Hugo Lacroix's 'L'Enfer' Anthology: A Literary Descent into Hell
Jacques Henric examines 'L'Enfer' (Hell), a compilation by Hugo Lacroix published by La Différence, which gathers texts and visuals spanning 28 centuries concerning hell. Lacroix posits that hell is a construct of writing, which is intrinsically tormenting. The book begins with a quote from 17th-century Reverend Christopher Love, highlighting the failure of earthly representations to convey hell's suffering. It includes contributions from notable figures such as Boccaccio, Bosch, Goya, Blake, alongside philosophers like Origen and Schopenhauer. The review emphasizes that hell has inspired more discourse than paradise, reflecting a human fascination with damnation. The concluding chapter, 'Hell on Earth,' addresses wars and atrocities. Henric speculates that Lacroix might create a paradise anthology, though it may not reach the same depth. Alain Rey's 'Dictionnaire amoureux du Diable' is also referenced.
Key facts
- Hugo Lacroix's book 'L'Enfer' is an anthology of texts and images on hell spanning 28 centuries.
- The book opens with a quote from 17th-century Puritan Reverend Christopher Love.
- Lacroix argues that hell is a product of writing and that writing is inherently infernal.
- The anthology includes figures such as Boccaccio, Bosch, Bruegel, Dürer, Goya, Sade, Baudelaire, and Mick Jagger.
- The final chapter 'Hell on Earth' references world wars, Auschwitz, and the Gulag.
- The review was written by Jacques Henric and published in artpress.
- Alain Rey's 'Dictionnaire amoureux du Diable' is also noted as published by Plon.
- Henric suggests Lacroix might compile a future anthology on paradise.
Entities
Artists
- Hugo Lacroix
- Jacques Henric
- Christopher Love
- Boccaccio
- Hieronymus Bosch
- Pieter Bruegel the Elder
- Hans Baldung Grien
- Albrecht Dürer
- Francisco Goya
- François Rabelais
- Denis Diderot
- Jonathan Swift
- Marquis de Sade
- William Blake
- Martin Luther
- Charles Fourier
- Charles Baudelaire
- Arthur Rimbaud
- Comte de Lautréamont
- Auguste Rodin
- D.H. Lawrence
- Marcel Jouhandeau
- James Joyce
- Louis-Ferdinand Céline
- Georges Bataille
- Antonin Artaud
- Philippe Sollers
- Pascal Quignard
- Mick Jagger
- Keith Richards
- Origen
- Girolamo Savonarola
- John Calvin
- Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet
- Montesquieu
- Thomas Hobbes
- Léon Bloy
- Ignatius of Loyola
- François-René de Chateaubriand
- Arthur Schopenhauer
- Hippolyte Taine
- Étienne de La Boétie
- Marguerite Duras
- Stendhal
- Giacomo Casanova
- Antoine Watteau
- Jean Roudaut
- Michel Houellebecq
- Alain Rey
- Oliver Cromwell
Institutions
- La Différence
- Plon
- artpress
Locations
- Florence
- Italy
- Lascaux
- France
Sources
- artpress —