"Fin de siècle" is a French term that means "end of century." It refers to the time when one century ends and another begins, similar to the English phrase "turn of the century." Without specific context, the term usually describes the end of the 19th century, a time when many people believed society was in decline but also saw hope for a new future. The "spirit" of fin de siècle describes the cultural characteristics of the 1880s and 1890s, such as feelings of boredom, distrust in others, sadness, and the belief that civilization leads to moral decline.
The term "fin de siècle" is often linked to French art and artists because these cultural traits first appeared in France. However, the movement influenced many European countries. The term applies to the ideas and emotions connected to this culture, not just its origin in France. The themes explored by fin de siècle artists inspired later artistic movements like symbolism and modernism.
The political ideas of fin de siècle were controversial and had a major influence on the development of fascism and the science of geopolitics, including the theory of Lebensraum. Michael Heffernan and Mackubin Thomas Owens, professors of historical geography, wrote about the origins of geopolitics:
"The new world of the twentieth century needed to be understood as a single, connected global system. Technology and communication made the world feel smaller, creating a shared system. This time was marked by ideas that aimed to unite the world into one."
A major political theme of the era was a rejection of materialism, rationalism, positivism, middle-class society, and liberal democracy. People of this time supported ideas that valued emotions, the unknown, personal feelings, and life energy. Many believed civilization was in crisis and needed a complete solution.
Fin de siècle syndrome
In his 2000 article titled "Fin de Siècle, Fin du Monde?" [End of the Century, End of the World?], Michael Heffernan discusses a condition he refers to as "the syndrome of fin de siècle" in the Christian world. During the year 2000, this condition was linked to the Year 2000 problem. Times when a century ends, known as "fins de siècle," are often connected to people's hopes and expectations about the future.
Degeneration theory
B. A. Morel's degeneration theory suggested that while societies can advance, they may also stay the same or even decline if influenced by harmful environments, such as poor national conditions or outside cultural effects. This decline, called degeneration, was believed to be passed from one generation to the next, leading to a lack of mental ability and mental decline due to inherited traits. Max Nordau's Degeneration described two main traits in people who were considered degenerated in society: ego mania and mysticism. Ego mania meant an extreme focus on oneself and one's feelings or actions, often shown through overly detailed descriptions. Mysticism referred to the difficulty of turning basic observations into complete ideas, which was often seen in symbolist art. Nordau's view of these traits as signs of degeneration created the idea that society was slowly falling apart due to the moral and intellectual problems of the late 19th century, which contributed to growing pessimism in European thought. During this time, people turned to science to better understand the world around them. The study of how the mind and body work together, now called psychology, became important because it explored topics that could not be shown through Romantic art, instead relying on behaviors and symbols to explain how the mind functions. The idea of genius returned to public interest during this period, inspired by Nordau's work on degeneration. This led to research about artists believed to be affected by social decline and what distinguished genius from a lack of mental ability. Genius and those with mental challenges were found to share traits, such as delusions of grandeur and the madness of doubt. Delusions of grandeur involve an exaggerated belief in one's own importance, leading to feelings of isolation, as Nordau noted in the work of Baudelaire. Madness of doubt meant extreme indecision and an intense focus on small details. The key difference between a degenerate genius and a degenerate madman was the genius's deep knowledge in specific areas combined with a belief in their own superiority. These psychological traits contributed to originality, unusual behavior, and a sense of isolation, all signs of le mal du siècle (the evil of the century), which affected French youth at the start of the 19th century and later spread across Europe as the century ended.
Pessimism
England's ideas and beliefs were shaped by the spread of pessimism across Europe, beginning with the work of philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer before 1860. This idea gradually influenced artists worldwide. R.H. Goodale found 235 essays by British and American writers about pessimism, written between 1871 and 1900, showing how important pessimism was to English thought. Oscar Wilde's writings also show how pessimism affected English people. In An Ideal Husband, Wilde's main character asks another character if she is an optimist or a pessimist, calling these the only two popular beliefs left in society. Wilde's focus on personal philosophy over religion supports the idea of degeneration theory, which connects to the influence of Charles Baudelaire on other countries. However, the earlier optimism of Romanticism also shaped changing ideas in England. Pessimism reappeared in Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, written in 1895.
In this play, a servant named Lane shares a realistic view about the world, tempering his master's hopeful attitude about the weather. His pessimism pleases his master, showing that a good servant understands philosophical ideas. Charles Baudelaire's work reflects the pessimism of his time. His writings about modern life showed the decline and decay linked to French art at the turn of the century. His use of symbolism also promoted the mystical style associated with fin de siècle artists. Baudelaire's translations of Edgar Allan Poe's poetry highlighted the role of translation in fin de siècle culture. His own work influenced French and English artists through modern themes and symbolism. Baudelaire, along with writers like Rimbaud, became known as French decadents, a group that inspired the English aesthetes, including Oscar Wilde. Both groups believed art's purpose was to create emotional responses and highlight the beauty in the unnatural, rather than teaching strict moral lessons.
Literary conventions
During the late 19th century, known as the Victorian fin de siècle, stories about change, fear, and the human body were common in Gothic Literature. Books like Robert Louis Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886), Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray (1891), Arthur Machen's The Great God Pan (1894), H. G. Wells' The Time Machine (1895), Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897), and Richard Marsh's The Beetle (1897) explored ideas about transformation, decay, and the limits of the human mind and body. These stories reflected real scientific, social, and medical discoveries from the time.
At the end of the 19th century, many books imagined future wars. These stories became very popular across Europe, with some selling thousands of copies and being translated into many languages. Starting in 1890, these tales about coming wars changed in different ways. The popularity of this theme was not unique to every end of a century but instead showed growing concerns and the beliefs of the time. These stories also aimed to influence political ideas. Duncan Bell explains that the genre’s success came from shared fears of the era. Many people at the time, including writers in The Contemporary Review, noted that Europe was filled with rising tension, such as when they wrote in 1876 that "the pulse of Europe is unquestionably beating rather quick."
Artistic conventions
The works of the Decadents and Aesthetes show the typical features of late 19th-century art. Holbrook Jackson's The Eighteen Nineties explains the traits of English decadence, which include: interest in unusual or shocking things, use of fake or unnatural elements, focus on oneself, and a desire to explore strange or dark ideas. The first trait involves paying attention to things that are considered unclean or unnatural. Romanticism encouraged people to think that physical appearance showed a person's inner character, but late 19th-century artists believed that beauty was the foundation of life, so they valued things that were not traditionally seen as beautiful.
This belief in finding beauty in unpleasant or strange things led artists to focus on artificial elements and symbolism. They avoided using hard-to-express ideas of beauty and instead used abstract symbols to express emotions and ideas to their audience without requiring a shared understanding of the world.
The third trait is egoism, which means giving too much attention to one's own achievements. This can cause feelings of loneliness or sadness, as seen in the work of Baudelaire, and shows how aesthetic artists preferred city scenes over natural landscapes because they avoided the natural world.
Finally, curiosity is shown through interest in evil or immoral themes, such as the macabre or the strange. However, artists did not try to teach moral lessons to their audience.