Jeanne Duval
Encyclopedia
Jeanne Duval (c.1820 – 1862) was a Haiti
an-born actress and dancer of mixed
French
and black African
ancestry. For 20 years, she was the muse
of French poet and art critic Charles Baudelaire
. They met in 1842, when Duval left Haiti
for France
, and the two remained together, albeit stormily, for the next two decades. Duval is said to have been the woman whom Baudelaire loved most, in his life, after his mother. She was born in Haiti on an unknown date, sometime around 1820.
Poems of Baudelaire's which are dedicated to Duval or pay her homage are: Le balcon, Parfum exotique, La chevelure, Sed non satiata, Le serpent qui danse, and Une charogne.
Baudelaire called her "mistress of mistresses" and his "Vénus Noire" ("Black Venus
"), and it is believed that, to him, Duval symbolized the dangerous beauty, sexuality, and mystery of a Creole
woman in mid-nineteenth century France. She lived at 6, rue de la Femme-sans-tête (Street of the Headless Woman), near the hôtel Pimodan.
Manet
, a friend of Baudelaire, painted Duval in his 1862 painting Baudelaire's Mistress, Reclining. She was, by this time, going blind.
Duval may have died of syphilis
, as early as 1862. Five years prior to Baudelaire, also of syphilis. Other sources also claim that Duval survived Baudelaire. Nadar
claimed to have seen Duval, last, in 1870—by this time, she was on crutches, suffering heavily from syphilis.
's The Salt Roads, a work of historic fiction, and as the main character for the film. In addition, she is the inspiration for a song called "Street of Roses" (Улица Роз) from then-Soviet heavy metal band Aria
(Ария), on their 1987 release "Asphalt Hero" (Герой Асфальта), and for the short story "Black Venus" by Angela Carter
. The film My Heart Laid Bare, currently in production at Disruptive Element Films, is about the life of Jeanne Duval.
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
an-born actress and dancer of mixed
Multiracial
The terms multiracial and mixed-race describe people whose ancestries come from multiple races. Unlike the term biracial, which often is only used to refer to having parents or grandparents of two different races, the term multiracial may encompass biracial people but can also include people with...
French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
and black African
Black people
The term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a...
ancestry. For 20 years, she was the muse
Muse
The Muses in Greek mythology, poetry, and literature, are the goddesses who inspire the creation of literature and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge, related orally for centuries in the ancient culture, that was contained in poetic lyrics and myths...
of French poet and art critic Charles Baudelaire
Charles Baudelaire
Charles Baudelaire was a French poet who produced notable work as an essayist, art critic, and pioneering translator of Edgar Allan Poe. His most famous work, Les Fleurs du mal expresses the changing nature of beauty in modern, industrializing Paris during the nineteenth century...
. They met in 1842, when Duval left Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
for France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and the two remained together, albeit stormily, for the next two decades. Duval is said to have been the woman whom Baudelaire loved most, in his life, after his mother. She was born in Haiti on an unknown date, sometime around 1820.
Poems of Baudelaire's which are dedicated to Duval or pay her homage are: Le balcon, Parfum exotique, La chevelure, Sed non satiata, Le serpent qui danse, and Une charogne.
Baudelaire called her "mistress of mistresses" and his "Vénus Noire" ("Black Venus
Venus (mythology)
Venus is a Roman goddess principally associated with love, beauty, sex,sexual seduction and fertility, who played a key role in many Roman religious festivals and myths...
"), and it is believed that, to him, Duval symbolized the dangerous beauty, sexuality, and mystery of a Creole
Creole peoples
The term Creole and its cognates in other languages — such as crioulo, criollo, créole, kriolu, criol, kreyol, kreol, kriulo, kriol, krio, etc. — have been applied to people in different countries and epochs, with rather different meanings...
woman in mid-nineteenth century France. She lived at 6, rue de la Femme-sans-tête (Street of the Headless Woman), near the hôtel Pimodan.
Manet
Manet
-MANET as an abbreviation:*MANET is a mobile ad hoc network, a self-configuring mobile wireless network.*MANET database or Molecular Ancestry Network, bioinformatics database-People with the surname Manet:*Édouard Manet, a 19th-century French painter....
, a friend of Baudelaire, painted Duval in his 1862 painting Baudelaire's Mistress, Reclining. She was, by this time, going blind.
Duval may have died of syphilis
Syphilis
Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infection caused by the spirochete bacterium Treponema pallidum subspecies pallidum. The primary route of transmission is through sexual contact; however, it may also be transmitted from mother to fetus during pregnancy or at birth, resulting in congenital syphilis...
, as early as 1862. Five years prior to Baudelaire, also of syphilis. Other sources also claim that Duval survived Baudelaire. Nadar
Nadar (photographer)
Félix Nadar was the pseudonym of Gaspard-Félix Tournachon , a French photographer, caricaturist, journalist, novelist and balloonist. Some photographs by Nadar are marked "P. Nadar" for "Photographie Nadar" .-Life: born in April 1820 in Paris...
claimed to have seen Duval, last, in 1870—by this time, she was on crutches, suffering heavily from syphilis.
Popular culture
Jeanne Duval serves as a main character in Caribbean author Nalo HopkinsonNalo Hopkinson
Nalo Hopkinson is a Jamaican science fiction and fantasy writer and editor who lives in Canada. Her novels and short stories such as those in her collection Skin Folk often draw on Caribbean history and language, and its traditions of oral and written storytelling.Hopkinson has...
's The Salt Roads, a work of historic fiction, and as the main character for the film. In addition, she is the inspiration for a song called "Street of Roses" (Улица Роз) from then-Soviet heavy metal band Aria
Aria
An aria in music was originally any expressive melody, usually, but not always, performed by a singer. The term is now used almost exclusively to describe a self-contained piece for one voice usually with orchestral accompaniment...
(Ария), on their 1987 release "Asphalt Hero" (Герой Асфальта), and for the short story "Black Venus" by Angela Carter
Angela Carter
Angela Carter was an English novelist and journalist, known for her feminist, magical realism, and picaresque works...
. The film My Heart Laid Bare, currently in production at Disruptive Element Films, is about the life of Jeanne Duval.
External links
- 20 English translations of Baudelaire's poem “The Balcony”, addressed to Jeanne Duval