"Delphica" (french: Delfica) is a poem by the French writer

Gérard de Nerval Gérard de Nerval (; 22 May 1808 – 26 January 1855) was the pen name of the French writer, poet, and translator Gérard Labrunie, a major figure of French romanticism, best known for his novellas and poems, especially the collection ''Les Fil ...

, first published in 1845 and later included in ''

The Chimeras ''The Chimeras'' (french: Les Chimères) is a sequence of sonnets by the French writer Gérard de Nerval, made up of eight individual poems and a total of twelve sonnets. The poems are: "El Desdichado", "Myrtho", "Horus", "Anteros", " Delphica", " ...

'', a sequence of eight poems. Like the other ''Chimeras'', it is a

sonnet A sonnet is a poetic form that originated in the poetry composed at the Court of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II in the Sicilian city of Palermo. The 13th-century poet and notary Giacomo da Lentini is credited with the sonnet's invention, ...

and was written during a period of mental health problems. The poem is addressed to the

naiad In Greek mythology, the naiads (; grc-gre, ναϊάδες, naïádes) are a type of female spirit, or nymph, presiding over fountains, wells, springs, streams, brooks and other bodies of fresh water. They are distinct from river gods, who ...

Daphne Daphne (; ; el, Δάφνη, , ), a minor figure in Greek mythology, is a naiad, a variety of female nymph associated with fountains, wells, springs, streams, brooks and other bodies of freshwater. There are several versions of the myth in whi ...

, evokes the ancient cult of

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...

Delphi Delphi (; ), in legend previously called Pytho (Πυθώ), in ancient times was a sacred precinct that served as the seat of Pythia, the major oracle who was consulted about important decisions throughout the ancient classical world. The oracle ...

and forecasts that the gods of

classical mythology Classical mythology, Greco-Roman mythology, or Greek and Roman mythology is both the body of and the study of myths from the ancient Greeks and ancient Romans as they are used or transformed by cultural reception. Along with philosophy and polit ...

will return. It revolves around the view that

paganism Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christianity, early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions ot ...

has been dormant or clandestine during the Christian epoch and will see a resurgence. It was published in the magazine ''

L'Artiste ''L’Artiste'' was a weekly illustrated review published in Paris from 1831 to 1904, supplying "the richest single source of contemporary commentary on artists, exhibitions and trends from the Romantic era to the end of the nineteenth century." ...

'' and Nerval's book ''Petits châteaux de Bohème'' (1853) before the complete ''Chimeras'' were published in '' The Daughters of Fire'' (1854).

Background

(1808–1855) wrote the eight poems that became known as ''

'' during a period when he had mental health problems. His doctor Émile Blanche recommended him to use his writing as a form of therapy. "Delphica" took inspiration from Nerval's travels in Italy and from

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as trea ...

's poem "" in ''

Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship ''Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship'' ( ger, Wilhelm Meisters Lehrjahre) is the second novel by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, published in 1795–96. Plot The eponymous hero undergoes a journey of self-realization. The story centers upon Wilhelm's ...

'' (1795–96). It is an amalgamation of two previous

s by Nerval: the first eight lines were adapted from "À J.-Y. Colonna" and the last three from "À Made Aguado". Both predecessors are known from the manuscript ''Dumesnil de Gramont α'', dated to 1840–1845.

Structure and summary

"Delphica", like the other ''Chimeras'', is a sonnet composed in

French alexandrine The French alexandrine (french: alexandrin) is a syllabic poetic metre of (nominally and typically) 12 syllables with a medial caesura dividing the line into two hemistichs (half-lines) of six syllables each. It was the dominant long line of Fren ...

, which means it has fourteen lines with twelve syllables each. Nerval frequently broke the rules of the "regular" French sonnet as defined by

Théodore de Banville Théodore Faullain de Banville (14 March 1823 – 13 March 1891) was a French poet and writer. His work was influential on the Symbolist movement in French literature in the late 19th century. Biography Banville was born in Moulins in Allier, ...

