Towards the end of the nineteenth century, a new phenomenon arose in European art and literature. It became known as decadence. What it is? Translated from French (or even from medieval Latin), this word means “sunset”, “decline”. Initially, it was used by historians in order to describe the situation in the culture of late Rome of the era of antiquity.
But then the term was adopted by the artists themselves, after which it acquired a slightly different meaning. Decadence began to be considered something special, opposing philistinism and respectable burgherism. In Russian art and literature often use a different term. This is "decadence."
In the visual arts, proponents and adherents of the new phenomenon often opposed the formalization of such a popular and generally accepted style as academism. Representatives of decadence, in fact, were modernists and longed for new forms, which, in their opinion, were more consistent with the complex and often contradictory nature of modern culture. In addition, writers and poets who wrote in this style sought unlimited self-expression. They were interested not so much in the fate of society, as in questions of personal being, or rather, its finiteness. No wonder it is with death that decadence is often associated with us.
The meaning of the word, of course, changed, and in today's culture it means a certain rapture with ugliness, sadness and fear. In a word, what is expensive to the so-called Goths. But in those days, poets, artists and writers did not just aspire to be "lovers of death."
They also tried to open this rather taboo subject "philistines" topic.
And so we say to ourselves: decadence ... what is it? Where did this phenomenon come from and what does it mean? We are trying not just to label him, but to understand why these people are often called immoral. After all, these are the great creators - Verlaine, Oscar Wilde, Edgar Allan Poe, Teofil Gauthier ... Perhaps because many of them believed that the moral standards of modern society are also outdated and turned into formal categories. And, perhaps, these norms required expansion. It is generally accepted that decadent poets like Oscar Wilde were fascinated by evil. But this writer and esthete actually suffered for his homosexual inclinations. And today, many human rights activists advocate that such people should be able to fulfill themselves .
Decadence ... What is it? This is what the famous 19th-century philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche asked himself about. And he answered it as follows: these are the times when culture dies, becomes its opposite, and a person weakens and loses the will to live and to power. Spengler echoed him. The culture of modern Europe is declining and losing all its main positions. However, the twentieth century showed us that this controversial phenomenon was only a harbinger of change. Perhaps his followers felt the approach of a severe crisis, world wars and upheavals. After all, our morality has actually changed. And now the word "decadence" is again in fashion. What does this mean for modern man? For some, this is a hobby for the art of the 19th century, for some it is a rapture of death, and for someone it’s just an album of the Agatha Christie band. We live in a time of pluralism. The choice is ours.