Parnassianism is a literary school that emerged in France in the mid-nineteenth century, which aimed to create "perfect poetry", valuing the form and cultured language, and criticizing the sentimentality of Romanticism.
You Parnassians they valued positivism and science above any other human feeling; they relentlessly sought to create a perfect rhyme, using a cultured vocabulary and complex textual constructions.
This predominantly poetic literary movement was based on the doctrine of "art for art's sake", presented by the French literary critic and poet Theophile Gautier. According to the principles of the theory proposed by Gautier, art did not need to be surrounded by a "Golden" of human meanings and feelings, but rather to be made with the intention of being perfect, beautiful and refined.
Etymologically, the word "Parnassianism" arose from the Greek "Parnassus", place where, according to Greek mythology, lived the muses and nymphs; besides being the home of the god Apollo and of poetry. The name of this literary movement was also chosen in honor of the first Parnassian publication, entitled
"Le parnasse contemporain", which contained all the basic features of this school.Among the main French authors of Parnassianism are: Théophile Gautier, Leconte de Lisle, Théodore de Banville and José Maria de Heredia.
Parnassianism in Brazil
In Brazil, the Parnassian movement was more prominent than in Europe. The publication considered the trigger of national Parnassianism was "Fanfarras", by Teófilo Dias, in 1889.
Brazilian Parnassianism did not follow to the letter all the characteristics found in French Parnassianism. Subjectivity and nationalism - aspects that were abolished by French Parnassian aesthetics - were present (to a certain extent) in the poems of Brazilian authors.
The main precursors of Parnassianism in Brazil were the poets olavo bilac, Alberto de Oliveira and Raimundo Correia, the group that became known as the "Brazilian Triad of Parnassianism".
Parnassianism lasted until 1922, with the arrival of the Week of Modern Art in São Paulo.
Characteristics of Parnassianism
Originally, Parnassianism had as its main objective to oppose the sentimentality of romanticism and the prose proposed by realism and naturalism.
Parnassian poetry was intended to be perfect. The authors searched for the ideal words to construct the poems rationally; as if they were building a majestic artistic puzzle.
The Parnassian poems, unlike what happens with the romantics, were concerned with "holding back tears", dedicating themselves to the perfection of form and cultured language.
Among the main features of this literary movement are:
- Objectivity: opposition to subjectivism and exaggerated sentimentality;
- impersonality: absence of the "I"; denial of romantic sentimentality;
- art for art: reality is not an influence for poetry;
- Descriptivism: concern with the description of physical and aesthetic form;
- I worship form: perfectionism that opposes the neglect of romantic poetry;
- vocabulary preciousness: cultured language that is difficult to understand;
- Thematic Universalism: however, nationalism was widely exploited by Brazilian Parnassians, with a certain moderation.
Parnassianism and Symbolism
As well as Parnassianism, the Symbolism it is also a poetic literary movement that emerged in France in the mid-19th century.
Symbolism, unlike Parnassianism, encouraged subjectivism through ideas and symbols. Mysticism and religiosity were themes adopted by the artists of Symbolism, in opposition to the Positivist ideals of the artists of Parnassianism.
In the aesthetics of poems, while the Parnassians were concerned with building the perfect poetry, with a cultured language, the artists of symbolism used metaphors and sound figures, such as alliteration and assonance.
Some of Symbolism's ideals come close to some views of Romanticism.
See also the meaning of symbolism.