, which was supposed to have the rhyme scheme abba-abba-ccd-ede. Unlike in some of the ''Chimeras'', the

quatrain A quatrain is a type of stanza, or a complete poem, consisting of four lines. Existing in a variety of forms, the quatrain appears in poems from the poetic traditions of various ancient civilizations including Persia, Ancient India, Ancient Greec ...

s in "Delphica" do have the

enclosed rhyme Enclosed rhyme (or enclosing rhyme) is the rhyme scheme ABBA (that is, where the first and fourth lines, and the second and third lines rhyme). Enclosed-rhyme quatrains are used in introverted quatrains, as in the first two stanzas of Petrarchan ...

structure that Banville preferred. The rhyming sounds of the quatrains are

assonance Assonance is a resemblance in the sounds of words/syllables either between their vowels (e.g., ''meat, bean'') or between their consonants (e.g., ''keep, cape''). However, assonance between consonants is generally called ''consonance'' in America ...

s: /ɑ̃s/ and /ɑ̃/. The two

tercet A tercet is composed of three lines of poetry, forming a stanza or a complete poem. Examples of tercet forms English-language haiku is an example of an unrhymed tercet poem. A poetic triplet is a tercet in which all three lines follow the same ...

s that close the poem break the assonance with the rhymes /ur/, /ɛ̃/ and /ik/. The subject's starting point is

Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the th ...

's ''

Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' ( la, Metamorphōsēs, from grc, μεταμορφώσεις: "Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the wo ...

'' 1.488–611, which tells the story of how the god

became infatuated with the

and how she was transformed into a

laurel tree Laurel is part of the English common name of many trees and other plants, particularly those of the laurel family (''Lauraceae''). Most laurels are highly poisonous. Plants called "laurel" include:See article for additional common names. * Alexan ...

. The poet addresses Daphne and asks if she remembers a love song that continuously begins to play among trees and bushes. He asks if she recognises the Temple of Apollo at

and alludes to two myths: Apollo slaying the dragon

Python Python may refer to: Snakes * Pythonidae, a family of nonvenomous snakes found in Africa, Asia, and Australia ** ''Python'' (genus), a genus of Pythonidae found in Africa and Asia * Python (mythology), a mythical serpent Computing * Python (pro ...

, and the hero

Cadmus In Greek mythology, Cadmus (; grc-gre, Κάδμος, Kádmos) was the legendary Phoenician founder of Boeotian Thebes. He was the first Greek hero and, alongside Perseus and Bellerophon, the greatest hero and slayer of monsters before the da ...

planting the dragon's teeth to grow warriors who founded a new civilisation, told in ''Metamorphoses'' 3.1–187. In the first tercet, the poet promises that the gods of

will return and the ancient order be restored. The final three lines say that "the

sibyl The sibyls (, singular ) were prophetesses or oracles in Ancient Greece. The sibyls prophesied at holy sites. A sibyl at Delphi has been dated to as early as the eleventh century BC by PausaniasPausanias 10.12.1 when he described local traditi ...

" continues to sleep under the

Arch of Constantine The Arch of Constantine ( it, Arco di Costantino) is a triumphal arch in Rome dedicated to the emperor Constantine the Great. The arch was commissioned by the Roman Senate to commemorate Constantine's victory over Maxentius at the Battle of Milvi ...

Themes and interpretations

"Delphica" concerns the culture of

classical antiquity Classical antiquity (also the classical era, classical period or classical age) is the period of cultural history between the 8th century BC and the 5th century AD centred on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ...

and how it has survived into modern times. connects the poem's dragon to other motifs in the ''Chimera'' poems: the dragon in "Anteros", the volcano in "Myrtho" and the

Chimera Chimera, Chimaera, or Chimaira (Greek for " she-goat") originally referred to: * Chimera (mythology), a fire-breathing monster of Ancient Lycia said to combine parts from multiple animals * Mount Chimaera, a fire-spewing region of Lycia or Cilicia ...

of the collective title. They all signify, according to Marchal, the concept of an eternal

that has lived on in clandestine forms since the victory of Christianity. Frederick Burwick writes that the image of the dragon's teeth as generative seeds is echoed in a description of Daphne biting a lemon and leaving marks with her teeth. Along with being sexually and erotically charged, the images have an element of unfulfilled desire and function as symbols for a rebirth that is yet to happen. The Arch of Constantine, under which the pagan sibyl slumbers, functions as a symbol for the Christian epoch. The end of the poem suggests that the resurgence of pagan myth may take a long time because there is nothing that disturbs the sibyl's sleep. When "Delphica" first was published, it had the epigraph "", which is Latin for "Now comes the last age foretold by the

Cumaean sibyl The Cumaean Sibyl was the priestess presiding over the Apollonian oracle at Cumae, a Greek colony located near Naples, Italy. The word ''sibyl'' comes (via Latin) from the ancient Greek word ''sibylla'', meaning prophetess. There were many sibyls ...

