HENRI AUGUSTE BARBIER
\hˈɛnɹi ˈɔːɡʌst bˈɑːbɪə], \hˈɛnɹi ˈɔːɡʌst bˈɑːbɪə], \h_ˈɛ_n_ɹ_i_ ˈɔː_ɡ_ʌ_s_t b_ˈɑː_b_ɪ__ə]\
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A French poet; born in Paris, April 29, 1805; died at Nice, Feb. 13, 1882. He studied law, but followed his inclination for literature: and having first written a historical novel (1830. with Royer), depicting French mediaeval society, was led, through the July revolution, to enter his proper sphere, that of the poetical satire; in which he obtained a brilliant success with "The Iambes" (1831,31st ed. 1882). a series of poignant satires, political and social, lashing the moral depravity of the higher classes,-notably the ignoble scramble for office under the new government, the subject of "The Quarry" the most famous among these satires. His next works, "Lamentation" (1833), bewailing the misfortunes of Italy, and "Lazarus" (1837), in which he describes the misery of the English and Irish laborer, show a considerable falling off; and in those that followed, the poet of "The Iambes" is scarcely to be recognized. He was elected to the Academy in 1869.
By Charles Dudley Warner