Today, I celebrate the birthday of my favorite poet, the late great Isidore Lucien Ducasse. The poet is more commonly known by his nomme-de-plume, Le Comte de Lautreamont. The picture accompanying this post is the only one of Ducasse known to exist. There is another photo, but it is unknown which of the two pictures is the true representation, however, my feeling is that this picture is that of Ducasse.

The Biography of Ducasse: Isidore, of French parentage, was born on April 4th, 1846 in Montevideo, Uruguay where his father was stationed at the French Consulate.

There is little known about the life of this singular poetic genius, although there does exist, a brief but concise biography.

The Death of Ducasse: Isidore died at the young age of 24, on November 24th, 1870, due to unknown causes. However, it has been suggested by an acquaintance of the poet, that he had been ill shortly before his untimely death. After death, his body was unclaimed, and was reported to have been interred in an unmarked pauper’s grave in Paris — a sad and tragic end for such a tremendously talented poet.

The Birth of Maldoror: The master work (and only complete one) written by Ducasse is the famed, Les Chants de Maldoror, which was published several years after his death. He tried in vain to get the work published during his brief life, but it was considered too blasphemous at the time.

The Literary Legacy of Ducasse: In 1927, there was a renewed interest in the writings of Ducasse, based upon fragments which were published by Surrealists, Phillipe Soupault and Andre Breton. The latter, proclaiming Ducasse as no less than the Patron Saint of Surrealism.

Today, there is continued and growing interest in the work of Ducasse by a number of artists, such as musical groups “Current 93“, “Coil“, and myriad other writers, poets and of course, Psychics such as myself.

Links of Interest: Here are some Magickal Literary Links to other sites and pages dedicated to Isidore Lucien Ducasse, one of the most original poets who ever lived. May his words anoint and startle you with their mad brilliance, as he did me, the day I was blessed to discover the genius of this poetic master. Visit my Memorial Page for the Poet, and send him a birthday message, which I’ll post on the page.

Maldoror on MySpace: The Spirit of Maldoror currently lives on MySpace, where he is regularly Channeled by the Trance Medium, Altatheria. Visit Maldoror’s Psychic Page to read his new poems as they are released from the aethyrs.