Pierre Louys Escritor francés cuyo verdadero nombre era Louis, que transformó en Louys por excentricidad. Se educó en París donde trabó amistad con André Gide y Paul Valéry. Empezó muy pronto a componer versos y en 1891 se reveló como poeta de tendencias parnasianas. Su obra, empero, aparecía rodeada de un sensualismo que hasta su visión de Grecia, a la que siempre consideró un mundo perfecto, queda reducida a un lugar ideal de amores libres, alegrías fáciles y delicados placeres. Tradujo la poesía de los autores griegos y fue, a su vez, poeta de forma pura. Su gusto de esteta decadente resultaba adecuado al ambiente del simbolismo tardío. Sus obras más notables son Las canciones de Bilitis (musicalizada luego por Debussy) y las novelas Afrodita y La mujer y el pelele, esta última protagonizada en su versión cinematográfica por Marlene Dietrich.

MBB-6

NB-4

Librería 7. Estante 3.

The plot of this book is ludicrous in places, even if we consider that Louÿs is trying to give us an allegory written as if it was from antiquity. His main message is that nudity, human sexuality, and pleasure should be embraced, that these things which seem immoral in the worst of judgments and ephemeral in the best, are in reality what give so much joy to our brief lives, and the ancients knew this. He also points out the destructive power of love, particularly when one is submissive to another.

Louÿs is a fascinating author, because on the one hand he argues for tolerance, freedom from repression, and even gay marriage (in 1896!), while on the other, objectifies women. The novel comes across as intellectual soft-core porn, with a lot of descriptions of women in various stages of undress, and in this hand-made, numbered edition, a large number of illustrations by Zier. It’s all tastefully done, but at times seems quaint and dated, and at others seems seriously creepy, e.g. child prostitution, a crucifixion, and other cruelty. The story itself only merits 3 stars, but with a good, older edition, and considering that Louÿs was trying to push the boundaries, I did find it entertaining enough to round to 3.5 stars. And, I should note as a postscript, my hat is off to TheAmpersand for his excellent review (scroll down!); I couldn’t agree more. ( )