Limbă, Literatură, Folclor

DOI: https://doi.org/10.52505/llf.2025.2.09

Abstract: This article analyzes Charles Baudelaire’s Artificial Paradises from an aesthetic perspective, taking into account the socio-historical context that shaped contemporary views on the impact of narcotics on artistic life. Narcotics consumption is approached as a form of rebellion against the loss of the sacred dimension and the dehumanization of everyday experience. By examining biographical aspects of Baudelaire’s life, the study establishes connections between the poet’s personal experiences and the symbolic imagery of the text, associated with drug-induced states. The imagery in Artificial Paradises often takes on a mythological form. Through the concept of the “waking dream,” Baudelaire evokes an entire fictional universe shaped by visions of the unconscious, understood as a response to the social and personal crises experienced by the poet. Furthermore, by considering the historical context, the study shows that recreational drug use became an integral part of Parisian life in the nineteenth century. The analysis concludes that self-induced states influence artistic creativity through the ambivalent role of narcotics, functioning both as a source of creative stimulation and as a means of escape from social crisis.

Keywords: Baudelaire, dreams, mythology, narcotics, society, symbols, creativity.