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“Polluted Rome, Invaded by the Voluptuous and Ferocious Cults of Asia...” (O. Mirbeau). A Reading of L’agonie by Jean Lombard (1888)
Abstract
In his novel L’Agonie, Jean Lombard presents Rome during the reign of Elagabalus and the introduction of the cult of the Black Stone, of Syrian origin, into the capital of the Empire. This event profoundly disrupts the traditional categories: by making sexual indeterminacy and the perpetual solicitation of the senses a principle of governance, Elagabalus favours the individual at the expense of the community. This new sensibility clashes with both the traditional Roman cults and the views of some Christians. Violence thus plays a decisive role, both physically and psychologically, as it comes to characterise the tyrannical influence of the cult of the Black Stone on the minds of certain characters in the novel, ultimately leading them to their doom. Lombard concludes this tragic interlude on a note of disillusionment.
Keywords:
Jean Lombard, Elagabalus, fin-de-siècle, RomeDetails
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