Question

Symbolism is based on the doctrine of:

• A. Aestheticism
• B. Metaphysics
• C. Correspondences
• D. Impressionism

Answer 1

Answer:

C. Correspondences

The Doctrine of Correspondences and Symbolism

• Symbolism was a late 19th-century literary and artistic movement, primarily originating in France, which sought to express ideas, emotions, and spiritual realities indirectly through the use of symbolic images and suggestive language, rather than direct description. It emerged as a reaction against the materialism and empiricism of Realism and Naturalism.
• The core principle underpinning Symbolism, especially in its literary manifestation, is the Doctrine of Correspondences. This doctrine posits that there the physical, sensible world is intricately linked to a deeper, spiritual, or ideal reality.
• The concept of Correspondences suggests that visible objects, sounds, colors, and sensations in the material world are not merely what they appear to be, but are symbols or analogues of invisible, spiritual truths, feelings, or ideas.
• A seminal text for this doctrine in literature is Charles Baudelaire's poem "Correspondances" from his collection Les Fleurs du Mal (1857). In this poem, Baudelaire explicitly states: "Nature is a temple where living pillars / Sometimes let confused words escape; / Man walks there through forests of symbols / Which observe him with familiar glances."
• This doctrine advocates for a world where different sensory experiences (sight, sound, smell, touch, taste) can evoke one another, a phenomenon known as synesthesia. For example, a certain color might suggest a particular sound, or a smell might evoke a specific emotion or memory.
• Symbolist poets and artists aimed to create art that was evocative and suggestive, rather than merely descriptive. They believed that through symbols, they could hint at the ineffable and the mystical, appealing to the reader's intuition and imagination.
• Key figures associated with Symbolism and the doctrine of Correspondences include French poets like Stéphane Mallarmé, Paul Verlaine, and Arthur Rimbaud, who deeply influenced later literary movements such as Modernism, Imagism, and Surrealism.
• For competitive exams, remember that Symbolism's emphasis on suggestion, musicality of language, and the use of symbols to explore the inner world and the mystical, are all rooted in the belief in Correspondences between the physical and spiritual realms.