One of Cleopatra's Nights: and Other Fantastic Romances

THÉOPHILE GAUTIER (1811-1872), French poet, novelist, critic, and journalist. He played a prominent role in the Romantic Movement in the 1830s (his “Histoire du romantisme” appeared in 1874). Closely associated with the doctrine of “l´art pour l´art”, he expounded this aesthetic vision in the preface to his novel “Mademoiselle de Maupin” (1835). His best known collection of poems is “Emaux et camées” (1852), which exercised considerable influence on the Parnassians. He had a long career in journalism, and wrote widely on travel, art, ballet, and the theatre.