Aldous Huxley, from poet to mystic

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Huxley began as a poet, mastering the modern satirical voice that used art to create parodic poetry reflecting the breakdowns and dead ends of the post-war era. His most irreverent works are contrapuntal, effectively silencing traditional poets and formats. His poetic personas often fail to maintain conventional forms or intentionally sabotage them. By 1920, he emerged as a parodic counterpart to formative intelligences like Dante and Goethe, who positively synthesized their times. Meckier analyzes Huxley’s poems, including “Leda,” his ironic modern myth, and traces his evolution through the poets featured in five of his eleven novels, whose various poetic stances ultimately collapse. However, Huxley began to recognize a spiritual significance in the creative impulse, leading him to reassess many Romantic and Victorian poets he once dismissed as frauds. He eventually celebrated mystical contemplation as a form of silent poetry, envisioning a utopia where everyone can express their poetic potential. Huxley transformed from a figure who parodied established poets to a philosopher advocating for a poetry of silence, marking a significant evolution in his career.