Magnificent autograph manuscript of seven lines of poetry by Victor Hugo, unsigned, no date, penned on an off-white 4.25 x 2 sheet, containing multiple verses from his great philosophical poem ‘Dieu’ or ‘God,’ which references Prometheus, the celestial fire, and Mount Olympus. It should be noted that this handwritten draft version contains several differences from the published version and that the vertical stroke indicates that Hugo copied these verses in a later document. The verses, transcribed in French, read, in part (loosely translated): “(Heavenly fire burning on Mount Olympus)— / …But Prometheus took the flame and man can / To be in turn Titan and even Gods he wants / If he knows how to fight, think, climb…embrace / And if he doesn't let the big torch go out / For two divine rays make up the clarity / And one prisoner and the other is beauty.” In fine condition. Hugo donated his literary manuscripts to the French National Library and himself destroyed many first drafts like this one. Such documents, which were of course never signed by the author, are consequently scarce in private hands and remain the best testimonies to the creative process of the illustrious author.
‘Dieu’ is a long poem published in 1891, six years after the death of its author, Victor Hugo. But, according to his daughter, Adele, the section, now titled ‘Dieu,’ first called SOLlTUDINES COELl, was read by the author to his family at home on May 2, 1855. So it begs the question of why it was not published until 1891. Extracts of Hugo's correspondence with his editor discovered that the author requested that the title be modified several times; after calling it SOLlTUDINES COELl it was then to be named ASCENSION DANS LES TENEBRES, or ‘Ascent into darkness.’ On February 12, 1856, Hugo suggested that the title be changed to ‘DIEU’ and that this lone word be written in big letters whereas his own name be printed in very small letters. Another edition of the work shows it with the subtitle ‘L'Ocean d'en haut’ (or The Ocean of the Heights), and another edition with a different title, ‘La Voix du Gouffre’ (or The Voice of the Chasm). In March 1857, the publisher advised Hugo of the impossibility of publishing this text due to the current religious climate, which, points squarely to the poem’s late publication: censorship. Indeed Baudelaire's Les Fleurs du Mal were condemned a few months later.
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