Through the Gates of Horn and Ivory: Nerval's Vertical Geographies

Abstract: At the outset of Aurélia , Nerval refers to the classical "gates of horn and ivory" that separate the narrator from the invisible world of dream. Unlike passive dreamers of the classical tradition, however, his narrator breaks through ("percer") these gates, initiating a narrative of travel within the dream visions. This movement is characterized by a consistent up-and-down displacement with phases of ascension and descent, which impede progress in his initiatory quest. It is ultimately only by a sideways move, through a "porte latérale," thrust open by the symbolic figure of "Saturnin," that the narrator achieves the hope of redemption.