11, 1810, Paris, France
died May 2, 1857, Paris
 French Romantic dramatist and poet, best known for his plays.

      Musset's autobiographical La Confession d'un enfant du siècle (1836; The Confession of a Child of the Century), if not entirely trustworthy, presents a striking picture of Musset's youth as a member of a noble family, well-educated but ruled by his emotions in a period when all traditional values were under attack. While still an adolescent he came under the influence of the leaders of the Romantic movement—Charles Nodier (Nodier, Charles), Alfred de Vigny (Vigny, Alfred-Victor, comte de), and Victor Hugo (Hugo, Victor)—and produced his first work, Contes d'Espagne et d'Italie (“Stories of Spain and of Italy”) in 1830. At the same time he became a dandy, one of the elegant Parisian imitators of Beau Brummell (Brummell, Beau), and embarked on a life of hectic sexual and alcoholic dissipation.

      After the failure of his play La Nuit vénitienne (1830; “The Venetian Night”), Musset refused to allow his other plays to be performed but continued to publish historical tragedies—e.g., Lorenzaccio (1834)—and comedies—e.g., Il ne faut jurer de rien (1836; “It Isn't Necessary to Promise Anything”). He was also an extraordinarily versatile poet, writing light satirical pieces and poems of dazzling technical virtuosity as well as lyrics, such as “La Nuit d'octobre” (1837; “The October Night”), which express with passion and eloquence his complex emotions.

      Though associated with the Romantic movement, Musset often poked fun at its excesses. His Lettres de Dupuis et Cotonet (1836–37), for example, contain a brilliant and illuminating satire of the literary fashions of the day. A love affair with the novelist George Sand (Sand, George) that went on intermittently from 1833 to 1839 inspired some of his finest lyrics, as recounted in his Confession. He was elected to the Académie Française in 1852.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Musset, Alfred de — (1810 1857)    writer    A leading French romantic poet, Alfred de Musset was born in Paris and, gifted with unusual precocity, was introduced in 1828 into the Cénacle de Nodier, where he met alfred de vigny and charles sainte beuve and got his… …   France. A reference guide from Renaissance to the Present

  • Musset, Alfred de — ► (1810 57) Escritor romántico francés. Sus Confesiones de un hijo del siglo (1836) nos revelan su vida atormentada, sus viajes y sus amores desgraciados con George Sand. Sus poesías tienen como tema el amor y el dolor; están reunidas en dos… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • MUSSET, ALFRED DE —    the premier poet of modern French literature, born in Paris of good parentage; wayward and impulsive in youth, he would settle to no occupation, till his already awakened taste for poetry receiving a powerful stimulus through contact with… …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Musset — Musset, Alfred de …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Alfred De Musset — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Musset. Alfred de Musset …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Alfred de musset — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Musset. Alfred de Musset …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Alfred de Musset — painted by Charles Landelle Alfred Louis Charles de Musset Pathay[1] (11 December 1810 – 2 May 1857) was a French dramatist, poet, and novelist.[1] …   Wikipedia

  • Alfred de Musset — (* 11. Dezember 1810 in Paris; † 2. Mai 1857 ebenda) war ein französischer Schriftsteller. Er gilt als einer der großen unter den französischen Romantikern …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Alfred de Musset — Retrato. Nacimiento 11 de diciembre de 1810 París …   Wikipedia Español

  • Musset — (Alfred de) (1810 1857) écrivain français. Admis dans le cénacle romantique de Nodier, il publia en 1830 un vol. de vers, Contes d Espagne et d Italie. En 1833, il partit pour l Italie avec George Sand. Il en revint seul. Son désespoir lui… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

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