In Richard Brautigan's nine part poem: "The Galilee Hitch-Hiker," he inserts the nineteenth century French poet Baudelaire into several ironic and particularly American situations. Baudelaire, who pioneered a prose poetry style which largely reflected the new lifestyle of fast-paced urban modernity in his time, held philosophies that love is only an extension of man's need for prostitution, and that pleasure "lies in the certainty of doing evil." He also held wise opinions on growing to maturity: that "In a man who has reached maturity, the taste for ruinous dispersal should be replaced by a taste for productive concentration." (taken from "Fusee I") With this background in mind, a rereading of Brautigan's poem exhibits several comically ironic and intelligently constructed situations.
I really like part 5, entitled "The Hour of Eternity." It places Baudelaire in the cosumerist mold (he buys a cat jeweled necklace) that he commonly explores.
The poem can be found here:
Great Baudelaire archive
-Evan Penza
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