''Les Illuminés, ou Les Précurseurs du Socialisme'' is a collection of narratives or essays by the French poet and author
Gérard de Nerval
Gérard de Nerval (; 22 May 1808 – 26 January 1855), the pen name of the French writer, poet, and translator Gérard Labrunie, was a French essayist, poet, translator, and travel writer. He was a major figure during the era of French romantici ...
published in 1852. In 2022, a complete translation by Peter Valente was published by Wakefield Press under the title ''The Illuminated, or The Precursors of Socialism: Tales and Portraits''.
The book consists of six narratives relating the adventures and mishaps of historical figures whose lives reflected different aspects of Nerval’s own experiences. It is a male counterpart to his ''
Les Filles du feu''. The concerns of socialism in the eighteenth century and the
French Revolution underline most of the narratives.
Contents
* "La Bibliothèque de Mon Oncle," a short introduction
* "Le Roi de Bicêtre"
* "Histoire de l’Abbé de Bucquoy"
* "Les Confidences de Nicolas"
* "
Jacques Cazotte", a French writer, author of ''
The Devil in Love'', unjustly guillotined during the French revolution at the age of 72. He inspired
E. T. A. Hoffmann and
Charles Nodier
Jean Charles Emmanuel Nodier (; 29 April 1780 – 27 January 1844) was a French author and librarian who introduced a younger generation of Romanticists to the ''conte fantastique'', gothic literature, and vampire tales. His dream related writi ...
.
* "Cagliostro"
* "Quintus Aucler", the revolution-era neopagan
Gabriel André Aucler
Notes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Illumines
1852 books
Essay collections
1852 essays
French non-fiction books
Works by Gérard de Nerval