". Upon republication in 1853, this was replaced by "", meaning "And now the virgin returns". Both epigraphs are from the opening of

Vergil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...

's ''Eclogue'' 4, written around 42 BC, which Emperor

Constantine Constantine most often refers to: * Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I *Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria Constantine may also refer to: People * Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...

and others had interpreted as prophetic about the advent of Christianity. Nerval's intention may have been to counter this interpretation with an oracular poem about the return of the pagan gods. In its final form, "Delphica" has no epigraph. Chimera d'arezzo, fi, 03

The reference to Daphne and thereby laurel trees in "Delphica" can be connected to a passage in "Myrtho" which says that

hydrangea ''Hydrangea'', () commonly named the hortensia, is a genus of over 75 species of flowering plants native to Asia and the Americas. By far the greatest species diversity is in eastern Asia, notably China, Korea, and Japan. Most are shrubs tall, ...

and myrtle are unified "under the branches of Vergil's laurel" (french: sous les rameaux du laurier de Virgile). Like the quatrains of "Delphica", this line in "Myrtho" was adapted from "À J.-Y. Colonna" and is thus part of the original continuation of "Delphica"'s first eight lines. The literary scholar Sarah Gubbins connects the image, which is not explained in any of the poems, to the explicit contrast between Christianity and paganism in "Delphica"'s tercets, writing that Nerval may point toward a fusion of elements that appear to be incompatible, like the mythical Chimera. For a 1973 translation, Curtis Bennett interpreted Nerval's turn to paganism as a protest against repressive doctrines of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. This is criticised by Burwick who says the thesis has distorted Bennett's translation.

Publication

Like several of the ''Chimeras'', "Delphica" first appeared in the magazine ''

'' where it was published on 28 December 1845. It was there titled "Vers dorés" (), which later became the title of another ''Chimera'' poem. It was republished in the ''

Revue de Paris ''Revue de Paris'' was a French literary magazine founded in 1829 by Louis-Désiré Véron. After two years Veron left the magazine to head the Paris Opera The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded ...

'' in November 1851 and with the title "Daphné" in Nerval's book ''Petits châteaux de Bohème'' (1853; ), where it appears in the section . ''The Chimeras'' were first published together at the end of Nerval's 1854 book '' The Daughters of Fire'', where "Delphica"'s final title was established. The title is a Latinised and feminine form of Delphi.

Legacy

W. B. Yeats William Butler Yeats (13 June 186528 January 1939) was an Irish poet, dramatist, writer and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the Irish Literary Revival and became a pillar of the Irish liter ...

was influenced by "Delphica" when he conceived a return in his poem " The Second Coming" (1920).

References

Citations

Sources

* * * * * * * * *

External links

Gérard de Nerval: Delphica
English interpretation by

Michael Ferber Michael Kelvin Ferber (born July 1, 1944) was the youngest of the five defendants in the federal anti-draft trial in the spring of 1968 in Boston, Massachusetts. The trial attracted national attention because one of the defendants was Dr. Benjamin ...

, published in ''

Literary Imagination The Association of Literary Scholars, Critics, and Writers (ALSCW) was organized in 1994 as the Association of Literary Scholars and Critics by a group of over 400 scholars troubled by what they saw as an over reliance on post-modern theory in the a ...

'', volume 5, issue 3, 2003 {{Gérard de Nerval 1845 poems French poems Sonnets Works by Gérard de Nerval Classical mythology in popular culture Poetry based on Metamorphoses Delphi in fiction Modern pagan literature 19th-century modern paganism Modern paganism in France